BEYOND THE SQUARE CROCHET MOTIFS

This colorful book may make a nice addition to your crochet library if you don’t already own a bunch of crochet square books. While these ’squares’ are not all square, many are repeats of those seen in other books. However, there are a few in this collection that I find to be especially appealing.

I like hearts. They speak to me. Motif #127 is a unique heart motif with a trefoil in its center.

Motif #130 is an oval that I’ve not seen before. There are several stars, but Motif #144 is an especially charming two-colored star that would make an excellent applique. Motif #17 is a very unusual circular flower motif using picot stitches (not my favorites but very effective).

Each motif is pictured in color with an accompanying symbol chart plus an inset with directions on THAT PAGE for any special stitches. Most motifs cover a single page, so keeping this book on your lap while working is comfortable.

The motifs are organized by chapter – circles, hexagons, triangles, squares, and unusual shapes. In addition, there are the usual ‘how-to’s’ at the beginning and a stitch key in the back of the book. All photos are full color, which adds to the visual appeal of this book. There’s also a very cute 7 page lay-out of color drawings demonstrating how the motifs in this book might be used in and on garments, as appliques, and edgings. Lots of creative ideas!

Book Specs:

Beyond The Square Crochet Motifs by Edie Eckman

Storey Publishing, 202 pages, 144 motifs.

ISBN 9781603420396

Hardcover with SPIRAL BINDING (yeah!!) and slick cover

There are several other advantages to this book over other motif books. The appendix contains two elements that I find especially helpful – the circular graphs for drawing one’s own symbol charts and the full color motif arrangement guide.

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Learning about Hanukkah is important for people of all faiths as a reminder that December isn’t just about Christmas and that their are many other important holidays that happen during this time. Hanukkah unit studies can give you ideas for incorporating the holiday into your holiday studies that happen in December, or to use at home for learning about people of different faiths.

Homeschool Superfreak has a lot of basic ideas for how to build a Hanukkah unit study, as well as FAQs about what Hanukkah is and why it is celebrated. This list is a good stargint point but doesn’t include all the details you’ll need. For example it says you can play the dreidel game but doesn’t explain how to do that or why it’s important. (If you need that information, this post from Mama Smiles is a good source.)

Teachers Pay Teachers has lots of great lesson plans and activities if you’re willing to pay a little bit to get some good content. Two I really like are this Hanukkah PowerPoint presentation from Shelia Melton, which provides a good overview of traditions, food and the history of Hanukkah; and a virtual field trip to Jerusalem from MagiCore, which includes lots of videos showing the city and activities like playing dreidel, drawing a menorah and making latkes. It’s a Google Drive folder and also includes writing activities and more for kids in second to fifth grade.

Kids Activities Blog has some simple printables with facts about Hanukkah and things kids can color in like a Star of David, sufganiyots (jelly doughnuts) and a menorah. These are great for learning the basics.

Homeschool Giveaways has a printable ebook about Hanukkah complete with questions kids can answer after they read. This would be a good one for older kids with good reading comprehension.

NurtureStore’s Hanukkah unit study includes a printable mini book, tons of crafts, as well as math and writing activities. I love the dominoes game that’s part of the unit.

And check out our previous posts for more Hanukkah crafts and learning activities!

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Have you read?