Holidays around the World
Holidays Around the World
We have been having great fun this traveling around the world and learning about customs in other countries. We started out the week by making a suitcase and decorating it. Next we made our passports. Grandma helped us by putting in all the important information. Then she put in our pictures. We started in our classroom traveling to a country. Then we traveled to Mrs. Baker's room and visited another country. We would learn about the country and their customs and then we would make a craft about each country. We did a lot of flying in two weeks!
Here are the countries we visited:
Africa: In Africa, we learned about the African-American holiday of Kwanzaa. We learned about the Kinara with the red, green and black candles. The celebration begins Dec. 26 and lasts seven days. We made a bracelet with the colors of the Kinara.
Netherlands: In Holland, we learned about Sinterklaas.(Sinterklaas day is Dec. 6) He travels from Spain aboard a boat with his white horse, and his helpers. The children leave wooden shoes filled with hay, carrots and sugar out for the white horse. Sinterklaas replaces the goodies with nuts, candies and little presents. We made a wooden shoe and filled it with hay.
Japan: In Japan, we learned that they have many of the same customs we have. They decorate their house with evergreens and mistletoe and with the colors of red and green. Paper lanterns were used to decorate in some houses too. We made paper lanterns.
England: In England, we talked about many customs. The yule log, which you sat on to bring you good luck. They take
Holidays Around The World turns stirring the plum pudding for good luck and place a small gold coin in it. If you find the gold coin, you are supposed to have good luck. The tradition of hanging stockings by the fire place started in England. The story is they hung their stockings by the fire place to dry. One year Father Christmas dropped some gold coins while coming down the chimney and they landed in the stockings. Since then children have been placing stockings by the fireplace in hopes of finding gifts in them. We made stockings.
Germany: In Germany, we learned that some of our Christmas traditions started there. Christmas officially begins with the season of Advent and the lighting of the candles on the wreath. The Christmas tree popularity started here. The mother decorated the tree and no one saw the tree until Christmas Eve. We made a Christmas tree.
Sweden: In Sweden, we learned about St. Lucia. The King Canute declared that Christmas would last a month and it would begin on Dec. 13 with the feast of St. Lucia. The oldest daughter dresses in white with a wreath and candles on her head to help her find her way. She carries and coffee and buns to each family member in his or her room. We drew a picture of St. Lucia.
Israel: In Israel, we learned about Hanukkah. We made a menorah and talked about The Festival of Lights. We read a book and talked about a dreidel.
Mexico: In Mexico, we learned about las posadas. This celebration lasts nine days before Christmas where people are divided into two groups and they reenact the Christmas story. When they get to the final house they have a big celebration and kids get to break open a pinata. We also learned about the legend of the poinsettia and made a poinsettia.
The kids ended the week by telling me their favorite adventure. They went home with their passports, suitcases filled with their projects, and lots of memories.