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k·lometres.369,778 square I

118,000,000. Area: Population: Kind of Country: Capital: Geography:

Important Towns: Educatiol1,:

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JAPAN

tatoes, barley,Chief R' sweet potatoes, poIt al Ice, IAgricu ur wheat, fruit, coa .and Mineral

'Id' iron

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ducts' . Is shipbUl lng,pr • Textiles. chemICa , d Leading d steel engineering an Industries: _ ~anufacturing.

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Yokohama, o. Ib tween 6 and 15 d schoo e IAll must attennd all children must earn

years of age a. can be free or English. Schooling . h hools are not

I f ded Hlg scprivate y un . nese children free but most japa . n and almost

h . educatlo continue t e~r t attend college or 1,000,000 stu en s )

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The Facts About Japan

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Place forefinger and thumb from both hands into

JAPAN CRAFTS AND GIFTS

Origami is a popular, fun pastime in japan and one which has encompassed the world. There are many books on origami, the art of paper folding, so try some out. Here you will find two ideas to try. Practise first.

Fortune Tellers or Japanese Dragons

You will need: • Sheets of good cartridge paper in

8" x 8" squares, one for each Beaver Scout

• Felt tip pens, pencils and so on

Make a horizontal crease across the paper centrally and open up. Repeat to make a vertical crease. You have now made creases in the form of a cross.

Now fold in half.

Thus

Fold corners into centre of paper. Turn paper over and repeat. The paper is now smaller (half sized).

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folds and use by pressing towards centre and out again.

•

Use as a fortune teller, the Japanese love to gamble. Alternatively, make a dragon adding eyes and so on to decorate. Open and shut the dragon's mouth for a fearsome look.

OR

Make a Crow

The japanese enjoy keeping birds and many are considered symbols of good luck and are given as gifts. The naughty crow made by origami is all set to peck up seeds, perhaps precious rice which is one of the crops of japan.

Source: Easy Origami Dokuohtei Nakano CN882

Tip: Practise first before you do it with the Colony.

7 With the plain side up, make a horizontal crease across the centre of the paper and open up.

2 Do the same again to make a vertical crease. When you open the paper ...

3 ... you'll find creases in the form of a cross.

4 Make a blintz fold.

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5 Fold two edges to meet on the diagonal centre line.

Thin lines in a diagram show you where creases have already been made.

6 Fold in half.

7 Make the crow's head with a reverse fold. Place the fold a bit above the crease already made. This is what to do ...

Reverse fold. This is the sign for a reverse fold. Let's see if you can do it.

Fold to the side. This arrow tells you to fold to the side (not backwards or forwards). Here it tells you to fold sideways and downwards.

8 ... Hold the paper below the fold line with your left hand. Insert your right thumb between the two layers and place your right forefinger on the ridge of the paper as shown.

9 Draw back your forefinger; at the same time push down on the ridge of paper to change it into a valley fold.

•

10 The crow completed.

How to make him peck

When you tap the craw's tail, he pecks for food. You can make a cawing, crow sound while you do this.

Go Bang

Go Bang is a game enjoyed anywhere at anytime by Japanese children and adults alike. It's quite simply tic-tac-toe on a larger scale. Go Bang is possibly too complicated for Beaver Scouts but they could make their own tic-tac-toe board, learn to play and then play and share with a friend.

Tic-Tac-Toe

It has been a deliberate choice to use wooden materials for this craft. Beaver Scouts love trying new materials and will enjoy experiencing, possibly for the first time, working with wood. Wood can make the product of a craft activity feel more valuable and valued and this can be important to Beaver Scouts' esteem. Naturally, other materials could be used: card, tiles, lids, etc or even pencils and paper.

You will need for each Beaver Scout: • 1 piece 23cm x 23cm plywood or

man made fibre board

• 5 x SOmm square wood • 5 x 2cm broom handle or dowelling

• Sandpaper • Coloured adhesive tape

• Scissors

Try asking for scraps at your local builder's merchants, DIY store or building site. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Preparation: Cut or saw the wood to the correct shape and amount for each Beaver Scout.

