El Rancho Chocolaté Milagro Bracelet Workshop

El Rancho Chocolaté: My Own Milagro Story Charm Bracelet

I've always found that there is a calm and quiet joy in creating something with my hands. When I'm on my own on a quiet afternoon, I thoroughly enjoy searching through a big bowl of assorted beads to find just the right combination of colors and shapes to make my own bracelets. I sometimes find myself falling into a meditative state, a time for quiet soul searching. I love making multiple bracelets and stacking them up. For summer, I might use natural wooden beads with faux turquoise or maybe some tumbled beads that look like beach glass. For Dia de los Muertos, I love stringing small skulls and roses together. There's just so much variety to personalize your jewelry.

When I wrote El Rancho Chocolaté, I realized that I had inadvertantly created the perfect backdrop for a children's bracelet beading craft that uses the story of the milagros. So go ahead and jump in with the kids and make your own bracelet!

What is a Milagro?

The word milagro in Spanish means "miracle." In Mexican American and Latin American cultures, a milagro is a small, religious charm—often made of metal like silver or tin just like what Berta, Rita and Elda found in the hidden treasure at El Rancho Chocolaté. People use milagros as offerings: they are given as thanks for a prayer that has been answered or as a special request for healing, protection, or a wish. They symbolize hope, gratitude, and faith. In the story of El Rancho Chocolaté, the girls find that these charms are the real treasure, not gold or jewels, because they represent the meaningful moments and hopes of their ancestors.

Materials Needed & Learning Experience

(Most everything can be found at your local craft stores or at on-line retailers like Amazon and Etsy)

• Assorted pre-purchased wooden colored beads or plastic beads (Look for beads with a large hole, at least 2mm, to make it easy for small hands to string.)

• A variety of silver-colored milagro charms (e.g., hearts, eyes, hands, legs, animals)

• Alphabet and number beads to spell out names or special words.

• Elastic string (A good size for children's bracelets is a stretch cord between 0.5mm and 1mm. The 1mm size is more durable and easier to handle for younger kids.)

• Scissors

• Special treasure bags to take the bracelets home

• Introduce the Story: Begin the event by briefly telling the story of El Rancho Chocolaté and how the girls found a box of milagros instead of gold. Explain that the milagros were a special message about what is truly important.

• Explain the Meaning: Hold up a few different milagro charms and explain their meaning.

  • Heart: Represents love, family, and gratitude.

  • Eye: Symbolizes seeing the beauty in the world, or a wish for good vision or insight.

  • Hand: Represents a desire to help others, or thanks for being a good helper.

  • Animal: Can represent a favorite pet or a wish for their safety and health.

• Create Your Bracelet: Give each child a piece of elastic string. Tell them to choose the colored beads and a few milagro charms that have special meaning to them. Encourage them to create a bracelet that tells their own "story of a miracle" or a wish for themselves or their family. As another idea, they can use the letter beads to spell out the name of someone important to them (like a family member or friend) or a special word that has meaning.

• Reflect and Share: As the children finish their bracelets, ask them to share the story behind their chosen milagros and beads. For example, "Why did you choose the heart milagro? What story does it tell?" This helps them connect the craft to their own personal experiences and the theme of the book.

After making our bracelets and placing them in their special treasure bags, we'll have a special keepsake that not only connects us to the story of El Rancho Chocolaté but also to the people and memories that are our own personal treasures. I hope this activity has shown you that just like Berta, Rita & Elda in the book, the greatest riches are the people we love, the stories we carry.