Create our own Scented Nature Frame with a selection of garden herbs. We love this multi-sensory activity with so many varied scents & textures to discover. It's a perfect mindful activity for all ages to explore Genesis 1:29-30, thanking God for the many plants around us & all they offer.
To Make a Nature Frame You'll Need:
A couple of fallen sticks (cut to 4 similar lengths)
Pipe cleaners or string
:: Start by laying out the sticks to make the frame shape on a flat surface
:: Secure them together at the corners by tying with string or wrapping a pipe cleaner around (The pipe cleaner is much easier for little hands to manipulate)
:: Collect a selection of our favourite herbs (we used what we had in our garden; lavender, thyme, rosemary, curry plant, mint, & a few bay leaves)
:: Take a small cutting of one of the herbs & using either string or a pipe cleaner wind it around the stem, & then wind it around the top of the frame to secure.
:: Smell the leaves of the herbs as you add each one to the frame. Do all the herbs smell the same? Which one is your favourite? Does the scent change when you rub the leaf with your fingers?
:: Explore the textures of the leaves & flowers with your hands. Do the leaves feels soft, smooth, rough? Are they shiny or furry?
:: Look at the shape of the leaves. Which are the smallest, largest? Which are the greenest? Are they all the same colour?
As you smell & feel each of the herbs, you might like to say this prayer:
Creator God,
As we feel the leaves - we thank you for plants that feed us.
As we smell the leaves - we thank you for plants that heal us.
As we look at the leaves - we thank you for plants that help us breathe.
Thank you for all the amazing plants you have given us,
Help us to take care for them, & plant more for the future.
Amen.
Hang your Scented Nature Frame somewhere in your home & as the herbs dry their scent will fill the room. Once dry you could store them in a glass jars in your kitchen & add them to your recipes when cooking.
