¨Ηρθε ο Λάζαρος, ήρθαν τα Βάγια... Saturday of Lazarus

Coloring page of the Raising of Lazarus

Icon of the Raising of Lazarus

Lazaraki cookie

Lazarus dolls, picture can be found here

Ήρθε ο Λάζαρος ήρθαν τα Βάγια,ήρθε των Βαγιών η εβδομάδα.Ξύπνα Λάζαρε και μην κοιμάσαι,ήρθε η μέρα σου και η χαρά σου.
Πού ήσουν Λάζαρε; Πού ήσουν κρυμμένος;Κάτω στους νεκρούς στους πεθαμένους.Δε μου φέρνετε, λίγο νεράκι,που το στόμα μου πικρό φαρμάκι.Δε μου φέρνετε λίγο λεμόνι.που το στόμα μου, σαν περιβόλι.
Ήρθε ο Λάζαρος, ήρθαν τα Βάγια,ήρθε η Κυριακή που τρων’ τα ψάρια.Bάγια, Bάγια και Bαγιώ.τρώνε ψάρι και κολιό.Και την άλλη Κυριακή,τρώνε το ψητό τ’ αρνί.
Ήρθε ο Λάζαρος ήρθαν τα Βάγια,ήρθε η Κυριακή που τρων’ τα ψάρια.Σήκω Λάζαρε και μην κοιμάσαι,ήρθε η μάνα σου από την πόλη,σου ‘φερε χαρτί και κομπολόι.Γράψε Θόδωρε και συ Δημήτρη,
γράψε Λεμονιά και Κυπαρίσσι.Το κοφνάκι μου θέλει αυγά,κι η τσεπούλα μου θέλει λεφτά.Βάγια, Βάγια των Βαγιών,τρώνε ψάρι και κολιόκαι την άλλη Κυριακήτρώνε το παχύ τ’ αρνί.»

On the Saturday of Lazarus, the Saturday before Holy Week, women in Greece, and of Greek heritage around the world make cookies or small loaves of bread in the shape of a person and call them "Lazarous or Lazarakia" In various areas of Greece, children make Lazarus dolls out of fabric and tie them onto a stick decorating it with flowers and go around singing the Lazarus carols (like the one in the youtube video above). Many times in return, they receive eggs to paint red for Pascha.

Lazarakia recipe from Adventures of an Orthodox Mom

Make a simple Lazarus doll out of fabric, directions here

Greek alphabet activity game/pocket chart

I use this chart in class for any number of activities. As a class we pull words out and sound them out together. We also practice putting the words in alphabetical order. The children work independently by picking words and writing them in their word journals, and testing each other on what the words say.

The word strips used for this can be found at the Cypriot Ministry of Education and Culture site, where they were origianlly used as words for a letter neighborhood (the letter neighborhood is explained in their post, and has pictures to go along with the explanation so you can see how it was implemented in a classroom setting). Click on the link that says Καρτέλες λέξεων-γραμμάτων . For durability, laminate all the word strips and letters and place a piece of velcro on the back so they can easily be placed and removed from the yellow section of the chart.

The letter pocket chart can be found at Discount School Supply. Simply print out the Greek alphabet and glue it over the English letters. In the photo above, vowels and consonants were printed out in different colors (red for vowels and blue for consonants just like they do at American school), and laminated before being pasted onto the chart.

If you would like more pictures for your chart, print out this wonderful resource, Η Αλφαβήτα Ταξιδεύει from Ε.ΔΙΑ.Μ.ΜΕ.

Twister anyone?

Not too long ago, I attended an early childhood educator conference where I took part in a session called "make and take". For those of you who are not familiar with this, basically, there were a couple of presenters who showed us how they take everyday items and make them into effective teaching tools. At that time, I was struggling with how to teach my Greek school class in such a way that the children would learn and have fun at the same time. I searched the internet for items to bring into my class, but really could not find any. My point in all this is to tell you something that the presenter said that really changed things for me. She said, there are teachers who buy things to use in their class, and then there are teachers who use the things around them and create things to help their children learn. Wow! That was so liberating. Yes, I could create things out of nothing and make them effective learning tools.

