Powawamu – Hopi Bean Planting Ceremony

Since this ceremony celebrates the planting of beans as a prayer for a fruitful harvest and a celebration  of the fertility of the Earth Mother, the program’s main theme is the planting of beans, and the explanation of what this meant to Native Americans – no supermarket or grocery store!

Books –

Songs–

“Grow Little Bean Plant”

(can also be a play, using the children as bean seeds that grow up, 1 child is water and one is the Sun)  (To the tune of “Hush Little Baby”)

“Grow little Bean plant straight and tall,

We’ll have beans before the Fall,

First some Water, and some Sun,

Grow Little Bean Plant, everyone.

Fingerplays- (to the Itsy Bitsy Spider)

The itsy bitsy bean plant grew towards the Sun,

Down came the rains and the bean plant said “Yum”

Out came the sun and helped the bean plant grow,

So the Itsy Bitsy Bean Plant won the Best In Show.

Felt Board –

Make a Bean Seed from felt (use the same color as the beans you are planting).  You may also choose to make 3 Bean Seeds to involve more children.

Make 1 Bean sprout.

Make some roots.  (Use some varying lengths of yarn)

Make a Bean Plant.

The Felt Program

Slit your felt boad into half brown, half green horizontally.

Select helpers to plant the bean, water the plant, add the root, add the sprout, and replace the seed with the plant.

First, we dig the hole.  Now let’s plant the seed.

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