Hooray for summer! Whether you are enjoying having your favorite young ones at home or busily preparing for summer camp and vacation Bible school, summer is usually a season of fun and fabulous arts and craft projects. A wonderful gift of creating, it provides a hands-on experience that can support cultural learning as an embodied practice. Art projects from sand pictures to basket weaving and hand-building clay sculptures to bead jewelry are found in indigenous cultures around the globe.

We can expand the learning opportunity of craft time by showing examples of native art that inspired the day’s project and describing how art has been used in worship to make something beautiful for God or as gifts to build relationship with neighbors. We can also show and share examples of how these skills were used to create elaborate outfits, shelters, and housing or grand-scale sculptures. Reminding young people that they are building skills for future adventures is exciting. As faithful mentors we are also illustrating that our daily actions are connections with neighbors across time and around the world, reinforcing the connections formed in baptism and communion.

We can further build upon turning craft time into a cultural exploration moment by playing music in the background, reading a related storybook, or offering cultural foods as a snack. Inviting guests who practice these arts or come from varied cultures is also a wonderful way to express appreciation for these skills and engage community partners.

I want to emphasize that we do not need to be art and culture experts to share and tell stories of those who are. Discovering the rich history of sand art from the Native tribes of the southwestern United States or making music with shakers and simple drums inspired by the tribes of West Africa is also a fun opportunity for us to approach arts and craft with a fresh perspective. Through joyful creativity and expression, we can draw closer through appreciation of the global faith community.