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Method: Sand the wooden board along the top, edges and bottom until smooth. Repeat this with the broom handle pieces and square wood.

Stick pieces of tape carefully in lines onto board as illustrated:

YOl,; are now ready to play the game. If you wish, at this stage, the Beaver Scouts could dye their pieces of wood with food colouring and then seal with a varnish.

How to play: Decide who starts; then two players, place in turn either a round or square piece onto the board on the squares, playing until 3 similar pieces are in a line. First player to do this starts TIC TAC TOE and then the game begins again.

FOOD

Tea Ceremony or Tea Party

japanese tea houses and the japanese tea ceremonies are part of a formal tradition of helping and waiting on guests in highly stylised manner in japan. Although birthday parties either here or in japan are not so formal as such ceremonies, there is always someone who is the host and others who are guests and both should be considerate. Try inviting special guests to a Colony meeting and serving up a cup of tea and some biscuits. The list of special guests could include people like:

Mum Scout Group Leaders Scout Group Executive People who help us:

Lollipop lady, dinner lady, nurse, police, fireman

People who are elderly Colony'adoptees' just anyone!

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Organise the Beaver Scouts to work in small groups, one for each guest and with adult help. Beaver Scouts could try laying up a table or tray complete with fresh linen, decorations, biscuits and so on. Your helpers will need to supervise the boiling of water and handling of tea pots. However, the Beaver Scouts are to play formal hosts making sure that their guests are well looked after. Tip: Ensure that the guests are 'primed' beforehand. Remember the hosts need to clear away afterwards.

After all that hard work, the Beaver Scouts deserve a cup of tea themselves. Have a tea tasting and tryout:

Indian tea bags Indian tea leaves (various blends) China tea (various) Herb tea

available from health shopsFlower tea

What do you think of them?

Terriyaki

The japanese eat very few dairy products. One special Japanese way of soaking meat before cooking to make it delicious and tender is terriyaki, or marinading meat. Serve with rice and a green salad. Try making the salad even more oriental by using bean sprouts and tinned water chestnuts.

Terriyaki

For beefsteak: 1// fresh stem ginger 1 clove garlic 4 spring onions 1 tablespoon soft brown

sugar 4 fluid oz dark soy sauce 1 tablespoon red wine

vinegar 1 tablespoon oil pepper to taste

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For chicken: 2 tablespoons clear honey

For pork:

Terriyakis are all basically prepared the same way. Peel and chop finely ingredients like onions, garlic, ginger. Put everything else into a shallow bowl and mix well with a fork.

Choose which meat/terriyaki you wish to cook and cut into bite sized cubes. Allow Beaver Scouts to put meat into terriyaki and leave for at least one hour but the longer it is left, the better. l\low thread meat onto skewers and place under a grill or a barbecue for at least five minutes each side. Take care to make sure the chicken and pork are well cooked.

Serve at once. Why not try eating this meal using chopsticks? (See China crafts and gifts.)

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4 fluid oz soy sauce quarter teaspoon salt pepper to taste clove garlic 1 tablespoon oil

half teaspoon 5 flavour spice powder

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce

3 tablespoons hot water 1 tablespoon clear honey one and a half teaspoons

sugar pepper to taste 2-3 garlic cloves salt to taste

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GAMES

A pleasant way to relax is to have a Karaoke party, which are not only popular in Japan, where they originated but in many countries of the world.

Karaoke

There are commercial Karaoke machines available. It could well be that you might have a contact or you can hire these machines or have a go yourself and create your own.

You will need: 2 tape recorders

2 tape cassettes Selection of taped music, records, CDs, radio and so on

Preparation: On one tape record a selection of Beaver Scouts' favourite songs. Remember the current hit tunes, Beaver Scouts love to be up to date. Past favourites

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include such memorable songs as The Chicken Song/ The Birdie Song/ Jive Bunny and The Hit Men/ Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini. What of the future?

