5-Day: Winter Celebrations
This last week before break has been full of music, wrapping, writing, cooking and lots of excitement! Our 5-Day classroom was very busy as children wrote cards to each other and made gifts for their very special families. We created gingerbread people with buttons and pom-poms, and we also baked gingerbread for the holiday sing-along to eat and enjoy. At the easel, our artists used glittery paint on star shapes and candy canes; there was gak to explore with holiday cookie cutters, and patterns were developed with lights, wreaths and tree shapes. We celebrated Kwanzaa with pasta necklaces in the Kwanzaa colors of black, red and green. Additionally, a special reading told us of the tradition of Saint Lucia's Day in Sweden, where girls wear garlands of greenery on their heads with candles. And the sounds of jingling filled the discovery table as jingle bell houses were constructed.
Our class also created a very wonderful bulletin board, which tells of the special traditions each family has during this holiday season.
Marie-Sophie: We use real beeswax candles on our Christmas tree. We always get an Advent calendar to help us count down to Christmas. We enjoy baking cookies and eating them. We love going to the German markets. Santa fills the stockings. Baby Jesus brings gifts on Christmas day.
Wren: My favorite holiday tradition is going to choose a Christmas tree for my bedroom, which I decorate with lots of colors. I sing "This Little Light of Mine" to my Christmas tree every night....AND I go to see Uncle Jamie and Aunty Bridget for Christmas.
Connor: At Christmas, we get out a special train that Mama gave us and put it around our Christmas tree, which we go pick out and then decorate. When Santa comes, he puts presents all around the tree, but not on the train.
Alexander: My picture is all the colors of Christmas.
Caleb: In Caleb's house, his family celebrates Christmas. We have a Christmas tree, which we decorate with white lights and Christmas ornaments. Each family member has ornaments to hang on the tree; Caleb's special ornaments include decorative acorns and pine cones. Leading up to Christmas, we observe Advent, which is a time of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus. One way Caleb's family observes Advent is with an Advent calendar. We recreate the Nativity Scene on the Advent calendar by adding one character to the scene every day with the last character, Baby Jesus, added to on Christmas Eve.
Asher: We have a star on top of our tree. I play games and Mommy makes cookies and milk.
Kaia: Our family celebrates both Chanukah and Christmas. For Christmas, we make cookies, but for Chanukah we make potato latkes! We decorate the Christmas tree and we light the Chanukah candles while singing. On Christmas Eve, we take pictures of the entire family under the Christmas tree.
Madeline: Elf on the Shelf! My job is to find him. I was trying to find him in the bathroom, but he wasn't there. He finds a comfortable place to sit.
Thank you to all the 5-Day families for a wonderful 2018. We are looking forward to a fantastic 2019. We say a sad goodbye to Wilfie and his family and wish him a smooth transition to his new school.
Have a wonderful, peaceful and restful holiday break.
Cathy and Kristi
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