Learning something about the history and traditions of Valentine's Day can enrich the experience for your children, so consider sharing some of the following facts and concepts with them to make the holiday even more fun and interesting.
Make Valentine's Day special for your child with special needs! Often children with Down syndrome, autism, cognitive delays or other challenges get left out of the Valentine's Day activities, because of the integrated parties and social hoop-lah. We believe Valentine's Day is for everyone! As a parent of special needs I have found a sure-fire way to make the holiday special with just a bit of planning in advance.
It all depends on how you approach the holidays with your special needs child. Most holidays come with a variety of events that could stimulate their senses. A creative holiday craft idea could essentially act like a sensory toy for your child with Down syndrome, autism or other cognitive delays.
Making Valentine's Day cards can transform the annual holiday into a learning event. Children with special needs have proven to be great visual learners*, so we have a delightful project that would help with learning names of friends and teachers at the school.
Talk about love. Explain that there are many different kinds of love to honor on Valentine's Day, including family love, romantic love, love for friends, spiritual love, love for pets, love for the environment and so on.
Explain the ancient origins of the holiday. Before the time of Saint Valentine, there was a Roman festival called Lupercalia at around the same time of year. This spring festival contained many of the elements of romance now associated with Valentine's Day.
Discuss the story of Saint Valentine. Valentine was a priest in Rome during the early days of Christianity. He defied the cruel emperor's orders by performing weddings for Roman soldiers, and was imprisoned and eventually executed on February 14.
Tell your children about Cupid. In ancient mythology, Cupid – also known as Eros – was the mischievous son of Venus/Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. Cupid carried a quiver of arrows that had the power to make people fall in love. Sometimes Cupid is depicted as being blind, because it's impossible to predict where love will blossom.
Talk about why hearts are associated with Valentine's Day. If you like, read your children a couple of love poems to help explain why people connect the emotion of love with that part of the body.
Explain the connection between flowers and romance. Centuries ago, a "language of flowers" was developed in Persia and Turkey, then spread to Europe. Each flower had a different meaning, and flowers were sometimes used as a code for lovers to exchange messages. A red rose has come to mean "love" and "beauty," although its meaning used to be "bashful shame."
