THANK YOU for your interest in our Holy Week Craft Kit! We are very excited to be taking this Christ-centered creative journey together with you. Please scroll down for a tutorial on how to make today’s craft and for additional teaching resources.
On Holy Saturday morning at church, the Vespers and Divine Liturgy of Saturday evening take place by anticipation. This service is commonly called the “First Resurrection” and it celebrates Christ’s descent into Hades. While our Lord’s body was entombed, His soul descended into Hell to fight and free the souls already trapped there.
At some point in the service, the priest tosses laurel leaves all around the church, exclaiming: “Arise, O God, and judge Thou the earth: for Thou shall take all heathen to Thine inheritance!“. At this moment, the faithful customarily make a big commotion, banging on their seats, on drums, or even on pots and pans that they have brought from home.
To help experience the celebrations of the day we created a homemade drum for the children to take along and use at the service of the “First Resurrection”.
THE SERVICE OF THE “FIRST RESURRECTION”
Tin can drum
You will need
- The printed templates provided in the kit (two pages)
- A large can, such as a coffee can – we used a tomato sauce can in the demonstration, about 5 inches in diameter
- Two jumbo craft sticks
- A piece of ribbon, about one yard long
- Duct tape (we used a wide silver one, but any type of duct tape will do)
- A pair of scissors
- Glue or tape
HOW TO MAKE THE CRAFT
First, use some duct tape to make the sharp part of the can safe to handle. Wrap a piece of tape all around the open edge of the can, letting part of the tape hang beyond the edge of the can. Cut slits on the tape, then fold each piece of tape to the inside of the can, pasting it firmly in place.
Tape the ribbon in place using the duct tape. We used two pieces of tape for each side, to make the handle sturdier. First we taped the ribbon on the can facing down, then we folded the ribbon up over the first tape, and taped it again.
Cut pieces from the templates and decorate the can and craft sticks in any way you like. You can cut them in any shape and size that best fits the objects you are using.
Ready!
Tips: We purposely left the top part of the can without any decoration – leaving it this way makes the banging sound considerably louder. The sound is also clearer if the drum is hanging free, not placed on a table or on another surface. This is why we suggested using a long ribbon: the child can hang the drum around his/her neck and bang on it using both sticks. The templates provided are pretty large, to accommodate various sizes of cans. The leftover template pieces can be used to decorate homemade Pascha cards or gifts.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
BIBLE READING: Matthew 28: 1-20
The icon of the day
“The Descent into Hades”or the “Harrowing of Hell.
Extra lesson plan
“Four icons for Pascha”. Includes animation video.
Printable packet
Planner, fact sheets, worksheets, and flashcards.
Digital activities
Animated slideshow and a variety of games.
HANDS-ON TEACHING RESOURCE
Pascha fabric learning set
A colorful fabric learning set made out of soft fleece that is used like a felt board to help explore fundamental Pascha concepts and traditions.
BACKGROUND
- Great and Holy Saturday, Greek Orthodox Church of America
- Great and Holy Saturday, Orthodox Church in America
This tutorial is part of the HOLY WEEK CRAFT KIT
by Orthodox Pebbles.
Special thanks to Presbytera Destinie of Ascetic Life of Motherhood for exploring our resources with her sweet little children and sharing wonderful photos with us.
Orthodox Pebbles 