Make a Ribbon Wand for “Ribbon” Gymnastics

A few weeks ago, near the end of the Olympic Games, we made ribbon wands after watching the Rhythmic Gymnastics competitions.  They were very easy to make and my children have had a wonderful time pretending to be “Ribbon” gymnasts these last few weeks (as my youngest calls the sport).  

Did you know that the Paralympic Games began yesterday?  You can find a list of sports and a schedule here.  Rhythmic Gymnastics is not a paralympic sport, but in the spirit of the games, I give you the homemade ribbon wand.

We were able to make these wands with items we have on hand.  My girls are always finding ways to play with ribbons, so we keep all the cloth ribbons from gifts or broken hair bows in our bin of dress up clothes.  For this project, my children choose long ribbons, one gold and one cream colored.  We also happened to have wooden rods, but plastic rods or broken fairy wands would work too.

To make these wands, you need:

long ribbons (we used some that wrapped gifts bought at fancy stores)

12 inch wooden craft rods

markers

a glue gun

Let your children express their creativity as they color the ribbons.  My older daughter opted for solid colors while the younger also drew lines and shapes on hers.  After your children have colored and decorated the ribbon with the markers, wrap one end around the wooden rod and secure it with hot glue.  I placed glue on the first edge and sealed it again after wrapping the ribbon around the rod a few times.  Let dry and then dance with your ribbon.  This is a great way to encourage indoor exercise on a rainy or super hot day.

If you need inspiration for how to use your ribbon wand, you can watch the gold medal winning ribbon routine by Yevgenia Kanayeva here.  By the way, my children don’t throw their ribbon wands inside the house, but they do like to wave them quite spastically and have so far not caused any damage to our possessions.  They both study ballet, so this activity is all about pirouettes and spins with a ribbon accessory for them.  When they are ready to try out the other rhythmic apparatus, such as the hoop or the ball, they will have to go outside.

I have not structured a formal lesson around the ribbon wand, but my children are learning about graceful movements, translating movement into a visual image, and coordinating what their feet do while their arm manipulates the ribbon in various ways.  They tend to take turns with their ribbon presentations, learning new movements by watching each other and then copying or changing what they have seen the other do.

I have a question for you, readers.  Rhythmic gymnastics is a women’s sport because women have the flexibility required for the dance movements.  Since I have girls, I did not hesitate to make these wands when they asked for some.  Will any of you be making these wands for boys to play with?  I think both boys and girls could have fun with this toy, but will boys think it is too girly?

I have attached this post to Laura’s Fantastic Ideas for Summer Fun Link up over at Come Together Kids.  This on-going link up already has over 200 ideas for summer projects and activities.  

Karri at My Life’s a Treasure hosts a weekly My Favorite Things Link up, and I am linking this post there. 

Megan at Sorta Crunchy shares hosting duty for the weekly Your Green Resource Link up with three other blogs.  This link up is for green living: recycling, repurposing, do-it-yourself, organic gardening, and recipes using whole foods.

Stef at Educating Laytons just started a Tactile Tuesday Link up for tactile learning projects and resources, so I have also linked this project there. 

Rachel of Sun Scholars hosts a weekly For the Kids Friday Link up for “KID-RELATED activities, games, recipes, parties, gifts, clothing you've created, crafts, traditions, lessons, and so on.”

My Guest Blog Post on HER KIND

Earlier this week, a guest blog post of mine appeared at HER KIND, the blog of the organization VIDA: Women in Literary Arts.  This is my very first guest blog post, so I am excited to share this news with you.  

Wondering what VIDA and HER KIND are about?  From HK: “As the blog of VIDA: Women in Literary Arts, HER KIND serves as a forum to create lively conversation about issues that are often dismissed or overlooked by the mainstream media. We wish to honor the experiences of women writers and for HER KIND to act as an agent for positive social change, encouraging women to define their own terms regarding the importance and value of women’s voices.”

As a writer myself, I see the need to encourage society to value women’s writing and the variety of  women’s experiences, so when I received the call for submissions in my inbox last March, I just had to jump on board.  I wrote my post in response to the prompt “Freedom.”  At the time, I was thinking about how difficult it can be for women, particularly mothers of young children, to find time to write (I was feeling it intensely).  This elusive time is affected not just by the demands of family, but also by the social pressures placed on women, especially women who are mothers.  

