Purple Day Podcast #9: Grandpa Ivy & the Hedgehogs

Listen to the Episode

Listen to the Purple Day episode in the audio player above, or directly from the Purple Day Podcast, where you can download the episode and find the RSS feed.

Purple Day is a Podcast from Storytime in the Schoolhouse. Please note: Storytime is created for the screen, and some elements will transfer to audio-only better than others.

About this Episode 

In this week's episode of Purple Day, we will sing songs about autumn and continue to work on our latest fingerplay (this one is a kid favorite!).

Every Purple Day, or Monday, we are inside the Schoolhouse for circle time and storytime. 

We enjoy singing and reciting nature-based, seasonal songs and poems during circle time. We start a new circle time at the beginning of the month, slowly learning the songs and poems together throughout the month. We also practice a deep breathing exercise on Mondays. 

After circle time, we listen to a story together. Ms. Becca tells us a Grandpa Ivy story the first week of each month. This week, we hear the story of Grandpa Ivy & the Hedgehogs. 

This Storytime episode will teach you and your child seasonal songs, poems, and fingerplays as well as a nature-based story. Enjoy Storytime with your child and deepen your connection to each other and the world around you. 

About the Story

Grandpa Ivy wakes to the smell of frost in the air and realizes he needs to finish harvesting his vegetable garden. After spending much of the day working, he takes a break to have some tea before he finishes harvesting. Then he falls asleep sitting on his porch! He sleeps until the sun sets, and the hedgehogs across the creek wake up for the night. They see Grandpa Ivy hasn’t finished harvesting his vegetables, and they know a frost is coming. They work together to harvest the rest of the garden for him and, in the process, find a rather large pumpkin--too large to move. So they leave it in the garden and use it as their winter home! 

Beeswax & Pinecone Hedgehog

Create cute hedgehogs out of pinecones and beeswax. These go well with our story “Grandpa Ivy and the Hedgehogs.” 

Materials

• Pinecones
• Modeling beeswax (see resources section for sourcing and using beeswax for modeling) You can also use clay, playdough, Sculpey, or something similar. 
• Material for the eyes (dark-colored wax, small glass beads, etc; see suggestions below)

Method

1. Create the beeswax nose/face.
2. It’s easiest to start with smaller balls of beeswax. Warm the wax in your hands and mold it into a cone shape. This will be the hedgehog's nose! Gently press and smooth onto the end of the pinecone. See the Resources section for more help with using beeswax.
3. Add the eyes.
4. Find or make eyes for your hedgehog. Gently press the eyes into the wax nose.

Ideas for eyes: 

• Use your creativity and what you have around the house for the eyes! 
• Small glass beads
• Small stone
• Darker-colored wax or sculpey. (Shape into small balls for eyes.)
• Enjoy!

Free Seasonal Sampler

Love this approach to rhythm and storytelling? Download our free Storytime Sampler—a curated week of videos from each season to help you begin building your family rhythm.

Discover the Magic of a Seasonal Rhythm: Download the Free Sampler Today