Can Fairy Tales be True?

Oh man, I wish we were at school today to do the Wonder of the Day from Wonderopolis!!

It's such a great title: Can Fairy Tales Be True?

and just look at the fabulous photo to get everyone's attention!!

I just adore doors in trees. I used to spend hours as a child looking for fairy houses and doors in trees. Specifically doors in trees after I read The Valley of Song by Elizabeth Goudge.

This book is out of print now and my copy, given to me by my mom when I was 10 years old for Christmas, is sadly battered but it is the NICEST story. A real "feel good" story. Elizabeth Goudge also wrote The Little White Horse which has been made into a (in my opinion) dreadful movie called The Secret of Moonacre. It's totally not what I read in the book! Such a shame!

Anyway this all sparked some fairy house hunting on Pinterest which then led me to one of my other favourite activities - dolls houses. I love dolls houses! There is something magical about a miniature world. I found these two fabulous houses made by a miniaturist in the UK - a copy of Brambly Hedge and a copy of Bag End, Bilbo Baggins house! They are incredibly brilliant - I've put the links here in case anyone else is as fascinated as I am by miniatures. I made a 4 foot tall doll house for my daughter once (which I loved doing - and really, it was my dolls house, not hers!) but it was nothing compared to these works of art!

Brambly Hedge House

Hobbit House

Awesome, aren't they? I was thinking it would be fun to have a dolls house or a mouse house or a fairy house in the classroom but I don't know if my class would actually like it.

Next term we start our big project on the Aztec civilization and they all want to make Aztec houses (last year we made a miniature 4 foot by 4 foot diorama of Tenochtitlan, complete with temple, houses, people, tiny pots, gardens and even weaving looms which was very successful - I must see if I can find photos of it at school!) Perhaps I could introduce them to the art of dolls houses in a different way :)

Anybody else out there like miniatures? Or have you used them in the classroom?