Welcome to Week 8 of our Summer Book Club!
There is so mushroom in our hearts as we share this classic Waldorf tale! With illustrations from Signe Aspelin that echo the beloved styles of Elsa Beskow and Sibylle von Olfers, Tales from the Mushroom Folk is rich with the natural details of the woods and meadows where the mushroom folk reside. We think these fungi will add some extra morels to your summer stories. (Sorry, we can’t help ourselves with the mushroom puns!)
In this sweet and fanciful collection of mushroom tales, we learn about each unique mushroom family with their own distinct traits. Meet the radiant Coral Mushrooms, the textured Brain Mushrooms, the delicate Parasol Mushrooms, the plump Puffballs, the odorous Stinkhorns, and the majestic Button Mushrooms. Although each family is portrayed in an imaginary way, there is a very informative mushroom guide at the back of the book so children can learn even more about the many types of mushrooms shared.
Day One: Read & Discuss
The initial day of our book club focuses on thoroughly enjoying the story and engaging in close reading with your children. Turn each page slowly and savor the experience together. Once you've finished reading, encourage your children to ask questions and discuss what fascinated them about the book (there are numerous captivating mushroom details!). Ask if any parts of the story resonate with them or if they recognize elements from their own experiences. Sharing these observations helps the story make a lasting impression on your children's hearts and minds.
Here are a few prompts to get you started:
1. Do you have a favorite mushroom family from this book? Is there a certain mushroom family that you might prefer not to happen upon in the woods?
2. Imagine going to mushroom school and having Miss Shaggy Inkcap as your teacher. What kinds of lessons do you imagine she would teach?
3. Have you ever gone foraging for mushrooms? Do you like eating mushrooms?
4. Mushrooms come in so many shapes and sizes and have so many different qualities. Some of the mushrooms in this story even look like they came from outer space. What do you think are the wildest looking mushrooms in this collection?
Day Two: Drawing & Writing Prompt
For day two of our Summer Book Club, we encourage you to reengage with the story using a fresh perspective and a burst of creativity. This step follows the Waldorf tradition of deepening children’s connection to stories through art and writing.
We've included several prompts to spark your child’s imagination and help them explore the story’s themes more profoundly. Children love to retell and revisit stories through imaginative play and performances. Setting up a small theater with a playsilk curtain allows them to bring the story to life and practice their narration skills. For those who enjoy drawing and writing, create a dedicated space with plenty of pencils, crayons, and paper. Keep the book handy in this area so they can reference it for inspiration.
Here are our drawing and writing prompts for The Mushroom Folk:
Draw a forest full of different types of mushrooms and see how many you can spot on your next nature walk.
Just like in the discussion question above, imagine you are in Miss Shaggy Inkcap's class. Write about a day in the life of your classroom and what it is like to go to mushroom school.
Day Three: Make a Mushroom Peg Doll
There are so many delightful mushrooms represented in the Tales of the Mushroom Folk, we wanted to find a way to make them come to life through play. This mushroom peg doll craft allows you to make your own mushroom folk to add to all of your small world play set ups.
Gather Your Materials
- Wooden peg dolls, various sizes
- Wool fiber in red, white, yellow, cream or any color you'd like
- Needle and needle felting pad
- Acrylic paint (white, black, red)
- Small paint brush
- Hot glue gun
Needle Felt Your Mushroom Cap
First think about the design you want to create. We decided on a classic fly agaric toadstool, but you can create any sort of mushroom you'd like! To begin your mushroom cap gather a handful of white wool and form a flat circle that is about two times as big as your peg dolls head. Begin to gently prod with our needle to give it some definition, trying to keep your circle intact. Add more wool to build up this base shape as needed.
Once you have a nice disc going, begin to build up the shape of your mushroom cap by adding more layers and securing them to your project with your needle. You can do concentric circles, getting smaller and smaller to make a pointy mushroom, or add a big clump across the whole shape to make a rounded cap. It's up to you!
Continue to use your needle to work the wool together and shape the mushroom cap. Once you're satisfied with the general shape, take the red wool and place a layer across the top of your mushroom, working in small sections and making sure to cover all the white areas on the top.
When your mushroom cap is covered in red you can roll small balls of white wool and carefully attach them to your cap with the needle, creating the classic white spots.
Now place your cap on your peg dolls head to see where you would like it to sit. Use your need to create a small crater in the underside of your cap. You can also create gills by needle felting in straight lines from the center of the cap to the edge.
Once you're satisfied with your work move on to preparing your peg doll. Use the acrylic paint to paint it's body white. Add a ruffly collar, dots for eyes, blushing cheeks and a sweet smile. Let the peg doll dry then have an adult hot glue the cap to the top of the peg dolls head.
Now you can create a whole Mushroom Folk village! We hope you enjoyed exploring The Tale of the Mushroom Folk with us this week and can't wait to see your projects come to life. See you next week to read and craft along with Home in the Woods by Eliza Wheeler.
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