Kids learn best when they are having fun. I have found that my toddler is most excited to learn Gujarati when I associate the letters with fun activities or stories. That’s why each week we feature a Gujarati letter of the week, where we share activities and stories that are based on that letter. This week’s letter is ફ.
Creating Corner:
First up is ફ for ફટાકારા (phataakraa, firework):
Even though Diwali is long gone, we can still light up our homes with some fireworks. Check out this blog for a really easy way of making a firework stamp using an old toilet paper roll:
Next up, its time for ફ for ફુગ્ગો (phuuggo, balloon):
This is a great activity to introduce your kid to some science. You essentially make a butterfly out of a paper napkin and then use a balloon to create static electricity to help your butterfly fly! Check out this blog for more specific instructions:
**There are also lots of fun games that you can play with balloons. 2 of our favorites are listed below:
Play "Keep Off the Ground". See how long you can keep the balloon off the ground. The caveat is that you cannot hold the balloon, you can only tap it (similar to if you were playing volleyball).
Play "Cup Race". Place the balloon on a cup. Now, have a race to the end of hall. The caveat is that you have to go back to the start line if your balloon falls. This is similar to the lemon-spoon game!
Finally, its time for ફ for ફૂલ (phul, flower):
Bring some fragrance and ફ into your life with flowers. Your kid can draw a picture of a garden with different kinds of flowers, make an origami flower, or go outside and look for flowers in your backyard.
Activity time:
Let's count with ફળ (phala, fruit):
Now you can use any fruit for this activity, but we chose to use a strawberry.
Draw an outline of your kid's hands on green construction paper. Cut these out. These will be the leaves of your strawberry.
Cut out a heart/strawberry shaped piece of paper using red paper. The size of this paper should be proportional to your kid's hands as this will be the body of the strawberry
Glue the "leaves" of the strawberry onto the body of the strawberry.
Grab either whole black peppercorns or black beans. These will be the "seeds" of the strawberry.
Now comes the counting. Tell your kid how many "seeds" the strawberry should have, and have your kid put the corresponding number of peppercorns or black beans onto the strawberry. Alternatively, you can place a number of peppercorns or black beans onto the strawberry and then ask your kid how many "seeds" the strawberry has.
Storytime:
My kid LOVES stories. I have found that relating Gujarati letters to specific stories helps her associate the letter with more words and helps her practice saying the letter out loud. For the letter ફ share the story of કાણા વાળી ડોલ (kaana vaali dhol/ bucket with holes). This incorporates lots of ફૂલ (phul, flowers), so your kid will still get to practice hearing ફ! You can read this story (and more) under the “Gujarati stories” tab on our website.
Sing-A-Long:
The best way to learn a letter is to sing it! For the letter ફ, sing the song: fandalu pet che papanu!
Word Salad:
The best way to learn another language is to hear as many words as possible. Here are just a few extra words to practice during the week that start with ફ!
ફ for ફંસી (phasi, stuck)
ફ for ફટાકારા (phataakraa, fireworks)
ફ for ફાયદા (phaayadaa, advantage)
ફ for ફુવારો (phuvaaro, fountain)
ફ for ફટકો (phatko, blow)
ફ for ફેંકવા (phekvu, throw)
ફ for ફરજ (pharaj, fury)
ફ for ફરવા (pharvaa, to go out/ wander)
ફ for ફાટીગયું (phaatigayu, torn)
ફ for ફૂદડી (phudadi, go round and round)
ફ for ફુદીનો (phudino, mint)
ફ for ફૂટીગયું (phutigayu, exploded)
ફ for ફણસી (phansi, green bean)
ફ for ફાફરા (phaphraa, Indian snack)
ફ for ફાગણ (phaagana, coincides with the months February/March)
**Speaking of months, you can also spend this week to review all of the months of the Gujarati calendar. We have listed them below:
મહા (Mahaa, coincides with January/February)
ફાગણ (Phaagana, coincides with February/March)
ચૈતર (Chaitar, coincides with March/April)
વૈશાખ (Vaishak, coincides with April/May)
જેઠ (Jeth, coincides with May/June)
અષાડ (Ashaad, coincides with June/July)
શ્રાવણ (Shraavan, coincides with July/August)
ભાદરવો (Bhaadaravo, coincides with August/September)
આસો (Aaso, coincides with September/October)
કારતક (Kaartak, coincides with October/November)
માગશર (Maagshar, coincides with November/December)
પોષ (Posh, coincides with December/January)