Native people have always recognized or imbued in animals certain human like traits, easily recognized by youth. Otters appear to be playful, and squirrels assertive. No one questions the strength of a bear, the extraordinary expressions of a frog, or the patience of a spider. (Thom Henley)
I got the idea to do the Empowerment Pebbles with my Little Humbugs nature class after reading a marvelous book “REDISCOVERY” by Thom Henley. A fascinating read and full of outdoor activities based on Native traditions.
Little Humbug Spirit Pebbles.
For my Little Humbugs nature class, I decided to get the children to search for 7 smooth pebbles, one for each day of the week.
Using simple drawings of animals listed below, paint or draw your designs on the rocks.
Once the child has drawn a design on each pebble, tell them the special gift that each of these animals bring to them and ask them to think about how they can use this gift in their own lives. Use animals that are native to your region and familiar to your child.
WOLF: Special Person – Just as the wolf howls its proud song to the moon, you too can recognize that you are a unique and special child. You are a lovable and wonderful child!
RAVEN: Curiosity – The raven is never bored, always curious, always exploring every corner of the world. So too can you awaken your sense of wonder – discover nature and its endless wonder.
SALMON: Sharing – just as the salmon shares its body with the bear, otter, eagle and human, so too can you learn to share your food, your feelings, your fears, your books and toys. Sharing is one of the most important traditions.
SPIDER: Patience – Spider spins her web and waits, and waits, and waits…Spider knows that her patience will be rewarded with a fly in her trap and a meal for her young. You too can learn the lesson of patience; all things will not come to you instantly.
BEAR: Strength – The powerful grizzly bear will bring you to the gift of strength-inner strength to help you through sad moments in your life. Like the mother grizzly bear who overturns logs to feed insects to her cubs, or to protect them from danger, you too can learn to be strong.
HUMMINGBIRD: Happiness – Hummingbird, this joyful little spirit, brings happiness into your life. All the sweetness in the nectar is yours. Remember to take time and smell the flowers and find joy in all you see and do.
DEER: Peacefulness – The gentle deer brings you the gift of a peaceful spirit. Deers are always aware, always alert, but at the same time they are peaceful and gentle. Take time to be quiet. Ask your parents to take you to a beautiful meadow of wildflowers or the hushed silence of the forest and you will know the gift of the deer.
The youngest in my class (6yrs) turned over each pebble after drawing her animal and wrote the meaning on the back of the pebble. I was very impressed by this action and all the other children followed suit.
How to use your spirit pebbles.
At the beginning of the week, get your child to close their eyes and randomly draw one pebble from the pouch. This will be their special power, or focus, for the day. By keeping that day’s pebble as a touch stone in their pockets, they will be reminded of their discipline throughout the day. At the end of the week all pebbles will have been drawn and are then returned to the pouch. Once a month your child could have a special day to reflect on being joyful, patient, generous etc.
Use recycled felt or a scrap of old material to make a pouch to store your pebbles.
The beauty of the journey of Empowerment play is that it brings the animals alive for the children in a way they’ll long remember.
This was one one of my favorite and most rewarding activities out of all the The Little Humbugs nature camp activities. I really do hope you make time to do this wonderful nature craft with your children. If you would like a copy of my Little Humbugs Spirit Pebbles worksheet, drop me an email:info@littlehumbugs.com
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Thom Henley for writing “Rediscovery“. It has been an inspiration and continued resource for my work. The Little Humbugs live very similar to how the Native American Indians used to live and I am thrilled to be able to incorporate a little of the Native American Indians traditional teachings in my work.
“Children need to be together in nature, so they can learn to respect, accept and understand each other better. Native American Indians have something important to teach about respect for the earth and all our relations that live here.” Erma Bearstops, Lakota Elder.
“As a parent, environmentalist, and a scientist I cannot conceive of a more important program than Rediscovery.” David Suzuki
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Beautiful!! My family and I have been delving into our First Nations genealogy (I’m Metis) and I’ve been getting into all sorts of amazing traditions – thanks so much for posting this! Can’t wait to check out the book
Oh Jess, how exciting. I am just discovering all sorts of amazing traditions too-a very inspiring and exciting time-we can all learn and benefit from the Native American wisdom and traditions.
I love pebbles. Giving them special powers or focus makes them that much better. Thank you for sharing.
I love pebbles too, so many fun activities can be had using stones and pebbles but this one makes both the activity and the pebbles very special indeed. I have the Salmon pebble sitting on my desk-what a joy it is to share.
This is a beautiful activity with a wonderful message. I have two pebbles on my desk — one rough, the other smooth, meant to remind me that life is full of both types of experiences. I’d love to pass along such important messages to my kids & this is a great way to do so. Thank you so much for sharing!
Oh my dear sweet friend!! These are GORGEOUS!!!!! I can hardly believe the beauty in them. They are stunningly elegant. I am going to make some to give as gifts. I LOVE how you put what each animal means. I could print that out and stick it in the bag with the stones. You are soooooooooo talented. The artwork on these is off the charts! I doubt mine will be as good, but I would still have SO much fun doing them. I just LOVE you and your enthusiasm and vitality, the way you bring life to yourself, your son, these kids. It is a gift almost lost nowadays, especially as you connect it all to nature. And they need that so badly. They won’t forget it. You are a blessing on the planet and I am grateful for you. Thank you for your kindness and love, Robin
PS I bookmarked this page so I can come back and do this. 
