It’s that time of year again! About two dozen very small, jammies-wearing reindeer visited the lab today. We duck out tomorrow for our winter break, so I will not be updating until January, as I have earned a much needed break!
Happy Holidays!
This is a message for Downtown students in grades 2-6. Class message boards have been turned off for the holidays. Save any work you do to your own gallery, and you can open them back up once we get back to school and save them to your group then. Sorry that you won’t be able to earn stars over the break, but you will just get an overload once we get back!
I continue to be amazed at what thought and creativity has gone into the creation of this site!
If you are not familiar with it, NORAD aids children (and adults!) in following Santa on his yearly sleigh ride around the world. Through use of satellites, Santa Cams, fighter jets, and other technology (and help from Google Earth), you can follow along with him.
The site also has an area called Kid’s Countdown, full of winter-related activities (ambiguous enough for kids who don’t celebrate the holiday of Christmas).
I was asked about holiday websites and lessons, so I thought I would compile some good finds.
Cindy Putnam brings up a good idea in her latest blog post: Discovery Streaming. Try searching for videos and images by the name of the holiday, or religion associated with it.
Holidays Around the World Glossary – A little bit about everything.
Holidays Around the World Reference – From World Book Online, and includes other online reference links. November and December mark one of the busiest, most important holiday seasons of the year around the world. With such major holidays as Thanksgiving Day, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and New Year’s Eve, November and December are full of revelry, celebration, and solemn religious occasions.
ZuZu: Holidays From Around the World – Kids from various countries explain their holidays and unique memories and experiences.
Kidlink Multicultural Calendar — KIDLINK students and KIDLEADERs have made this calendar possible. Included in the files you will find the unique ways our KIDLINK kids are celebrating their country’s holidays and festivals. The entries might contain recipes for holiday foods, historical background, significance of the holidays and the special ways in which these days are observed. Our calendar entries are rich in local customs that perhaps cannot be found in books.
Holiday Lesson Plans and Resources – Huge. Some are good, but you need to sift.