So, as I was cleaning out my children's game cabinet, I came upon a "Twister" mat with no spinner (my children have an abnormal fascination with game spinners). As I was about to put it into the recycling bin, I counted the circles...hhmmm...24 circles and then it hit me, I could repurpose this into a Greek alphabet game. So I drew out the letters of the alphabet on each circle, and the rest is history. My students enjoy this so much, my kids ask me to bring it home so they can play with it, and the best part is, they are learning their letters in the process. Not only that, but it teaches them left from right and body parts!

It is easy to make... find a "Twister" mat and with permanent markers draw a letter in each circle. If you do not have a mat, simply go to the dollar store and purchase a plain shower curtain. Lay it out on the floor, use a dish or bowl to make 24 circles and then draw the letters in the circles. Voila.. a useful game that cost you a buck!

To play, simply call out the letter sound, or a word that begins with a certain letter sound, tell the kids to place either their left or right foot on the letter circle you called out and have fun!

I have also used this as a matching game for upper case and lower case letters. If you put capital letters on your mat, print out or write out the lower case letters on index cards, and have the children take turns matching the letters.

25η Μαρτίου- Ο Ευαγγελισμός της Θεοτόκου/Annunciation

From the Orthodox Church in America,
an icon coloring page of the Annunciation

Απολυτίκιον Ευαγγελισμού

Σήμερον της σωτηρίας ημών το κεφάλαιον, και του απ αιώνος Μυστηρίου η φανέρωσις. Ο υιός του Θεού, Υιός της παρθένου γίνεται, και Γαβριήλ την χάριν ευαγγελίζεται. Διο και ημείς συν αυτώ τη Θεοτόκω βοήσωμεν . Χαίρε κεχαριτωμένη, ο Κύριος μετά σου

Κοντάκιον Ευαγγελισμού

Τη υπερμάχω στρατηγώ τα νικητήρια, ως λυτρωθείσα των δεινών ευχαριστήρια, ανα­γράφω σοι η Πόλις σου Θεοτόκε. Αλλ’ ως έχουσα το κράτος απροσμάχητον, εκ παν­τοίων με κινδύνων ελευθέρωσαν, ίνα κρά­ζω σοι, Χαίρε Νύμφη ανύμφευτε.

A nice article in Greek from the March 2010 issue of Προς τήν Νίκην that draws comparisons between the Greek National Anthem and the Kontakion of the Annunciation.

Another article from Προς τήν Νίκην in Greek explaining the icon of the Annunciation.

From the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, a detailed explanation in English

of the icon of the Annunciation here

Greek vocabulary words to associate with the icon:

άγγελος (angel), Θεοτόκος (Theotokos), φτερά (wings), Γαβριήλ (Gabriel), ύμνοι(hymns), εικόνα (icon), χρώματα (colors), μήνυμα (message), χαρά (joy), έκπληξη (surprise), νήμα (thread/yarn), μητέρα (mother), άκτίνες (rays), ουρανός (sky), χαρούμενη (happy), τρία άστρα (three stars),σκήπτρο (scepter).

Kindergarten Curriculum- Αναλυτικό Πρόγραμμα Νηπιαγωγείου

The following is an offering from the Direct Archdiocesan District Office of Education of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North America.

In response to the need for a uniform course study for the kindergarten classes of the parochial day schools, the Direct Archdiocesan District Office of Education recently created a Curriculum for the Kindergarten to assist the teachers who teach Greek as second language to children of this age group.

Based on the developmental needs and the learning abilities of the kindergarten child, the Kindergarten Curriculum places an emphasis on oral communication and, at the same time, aims at instilling in the young learners a sense of pride, love and respect for the Greek cultural heritage and the Greek Orthodox faith.

The Kindergarten Curriculum is divided into 13 units, one of which refers to major religious holidays and customs. Each unit consists of the following: the general goal, the objective of each lesson, recommended activities and materials, basic vocabulary, phrases for oral communication practice, and a vast list of resources (songs, poems, stories, and games) to help teachers introduce each unit.

Teachers are advised to use the Curriculum as a “guide.” They may adapt it to the particular needs and abilities of their students and use various resources to achieve the general goal and the learning objectives of each lesson.

To download the curriculum, click here