Oh Robin, you make my heart sing. I feel so connected to your spirit. I would love to see your empowerment pebbles.
Yesterday we went on the most beautiful trail “Angel Springs”. Deep into the forest I felt a very emotional bond-very spiritual. I often think of you when I am amongst the trees
Wishing you a beautiful Day Robin. x
“It is as natural to love earth as it is to love one’s human family”-Freeman Patterson.
We just returned from a morning at the beach . . . and came home with a bag full of smooth stones that have been transformed this afternoon into something even more meaningful. Thank you.
Oh Becky, how wonderful. I am thrilled to hear you used your smooth stones to make into empowerment pebbles. How exciting. Would love to see them-you could send them into The Little Humbugs Nature Art Gallery.
What a lovely idea! I’ve always said that if I had a spirit animal it would be a bear. I like the idea of picking a different one each day and trying to emulate those traits. I’m constantly enthralled with your activities!
Oh Mel, I can see you as a young mother bear- protective and strong, yet allowing your cubs to roam free in the the wilderness. I love the diversity of these empowerment pebbles. You can do this activity with any age, a favorite is to act out the role of the animal with younger children so that they really connect with the animal. (For instance, the children crouch on all fours and growl like a bear). I’m sure your boys would love this activity. Thanks for your continued support, love Marghanita x
Hi Jo
How lovely to hear from you. Thank you for your comments regarding the Empowerment Pebbles. I will email over the activity sheet by the end of the week, I am currently updating some information. Thank you for your patience.
The empowerment pebbles are one of my favourite activities to do with children of all ages. It can be adapted to suit any age group. A really wonderful way to get younger children connected with the animals, is to let them play the role of the animal. For example: The bear. The children would go on all fours and walk around like a bear foraging and roaring. The beauty of the journey of the Empowerment play is that it brings the animals alive for the children in a way they’ll long remember.
I’ve always been fascinated with pebbles, even as a small child. There’s something magical and powerful about them. As a fellow artist, the combination of pebbles and artwork has always appealed to me and I have made several of these types of stone myself in the past.
reading this post and seeing the beautiful pictures of the decorated pebbles has made me want to share this with my two small children. I think they will love collecting the pebbles and using the animals you’ve listed to decorate them.
Thank you for sharing!
I agree Brian, there is something very magical and powerful about them. How wonderful your going to share the empowerment pebbles with your children. Would love to see them when they are finished. Happy pebble hunting.
Such a cool idea! Thanks for sharing! We are going to be studying various Native American nations so these will be something we will want to make. When we do, I will link to your blog.
I just signed up to subscribe to your posts.
Have a nice day today.
Colleen:)
here is my link to your article on my site as I had told you – http://parentplanet.wordpress.com/2010/08/12/great-sites-8-12/
hope your week is going well.
Welcome Colleen, thank you for dropping by. How wonderful to hear you are going to be studying Native American nations. The empowerment pebbles will certainly be a fun activity to incorporate in your children’s study. Would love to see you finished pebbles. I’m just off to check out your blog-wishing you a very happy day too.
Your blog is gorgeous! I love the art on the pebbles. Your images capture their mystery and creativity. I blog about the things I grow in an artsy kind of way. Stop by sometime – would love to make the connection with you!
Thank you Bren for the lovely mention. Thrilled your enjoying my blog. Just viewed your blog and love the photographs of the beautiful butterflies dancing from one flower to another. I’m a huge fan of butterflies, they are a constant inspiration. Thanks for sharing. I look forward to reading more about your garden.
These are so amazing. This is just what I have been looking for! I am curious about the book now, also. Are the other activities in the book suitable for one child (parent and child) or are they mostly group activities? I couldn’t tell from the book’s online description, but i would love to have more ideas to share with my son. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Kally. Thrilled you want to make the empowerment pebbles with your son – I’m sure you’ll both love this activity. Re: The book- it’s more geared up for group activities and slightly older kids too. I am currently producing a new book based on my “Let’s Go Outside” video series and nature classes. I have included lot’s of nature crafts for both boys and girls. I hope to have it published in time for Christmas. In the meantime I will be posting a lot more of my nature class activities and lot’s more “Let’s Go Outside” video episodes to come. You may like to make these cool Dragonfly Boy Necklaces: http://www.marghanita.com/nature-play-magic-seeds/
Thank you so much for sharing this idea with all of us! This was the perfect gift for my son – he loved them and wants to add some of his own. Here’s the link to my blog with the pebbles we made – http://themuddyprincess.blogspot.com/2011/06/empowerment-pebbles.html
Thanks again!
How lovely Kimberly. Thrilled to hear your son wants to add to his collection. Kids of all ages really love this activity, especially incorporating animals from their local environment. Another really nice way to help them remember the meaning of the animal is to write it on the back of the pebble. I’m away to check out your blog, thank you so much for sharing. Wishing you and your son many more magical moments with your empowerment pebbles……………. Marghanita