By the way, this was before the recent media frenzy over women’s achievement that you may have heard or read about regarding women’s ability “to have it all.”  In any case, my article does not directly contribute to that conversation, although it may be peripherally relevant from a different perspective.  I willingly chose motherhood as my full time occupation, supplementing that with a paid part-time teaching job.  In addition, I hoped that this arrangement would provide me with time for my passion: writing poetry.  While that may be my version of having it all, most other women have their own ideas that are probably as varied as the women themselves.  The mainstream media conversation does not even begin to address the complexity of the “having it all” discussion, in my opinion.

On that note, here is a teaser from the published post: “I am not what you expect from a feminist writer.  For the past eight years, I have devoted most of my time to mothering rather than the working and writing life I built as a single person.  I do teach Women’s Studies, but part-time.  I have spent very little time writing, even though writing is one of the most fulfilling ways to spend my personal time…”

I hope you will go read the full article, and if you are so inclined, join the discussion by leaving a comment below or at HER KIND.

L.L. at Seedlings in Stone hosts the weekly On, In, and Around Monday Link up, “an invitation to write from where you are… [with] a sense of place.”  How about an abstract place…

 

Spring Writing News

Last week, I called to see how my chapbooks were selling at Brazos Bookstore, and learned they had sold 70% of the copies I left several weeks ago.  Yeah!  So, I took more copies over to restock.  Go and buy your copy of Entre la claridad or my first chapbook, Familia before they run out.  Or, you can buy Entre la claridad directly from Mouthfeel Press.

You may have noticed I changed the right sidebar to highlight a series of posts that include excerpts from Entre la claridad and a direct link to the press.  In case you missed the excerpts published previously, you can read them here.  You can listen to radio broadcasts of poems from both books at the links on my Audio page.

You can start or join my discussion forum about the usefulness of National Poetry month at this post, or at the Facebook Page for Entre la claridad.  I am certainly taking advantage of April to remind you about my book as often as possible!

Yesterday, I found a new button that I have hung at the bottom of the left sidebar (scroll down and take a look).  I have pledged to read the printed word, which was very easy for me since I don’t enjoy reading books on-line.  Yes, I read blogs and short news articles on the computer or ipad, but for longer articles and books, nothing beats paper in my opinion.  I really enjoy the feel of a book in my hands.  Plus, I write in my books; they are full of underlines, circles, arrows, notes, and references to other authors.  I’m sure you can do something similar to e-books, but I don’t think it will be the same kind of experience.

You can read my thoughts about book publication versus e-books at this post.  If you agree that reading the printed word is sublime, you can hang a button on your blog too (there are several options and sizes).  Just click on the button to visit the web site and copy the coding for your button of choice.  The pledging itself is on the honor system.  And put your thoughts about reading printed books in the comments below if you are inclined to say something.

I have more projects in the works, including an upcoming guest post at a new blog hosted by VIDA: Women in Literary Arts.  I learned about VIDA at the AWP Conference last month.  They are best known for conducting The Count, a statistical comparison of the number of publications by male authors versus female authors.  More men are published than women in all publishing arenas, even when more manuscripts, pitches, and queries are submitted by women.  It is hard to deny gender bias in the face of the statistics.  Go take a look at the results.

VIDA’s blog, HER KIND, will launch soon; my post on Freedom for Women Writers will appear in July.  Check back for more information about HER KIND and my guest post.

Several months later, I will be reading on one of the regional poets panels at the South Central Modern Language Association Conference in San Antonio.  I am excited to present at two conferences in one year, something I have not done in over a decade.  Also, my husband and children will likely travel with me; as a family we travel to San Antonio at least once a year.  It’s a great city to relax in, with much to see and do.

I am also thinking about future blog posts, including more posts for my Healthier Eating series: the healthier salad dressing and the healthier poultry salad.  I also hope to post about how to dry your own herbs, the joys of juicing citrus manually, and harvesting/preparing nopalitos (yes, you can eat nopal cactus).  I’m pondering a new occasional series: Meatless Mondays.  (See my meatless posts here).  Plus, there will be more Easter posts (Easter cards and Easter books), and hopefully something for Pentecost.

Looking ahead, I will be hosting a Link up for The Most Holy Trinity, celebrated this year on June 3^rd.  I hope you will participate by linking your crafts, thoughts, and musings about our One God in Three Persons and reading the posts that link up.  Look for more information a month from now.  In the meantime, I need to learn how to create a button!  If you have pointers, let me know.  This link up is part of the Liturgical Calendar Link up Party organized by Xhonané at Familia Católica.  If you are interested in hosting a link up, click on the button to get the details and to sign up.