Method: Play the prepared tape and get the Beaver Scouts to sing along with the tape as loudly and as tunefully as they can. Meanwhile with the other tape recorder and blank tape record the massed singing voices of the Colony. You may like to make the latter a secret to be revealed after they have sung. Play the tape back to the Colony and wait for their reactions.

Jankenpon or Odds and Evens

This is a Japanese hand game which is a variation of jankenpon. It is a useful game to fill in a few spare minutes in between activities at a Colony meeting or for deciding which Lodge or Beaver Scout is going to go first or start. Jankenpon is a simple game of amusement.

Two Beaver Scouts or two Lodges or teams face each other, each one with one fist behind their back. On the count of three, they both/all throw out a number of fingers, calling Evens or Odds. The player who guesses correctly wins. Beaver Scouts could play for points to make the game last longer.

Hand games are very popular with children allover the world as they are dependent on chance and luck and are used when a quick decision is required.

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NEPAL ,:] The facts About

,]\ Nepal ~ Area: 140,798 square kilometres. INDIA

, , ll\ population: 12,572,000.

Kind ofCountry: Independent Kingdom.11 JJ

\~l]\ Capital: Kathmandu.11 Geography: There is a strip 01 land in the sout~;':I--........;~~::: partly swamp, partly jungle. Over the' ".J rest of the country stretch the Himalayas

11 111I with the world's highest mountains­\ J lverest (884B metres), Kancheryung(II Jl

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(B51lG metres), Makula (B470 metres).

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cChief Rice, grain, timber, iute, oil seeds,Products:

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Important Kathmandu, Petan, Bhadgoan , Gurka. Towns:

primary education free.Education:

Rupee.Money Unit:

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NEPAL CRAFTS AND GIFTS

Wherever you are in the world, if you watch children playing you will always see them playing games which involve kicking something. It could be a stone, a stick, an old tin can or even a ball, anything, as long as it moves. Footballing skills are found throughout the world in children. However, many do not have the luxury of using commercially made balls. Here is a simple ball to make, using scraps.

Rag Balls

You will need:

• Some newspaper • Scraps of fabric and rags • Rubber bands (plenty) of different

sizes

Preparation: Collect equipment, cut and tear the fabric into suitable strips.

Method: To start the ball off screw up a piece of newspaper. Now start binding the 'baW with scraps of fabric and rubber bands to make a nice round shape. Continue binding until the ball reaches the required size.

Now play lots of different games with the balls. Do they 'play' differently to other balls. Try different sorts. Find out which are best for different games.

Useful Tip Your local Post Office may be able to supply you with used rubber bands - it is worth asking.

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Peg Dolls

Traditionally, older Nepalese children, particularly girls, are expected to look after the younger children in the family. This leaves the adults free to work in the homes and fields where facilities are very different to those in Western culture and demand heavy·physical exertion. Consequently Nepalese children do not have many dolls or mascots as they have real living babies to look after. Beaver Scouts need to be thoughtful of others and look out for people who need help. Why not make a peg doll to help to remind them?

You will need:

• Clothes pegs • Fabric scraps • Glue or adhesive tape • Crepe paper or doylies •

• Scissors •

dress pattern.

Preparation: collect equipment. Make templates.

Method: Make a face on the top of the peg, using paint or felt tip pens, and mark shoes or boots at the ends of the peg.

Cut out circles of cloth/paper and use doylies, e.g. for decoration. Now cut

Paint, brushes or felt tip pens

Template circles from thin card for

a slit up centre.

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Let the Beaver Scouts choose the layers of clothing for the doll. Fix to neck of peg using glue or tape.

Admire the finished peg doll. Why not try a mini puppet show using the dolls or give as a gift to someone special.

FOOD

Nepalese food has been said to be similar to Indian food, based on dried or fresh meat,

rice, lentils, vegetables, ginger, garlic, chillies and spices.

