'seed pod of purpose' art activity
Materials needed:
- cardboard egg carton cut into small bowl-like segments (or material that looks similar)
- scissors
- crayons or colorful writing utensils
- small pieces of paper
- needle and thread
- small amount of plant/vegetable seeds
- watercolor and paintbrush
- small trowel
Note: The seed pods in this activity are intended to be planted in the soil, therefore, the materials were chosen with this in mind. The materials can all be broken down in the dirt and do not harm the surrounding environment.
- cardboard egg carton cut into small bowl-like segments (or material that looks similar)
- scissors
- crayons or colorful writing utensils
- small pieces of paper
- needle and thread
- small amount of plant/vegetable seeds
- watercolor and paintbrush
- small trowel
Note: The seed pods in this activity are intended to be planted in the soil, therefore, the materials were chosen with this in mind. The materials can all be broken down in the dirt and do not harm the surrounding environment.
My partner for the Seed Pod of Purpose activity was my best friend and roommate Rebecca. We completed this activity at our house and used our dining room for a work space. I set our first set of materials out on a table which included pre-cut pieces of cardboard packing material that resembled an egg-carton (4 halves each to make 2 pods), crayons and a pile of ripped up pieces of white paper.
I explained that the objective of this activity was to identify our purpose through the creation of seed pods. The seed pod contains the special gifts that help give our lives purpose. It is the vessel that spreads our gifts throughout the world thus contributing to the well-being of those around us. The seeds represent our unique giftedness, our virtues, and the special characteristics of our personality that define us. Rebecca easily comprehended the life metaphor inherent in the activity. Had I conducted this activity with younger children I would have explained the seed pod metaphor in greater detail and used language that was age-appropriate. In this activity, some of the seeds were symbolic (created by the participants) and the other seeds were be actual seeds.
I instructed her to first to take crayons and the white pieces of paper and write words or short phrases that represented the unique gifts, strengths and virtues we each embody. I saved a few pieces of paper for each of us to reflect on the gifts and talents we notice and appreciate in each other. After about five minutes of reflecting and writing, we took turns reading aloud what we had written about ourselves and then we shared "spoken blessings" (read what we had written about the other person).
I explained that the objective of this activity was to identify our purpose through the creation of seed pods. The seed pod contains the special gifts that help give our lives purpose. It is the vessel that spreads our gifts throughout the world thus contributing to the well-being of those around us. The seeds represent our unique giftedness, our virtues, and the special characteristics of our personality that define us. Rebecca easily comprehended the life metaphor inherent in the activity. Had I conducted this activity with younger children I would have explained the seed pod metaphor in greater detail and used language that was age-appropriate. In this activity, some of the seeds were symbolic (created by the participants) and the other seeds were be actual seeds.
I instructed her to first to take crayons and the white pieces of paper and write words or short phrases that represented the unique gifts, strengths and virtues we each embody. I saved a few pieces of paper for each of us to reflect on the gifts and talents we notice and appreciate in each other. After about five minutes of reflecting and writing, we took turns reading aloud what we had written about ourselves and then we shared "spoken blessings" (read what we had written about the other person).
I cleared the table and set out the materials we would need for the next phase of the pod project: needle and thread, seeds (in this case, I purchased an envelope of spinach seeds), the cardboard pod halves and the white pieces of paper on which we had written our blessings. We crumpled up the pieces of paper into small balls and then put about 5 or 6 in a pod half, added 1/4 of the spinach seeds, placed the pod top on and sewed up the edges, taking care to make the seam tight so no seeds could fall out. This took a bit of coordination and skill to sew up the edges while keeping the seeds inside. We had enough seeds to make two pods each.
Again, the table was cleared of the unnecessary items and I set up a small painting area. While I finished sewing up my last pod, Rebecca started to paint the shell of her pod with watercolor paint. This was an optional step and there were no guidelines given. It was an activity that enabled us to add personality through color and pattern to our pods. We then went to the garden in our backyard and dug four shallow holes, placing one pod in each hole. We covered the pods with dirt and watered them. Hopefully, with the right care and love our seeds will grow into plants that nourish our bodies and contribute to our well-being!
Rebecca and I really enjoyed this activity and its life lesson. Speaking blessings to each other was a particularly profound experience. The past few months have been extremely busy for both of us and we have not had many spare moments to connect in a meaningful way. Being able to verbalize how we appreciate each other's unique gifts strengthened our bond. Our backyard garden is a sacred place for us. In the growing season, we spend many hours in the garden together pulling weeds and tending to the veggies. It was fitting for this activity to culminate by planting our seed pods of purpose because the garden is a place where we honor our gift of friendship.