Welcome! With a Hawaiian Lei

When Hawaiians plan a family get together, they make a lei for everyone coming to the event. Welcome guests to your classroom and school with bright leis.

• 1.

  Colorful tropical flower leis are used to welcome people to the Hawaiian Islands. They are worn at weddings and always play a part in big family celebrations. Find out more about this colorful tradition and the kinds of flowers used. Why not start a school tradition of giving leis to visitors? This is one way to create gorgeous tropical flowers with paper.

• 2.

  To make 10 flowers, use Crayola® Scissors to cut 20 pieces of paper, each 2 by 4 inches (5 x 10 cm). Fold each piece in half.

• 3.

  Hold the folded side with one hand. Cut a flower shape (scalloped edges) along the open sides. Punch a hole in the middle of the folded edge. Unfold. Decorate the flowers with Crayola Color Wave Markers.

• 4.

  Glue the folded edges of two papers together with Crayola School Glue. Repeat to make the other nine flowers. Air-dry your 3-dimensional blossoms!

• 5.

  Cut 10 oval paper leaves about 2 inches (5 cm) long. Punch a hole in the top of each one. Color the leaves. In Hawaii, these are called ti leaves.

• 6.

  Alternate your flowers and leaves on a long ribbon. Attach ends with tape around your neck. Welcome guests with a friendly "Aloha!" and a beautiful lei. How else can you be sure they enjoy their visit?

Benefits

• Students explore Hawaiian customs and tropical flowers used to make leis. </P>
• Children adapt one colorful Hawaiian tradition to their classroom or school. </P>
• Students create colorful paper leis with which to welcome classroom guests. </P>

Adaptations

• Early Polynesian voyagers, who took an incredible journey from Tahiti, brought the custom of the lei to the Hawaiian Islands. They navigated by the stars in sailing canoes. Study astronomy and plot their probable voyage with a star chart. What other peopl
• Make a timeline of when each state became part of the United States. Link these dates with other events in the world at the time. </P>
• Listen to Hawaiian music. What instruments are Hawaiian? Ask someone in your community to teach your group the hula, the traditional storytelling dance of Hawaii. How does it resemble today’s popular dances? </P>
• Assessment: Observe children during the creative process for their ability to concentrate, stay on task, and create a carefully made, creative gift. </P>