Two popular Nepalese sweets are called Jilebi and Laddu. Their main ingredients are rice, flour, sugar and butter.

It might be possible to obtain Jilebi and Laddu from shops specialising in Indian foods ..

Perhaps the Colony could sample very mildly spiced food followed by a sweet comprising tinned rice and dried fruit.

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GAMES

Certain children's games are common throughout the world. Nepal is a country rich in people, culture and magnificent geographical features but economic resources are poor. For this game all that is needed are people willing to play.

Hide and Seek

This game needs barely no introduction or explanation. It is a game which has many variations and can be played inside or out of doors. Someone is chosen as 'it' and the remainder find somewhere to hide, within a given area. After a period of time, say up to the count of 50 or 100, 'it' tries to find the other players and bring them back to base. When everyone is found a new 'it' is chosen and the game begins again.

Play variations

Hide and Seek Release Tin Can Tommy 1,2,3 Play in the dark or nearly dark with torches Tag Hide and Seek

Another game played all over the world is again one which needs few resources and is often played at parties and with groups of people.

Hunt the Thimble

Nepalese children might not have a thimble but an interesting pebble or stone could be used to play this game instead.

Ask the Beaver Scouts to hide their eyes and in a given area, inside or outside, hide the article. The Beaver Scouts then find the article in the given time limit. Once the pebble has been found the game begins again with a new hider. You can develop with many variations into the game ­a few are listed:

Hide more than one article Play in teams or groups See how many articles can be collected Use sweets, peas and so on as the 'treasure'

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THE

UNITED KINGDOM ,:] The f~cts ~bout .

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1]1 lhe Umted Kingdom ~ Area: 235,617 square kilometres.

'-- I] population: S7,128,000.

\_, Kind of Independent Parliamentary

11 11 Country:I state. Capita\: England ­

111 scotland, 8elfast capital of Northern

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1\\ are mountainous and hilly whereas '.J England is much lower land but not

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clothing.

Exports:

Important Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Cities: Belfast, portsmouth, plymouth, Bristol,

CardiH, liverpool, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

\~ Education: Children must attend school between the ages ot 5 and 16 years.

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Manutactured goods, coal, iron, steel,

into the 8ristol Channel.

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UNITED KINGDOM CRAFTS AND GIFTS

The United Kingdom in years past was the hub of the British Empire and many exotic and different products found their way to its shores and people. Some products took r:nany months to reach the United Kingdom and were considered to be great luxuries and treats. Citrus fruits and spices were amongst those products (see reference to spices in India on page 120).

Pot Pourri

You will need for each Beaver Scout: • Circle of fabric 20cm in diameter • 1 tablespoon of pot pourri

/• Length of ribbon

The Beaver Scouts place the pot pourri in the centre of the fabric, gather up the fabric and secure with the ribbon.

Pot pourri bags and pomanders were used to keep clothes and cupboards smelling nice as the damp, temperate weather of the United Kingdom often left musty smells. People, too, did not wash as regularly due to poor facilities so a pomander kept unpleasant smells at bay. Talk about personal hygiene, odours and pleasant smells.

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Candle Etching

Light is expensive to produce and manufacture and has great symbolism in celebration and festive occasions whether spiritual or secular. Candles are used in all sorts of celebrations and in the Western world are usually placed on birthday cakes.

Candle' making is an activity which involves hot wax and could be considered to be fraught with dangers for Beaver Scouts to participate in so why not try candle etching?

You will need: • A candle for each Beaver Scout, the

type which is coloured on the outside and is white, or a different colour inside

• A variety of scraping instruments • Newspaper to catch wax pieces and

make cleaning up easier

•

Scrape wax from candle to create a decorative pattern.

Take the activity further by making a simple candle holder by using clay or new clay (available from Early Learning Centre) and creating a simple thumb pot to hold the candle. Decorate and paint to finish.

