Ostara: Balance & New Life
At the spring equinox, day and night are balanced again. New life bursts forth everywhere—eggs, bunnies, sprouts, and joy!
UU Principle Focus
4th Principle: A free and responsible search for truth and meaning
Like seeds pushing through soil toward light, we encourage curiosity and the search for understanding.
Learning Goals
Language Arts
- • Complete alphabet Y and Z
- • Review all 26 letters
- • Begin simple CVC words
Math
- • Equal groups and fair sharing
- • Skip counting by 2s
- • Measuring and comparing
Science & Nature
- • Understand spring equinox
- • Learn about baby animals
- • Observe plant growth
Social-Emotional
- • Celebrate new beginnings
- • Practice letting go
- • Find balance in daily life
Weekly Lessons
Week 1: Balance Returns
🕯️ Hearth Circle
Day and night are equal again. What does balance mean in our lives?
📖 Language Arts
Letter Y - Yes, Yellow, Young. Y words about new beginnings
🔢 Math
Equal groups - dividing things fairly, same amount on each side
🌿 Science & Nature
Spring equinox - day and night equal. Track sunrise/sunset
🎨 Art & Handwork
Balance mobiles, yin-yang nature art
🏃 Movement
Balance poses - stand on one foot, walk a balance beam
📚 Story Time
And Then It's Spring by Julie Fogliano
📺 "Just Can't" Day Alternatives
Videos:
- Sesame Street: Letter Y
- SciShow Kids: Equinox
Shows:
- Nature Cat: Spring Equinox
Audiobooks:
- And Then It's Spring
Week 2: Eggs & New Life
🕯️ Hearth Circle
Eggs symbolize new life. What new things are we excited about?
📖 Language Arts
Letter Z - Zigzag, Zero, Zoo. We finished the alphabet!
🔢 Math
Counting eggs, sorting by color, simple addition with eggs
🌿 Science & Nature
What hatches from eggs? Birds, reptiles, insects, fish
🎨 Art & Handwork
Natural egg dyeing - onion skins, turmeric, beet juice
🏃 Movement
Egg and spoon race, hatching from an egg movement
📚 Story Time
Rechenka's Eggs by Patricia Polacco
📺 "Just Can't" Day Alternatives
Videos:
- Sesame Street: Letter Z
- Wild Kratts: Eggs
Shows:
- Nature: Baby animals hatching
Audiobooks:
- Rechenka's Eggs
Week 3: Bunnies & Growth
🕯️ Hearth Circle
Rabbits represent fertility and abundance. What's growing in our lives?
📖 Language Arts
Alphabet review A-Z! Alphabet books, letter hunts
🔢 Math
Skip counting by 2s - bunny hops! Count ears, feet
🌿 Science & Nature
Baby animals in spring - bunnies, chicks, lambs, fawns
🎨 Art & Handwork
Bunny crafts, cotton ball art, nature collages
🏃 Movement
Bunny hops, animal movements - hop, waddle, prance
📚 Story Time
The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown
📺 "Just Can't" Day Alternatives
Videos:
- Alphabet songs compilation
- Wild Kratts: Rabbits
Shows:
- Nature: Spring babies
Audiobooks:
- The Runaway Bunny
Week 4: Seeds Sprouting
🕯️ Hearth Circle
Check our Imbolc seeds! Celebrate their growth. What else is sprouting?
📖 Language Arts
Beginning reading - simple CVC words (cat, sun, hop)
🔢 Math
Measuring plant growth - taller, shorter, same
🌿 Science & Nature
Parts of a plant - roots, stem, leaves. Observe sprouts
🎨 Art & Handwork
Plant journals, pressed flowers, seed mosaics
🏃 Movement
Grow like a plant - roots down, stem up, leaves out
📚 Story Time
The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss
📺 "Just Can't" Day Alternatives
Videos:
- SciShow Kids: How Plants Grow
- Blippi: Garden
Shows:
- Magic School Bus: Plants
Audiobooks:
- The Carrot Seed
Week 5: Spring Cleaning
🕯️ Hearth Circle
Out with the old, in with the new! What can we let go of?
📖 Language Arts
Rhyming words - spring cleaning songs and chants
🔢 Math
Sorting and organizing - by size, color, type
🌿 Science & Nature
Why do we clean in spring? Fresh air, new energy, health
🎨 Art & Handwork
Decorate cleaning supplies, make natural cleaners
🏃 Movement
Cleaning dance - sweep, dust, scrub to music
📚 Story Time
The Big Tidy Up by Norah Smaridge
📺 "Just Can't" Day Alternatives
Videos:
- Daniel Tiger: Cleaning Up
- Signing Time: Helping
Shows:
- Curious George: Cleaning episodes
Audiobooks:
- Any favorite - cleaning day is busy!
Week 6: Ostara Celebration
🕯️ Hearth Circle
Ostara ritual - egg hunt with intentions inside, welcome spring!
📖 Language Arts
Review all letters. Create a spring book. Tell spring stories
🔢 Math
Counting eggs found, fair sharing, addition practice
🌿 Science & Nature
Signs of spring all around - flowers, birds, insects, weather
🎨 Art & Handwork
Ostara baskets, flower crowns, decorated eggs
🏃 Movement
Spring celebration dance, egg hunts, outdoor play
📚 Story Time
The Story of the Easter Bunny by Katherine Tegen
📺 "Just Can't" Day Alternatives
Videos:
- Cosmic Kids: Spring Yoga
- Signing Time: Spring
Shows:
- Nature: Spring
Audiobooks:
- Spring stories collection
🥚 Ostara Celebration Ideas
- • Dye eggs with natural materials - onion skins, turmeric, beets
- • Hold an egg hunt with intentions or wishes inside plastic eggs
- • Plant seeds outdoors if weather permits
- • Make flower crowns from early spring flowers
- • Balance an egg on its end at the equinox
- • Visit a farm to see baby animals
- • Have a spring picnic outdoors