It was a joyfully quiet week in my little corner of the world. The kids are set to begin their magickal training just after Winter Solstice. Bear has decided that he's ready (after initially taking the stance that he wanted to wait a bit longer) and both of them are pretty excited about the possibility.
The key to teaching children is to keep things simple. You break larger concepts down into single, simple lessons - and then you make them fun.
For instance, we're watching the cartoon, Avatar: The Last Airbender, as a family. It's a weekly tradition for us, something we do after finishing their schoolwork together on the weekends. At the heart of the show is the concept that different people connect with specific elements (and create energy by "bending" those elements) and there is one person, the avatar, who masters all of the elements.
There's a lot of magick in the series. The show regularly works with all four elements. There was even an episode that went through each of the chakras and talked about the emotions that block them and the process involved in opening them again. We use the show as a basis for their instruction, talking about feeling and connecting with energy (as if they were engaging in "bending") and the kids have learned the element associated with each of their sun signs. (Sparrow is a Taurus - an earthbender; Bear is a Scorpio - a waterbender.)
There's a technique where you cup your hands together and "throw" the air at a lit candle to put it out (as opposed to blowing it out or using a candle snuffer.) You throw your cupped hands, palm down toward the candle, pulling them apart at the last second, and the air that you'd cupped (and threw) puts out the candle flame. It's a technique that I use in certain types of ritual magick. Of course, with the kids we call it air bending and their tremendously excited to be able to do it.
Whether you're working with children or an adult student, it's important to present the lessons in a form they can connect with. The only difference is that with children, it's important to keep the lessons short, make them fun, and regularly give them something with a tangible result.
Almost all of the email this week was in regards to the new site, which you can find at www.oldways.com. Thank you all for the feedback, which was overwhelmingly positive. If you're wondering what's posted to the site (with the exception of my blog), you can find links to all of the new materials on the publishing schedule page. The coming week will feature another article and the second installment of All Around Us, lessons from the world as seen through a shaman's eyes.
And with that, it's back to work. May this note find you and yours well and filled with joy.
In peace and light,
Jeffrey Pierce
www.oldways.com