FOOD

In many parts of the world, no birthday, or festive occasion or celebration is complete without a cake. Throughout the world, birthday cakes are used and recipes will vary according to tradition and the taste of

•

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the recipient. In the United Kingdom, birthday cakes are traditionally made from either sponge or a fruit cake mixture and covered in icing and decorated with candles, ornaments and so on. Many other cultures are the same. Why not let the Beaver Scouts make birthday buns and decorate with candles? The Beaver Scouts could make a sponge mixture and then it could be baked. If that's too daunting, make or buy some yourself and get the Beaver Scouts to decorate them with water or butter icing, candles, sugar decorations and so on.

The buns, when decorated, could then be placed together to form a letter and spell out or make an initial of the celebrant e.g.

This coming together is a good way to show sharing and group work in the Colony.

You could try decorating small individual Swiss rolls and creating chocolate logs for a special Beaver Scout celebration.

The variations on the theme are endless so do let the Colony have a go!

Club Sandwich

Lord Sandwich, who lived during the 18th century, was a man whose social life, i.e. his gambling habit, was such that he had little time for formal eating. He is reputed to have developed the famous British sandwich. Sandwiches are traditionally served at parties as they can be filling and tasty. Why not make some club sandwiches which are always extra special and decidedly fun to eat.

You will need: • 3 slices of bread per Beaver Scout • Butter or margarine • Plates for serving • Variety of fillings e.g. egg, meat,

cheese, fish, savoury spreads and so on

• Variety of prepared salad e.g. lettuce, tomato, cucumber, onion, peppers and so on

• Salad cream/mayonnaise • Table knives

Butter the bread, one slice to be buttered both sides. Now assemble according to taste and inclination.

Cut and try to eat with good table manners!

During this activity it is a good idea to talk about healthy eating habits and a balanced diet as these sandwiches contain nearly everything to keep a body healthy. It is an opportunity t@ introduce Beaver Scouts to

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new and different tastes which they might not have experienced, but do be aware of any special dietary needs.

Also try:

• Cutting bread shapes • Mixing sweet and savoury together

e.g. peanut butter and jam • Monster sandwiches • Talking about kitchen hygiene • Talking about food presentation,

colour and so on

GAMES

Round the British Isles

This is a variation on a game known as Fruit Basket. Instead of using fruit try using the names of large cities or counties or even football clubs.

How to play: Sit the Beaver Scouts in a large circle and give each Beaver Scout a name e.g. Glasgow, Birmingham, Londonderry, Swansea and so on. If you wish, several Beaver Scouts can be given the name. Make sure the Beaver Scouts remember the name of their town or city. Callout an instruction such as 'Birmingham change with Swansea'. The Beaver Scouts with these names then change place. If there are several Birminghams and Swanseas then all of them need to get up and change. You may decide three towns may change places i.e. Londonderry, Manchester, Plymouth. The Beaver Scouts try to complete the change as quickly as possible and the Colony try to spot who was the slowest. The game should be fast moving and gets very confusing when you call 'Motorway' and everyone has to change places with everyone else.

Try to use names which Beaver Scouts can relate to.

Oranges and Lemons

What party would be complete without a game of 'Oranges and Lemons'? A game which everyone knows, but do they know all the words to the famous rhyme? See if the Colony can learn all the words and then play the game. Source: The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book assembled by lona and Peter Opie ISBN 01986991122.

After a Beaver Scout has been caught, ready to have his 'head chopped off' remember to ask if he is an orange or a lemon. The Beaver Scout then lines up behind the appropriate Leader. When everyone has been caught finish the game with a tug of war between the oranges and lemons.

Take the opportunity to talk about London, its size and importance and to swap experiences of large towns and rural living.

Oranges and Lemons

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Bu II' s ey II f St Marg ret s.Say the be so·

Brickbats and tiles, C'I s' Say the bells of St. Ie.

s and lemons, ,Orange b II f St. Clement s.Say the e so

p ncakes and fritters, , S~y the bells of St. Pe~~r s.

Two sticbks lalndtaWhft~~t;apel. Say the e sa

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