Introduction/specifics
There are 3 groups in our kindergarten.
The names are Regenbogenzimmer (rainbow room), Sonnenscheinzimmer (sunshine room) and Wolkenland (land of clouds).
Children in the age og 2 1/2 years until the start school are here together.
Our birthday ritual according to Maria Montessori:
The annual circle with its 12 months is placed on the floor, with the birthday candle and the candle glasses indicating the number of their birthdays (1-6) surrounded by all the children.
The birthday child brings 1 image of his/hers each year of life, which is being filed in the portfolio folder. The birthday child gets an inflatable globe in his hand and walks around the annual circle for his first year of life. The first candle is lit, and the children think about what they can do/learn from the moment they were born until their first birthday. The first picture is placed on the annual circle.
This continues until the appropriate number of candles are lit. After that the birthday child can request for a song. The birthday child receives a present after that and hands out what he/she has bought for the children (ice cream, cake, muffins, fruit or pretzels).
After all the children have eaten the tasty food, which the birthday child had brought, the candles are blown out and everything is being cleaned up together.