Froso Sakita/4th Kindergarten of Lavrio-Greece/ Class 1 (afternoon shift)

                  Alcyone

Alcyone, a kind and beautiful woman, was married to Ceyx, a brave and loving king. Their love was deep, and they were inseparable. One day, Ceyx set sail on a big ship for an important journey across the sea. He waved goodbye to Alcyone, promising to return soon. But a terrible storm arose, with huge waves crashing and wind howling. The ship rocked and sank, and Ceyx was lost in the dark, stormy waters. Alcyone waited anxiously, running along the sandy shore, her hands reaching out, crying and calling his name. Her tears fell into the sea, mixing with the waves. The gods, moved by her grief and devotion, transformed Alcyone into a beautiful kingfisher bird, with shiny feathers and bright eyes, so she could fly over the sea. They also calmed the waters, making the waves gentle and peaceful, so she could lay her eggs safely each year. From that day on, whenever a kingfisher flies over the calm sea, people remember the love of Alcyone and Ceyx a love so strong that even the gods were moved.

4th Kindergarten of Lavrio, c2  Vivi Froussou

Did you know that January 29, 30 and 31 are called "Blackbird Days".

Traditionally they are said to be the coldest days of the year.

Blackbird days decide what spring will be like

If they are particularly cold, spring will be beautiful, but if they are warm

spring will be delayed

One legend says,  that January was particularly spiteful and felt an envy for a white blackbird.

Whenever the latter came out of the nest to search for food, January would unleash cold and snow.

So one day the white blackbird decided to get a good supply of food so that he would not go out for the entire month of January which was then only 28 days long.

On the last day of the month, the blackbird came out of the nest, convinced that he had crushed January, who, on the contrary, was so indignant at this attitude that he asked for a three-day loan in February, unleashing snow and frost.

The white blackbird found shelter in a chimney for three days and when he came out he was completely black!

Since then, all blackbirds have been characterized by plumage of this color!!

Grădinița P.P. Curcubeul copiilor Arad, Romania, Mihaela Sântejudeanu

The Legend of the lark

    Once upon a time, there lived an emperor and an empress who had everything they wanted, but they had no children. They were very sad, because they wanted a child who would fill their house with joy. One day, their wish came true and a very beautiful little girl was born to them. The child grew up quickly and was so beautiful that even the Sun stopped to look at her. The little girl loved the Sun very much and always stood outside, looking at the sky.

    When she grew up, the girl said that she wanted to go to the Sun, because she loved him and wanted to be with him. Her parents tried to stop her, but she was very sad and cried all the time. In order not to lose her, they let her go. The girl walked a long way, through forests and mountains, and met people who helped her. Finally, she arrived at the Sun's house. The Sun's mother got angry and cursed her, turning her into a lark. Since then, the lark has been flying happily to the sky, singing, but never reaching the Sun.

4th Kindergarten of Lavrio-Greece/ Class 1/ Panagiota Plastira

Once upon a time, on a beautiful island, there lived a girl named Meropida. She lived with her father, her sister, and her brother. They loved the earth, because it gave them fruit, bread, and food. But they did not like to meet other people, and they were not kind to the gods. Meropida did not like Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and she did not like Athena’s bird, the owl.

One day, the gods came to visit, dressed as ordinary people. They invited the family to a happy celebration, with music and dancing. But Meropida became angry and spoke unkind words. Athena felt very sad. With a soft magical touch, Athena turned Meropida into a little owl . From that day on, the owl flies quietly at night,

with big, bright eyes, and reminds us to be kind, polite, and respectful. 

Manavgat Kindergarten of Antalya- Turkey

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there lived a very special bird.
Its name was the Phoenix. The Phoenix had beautiful feathers. They were red, blue, and gold. Phoenix shined like the sun. During the day the Phoenix flew in the sky. It watched the world and helped nature. All the animals loved the Phoenix. But the Phoenix had a special secret. In the evening, ıt went to its nest. It closed its eyes and fell asleep in warm fire. The Phoenix disappeared…
but the story did not end. In the morning, from the soft ashes, the Phoenix was born again.

It was happy,strong and colorful again! The Phoenix teaches us something important: “Even if we get tired, we can always start again.” And every morning, the Phoenix flew into the sky with hope in its wings. 

Rahmi Mihriban Bedestenci İlkokulu of İstanbul-Turkey

The Story of Tugrul the Bird

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there lived a gigantic red bird.

This bird's name was Tugrul. This bird searched everywhere for his twin brother, Konrul.

His greatest wish in life was to find his brother. He flew in the endless sky, asking every bird he knew about his brother.

One day, Tugrul heard that his twin brother lived in Hungarian lands. He flew from Türkiye to that land. Two children showed him his brother Konrul. He was very happy to find his brother. From that day on, these two brothers were never separated.

1st Kindergarten of Lavrio Greece C1  

  why swallow have forked tail

A young man, in love with a girl who has been ignoring him, disguises himself as an apple seller to enter her house. The girl takes the apples and pays him with wheat. The young man deliberately throws the wheat down and begins to pick the seeds one by one. In this way, he manages to spend the night there and kidnap her without her realizing it. When the girl wakes up and realizes what has happened, she is deeply shocked and decides not to speak again. The young man, disappointed by the three years of silence, chooses to marry another woman. At the wedding, the silent girl is insulted by the bride and finally speaks, revealing her pain. The young man runs to hug her and grabs her braids, but the girl transforms into a swallow and the braids remain in the young man's hands. Only two braids remained on the girl: they became the forked tail of the swallow.

2nd kindergarten of Anavyssos-Greece/ Evelina Kasfiki The myth of king Cycnous (Swan)

Long, long ago, there lived a kind king named Cycnus (Swan). God of music, Apollo, had given Cycnus a very special gift: to sing with a voice as sweet as melody . Cycnus had a very dear friend named Phaethon, the son of the Sun. Phaethon dreamed of driving his father’s golden chariot across the sky. One day, he dared to try, but the chariot was too powerful and difficult to control. The chariot flew too close to the Earth, and the world was in danger of burning. To protect the Earth, Zeus had to throw his powerful thunderbolt . Phaethon could not survive the thunderbolt of Zeus. But Zeus, transformed Phaethon into a bright star. When Cycnus learned what had happened to his beloved friend, he felt very sad. He sat by the river and sang gentle, sorrowful songs. Zeus saw Cycnus’s kind heart and  transformed him into a swan , a beautiful white bird.  Zeus also transformed  sisters of Phaethon, who mourned their lost brother, into willow trees, trees that bend softly toward the water, as if they are still whispering their tears . 

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1st Kindergarten of Lavrio/Greece/ class 3 The Myth of the Little Night Bird

Once upon a time, there were two brothers, Gionis and Dimos. The two brothers loved each other very much and every day they took care of their little sheep together in the big meadow.

One day, Gionis lost two little lambs. He looked for them everywhere and felt very sad. He cried and called, but he could not find them. So, he went to his brother Dimos to tell him.Dimos became very angry. He did not think carefully and made a big mistake. After a while, he understood that his brother was not to blame. The little lambs came back to the flock by themselves.Then Dimos felt very sorry. He lowered his head, cried, and felt sorry for what he had done. He wished he could make things right.

God saw how sad he was and felt compassion for him. So, He turned him into a little night bird, called the gionis.Since then, every night, when it gets dark, the little bird sits on the trees and calls sadly, saying its name, to remind us how important it is to think before we get angry and to love the people around us.