Ho Ho Ho for Christmas

 Christmas is celebrated around the world, both as a religious event and as a cultural or commercial time. The following activities offer lots of ways to celebrate the season in many ways.

 

CONNECT:

• Chris IS the reason for the season, and here is why Christmas is celebrated on December 25: https://www.whychristmas.com/customs/25th.shtml
• Read up on the history of Christmas at https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmas
• See how Christmas is celebrated around the world at https://www.countryliving.com/entertaining/g4933/christmas-traditions-around-the-world/
• Watch about poinsettias (including their history and pronunciation) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymgdsWr326A

 

CREATE:

• Follow Santa around the world with NASA at https://www.noradsanta.org/en/ (available in 8 languages)
• Get crafty about Christmas at https://www.thebestideasforkids.com/christmas-crafts-for-kids/
• Get a taste of Australia by making these kid-friendly Christmas treats at https://www.bestrecipes.com.au/entertaining/galleries/christmas-recipes-fun-christmas-recipes-kids-cook/67u8212d
• OR go British with these yummy Christmas baking recipes for kids: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/christmas-projects-kids
• Ready to play Christmas games? There are 35 fun ones for the family to enjoy at https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/holidays/christmas-ideas/g2725/christmas-games/

 

CARE:

• Keep your holiday peaceful with these holiday safety reminders: https://saferide4kids.com/blog/holiday-safety-reminders/
• Candlelight is lovely but candle burns and uncontrolled fires are not, so here are candle safety tips for kids: https://smartkids101.com/blog/candle-safety/
• Cookie dough ice cream is fun to eat, but you shouldn’t eat raw cookie dough: here’s why: https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/communication/no-raw-dough.html

 

CAREERS:

Christmas is just one calendar day, but year-round careers are built around Christmas: not only the Christian religious life, but also tree farming, event planning, costuming and performance, designing and manufacturing Christmas items – and then selling and using them. Some jobs can make Christmas seem like every day. See samples here.

https://theundercoverrecruiter.com/top-christmas-jobs/https://www.careeraddict.com/christmas-jobs

https://www.coburgbanks.co.uk/blog/friday-funnies/10-weird-christmas-jobs/

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20141222-where-christmas-is-a-way-of-life

 

Lucky Charms

 

Lucky Charms is more than a cereal. Most cultures have some kind of lucky charm: for the four-leaf clover to evil-eye symbols. Find some good luck as you explore the following activities. You’ll be charmed!

 

CONNECT:

• Many cultures have charms against the Evil Eye. Indeed, about 40% of the world believe in that symbol.  Read about its history and use around the world at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evil_eye
• Another lucky charm found throughout the Mediterranean and the Middle East looks like a hand: hamsa. Watch this video of many artistic ways to create hamsas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKob1IFyzYE  Try making one yourself.
• You may have seen waving cat statues in East Asian restaurants. Discover their history – and luck – at https://www.catster.com/lifestyle/maneki-neko-fortune-cat-5-interesting-facts

 

CREATE:

• Create a welcoming sign, inspired by the tradition of hex signs in Pennsylvania Dutch communities: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t83ELNEN2DY
• Make your own lucky Egyptian amulet by following the directions at https://www.kiwico.com/diy/art-creativity/quick-easy-crafts/egyptian-amulet
• Make a fun spinning four-leaf clover by following this step-by-step video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXpOp95KiH0

 

CARE:

• Can talismans help your health? Here’s what doctors discovered: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10804902/
• You might bring good luck to your home by hanging up a horse shoe; here’s why: https://www.dailysabah.com/life/2019/04/15/superstitions-busted-hanging-a-horseshoe-for-good-luck
• Thai taxi drivers may have amulets for safety’s sake; read their story at https://www.thephuketnews.com/culture-thai-taxi-talismans-good-karma-protective-amulets-and-road-safety-in-thailand-59032.php

 

CAREERS:

Want a charmed life? These days we usually think of charms and jewelry. Here are some types for that kind of career. You could get lucky.

• https://www.jewelers.org/ja/careers-education/jewelry-careers-guide
• https://www.ganoksin.com/article/on-jewellery-career-options/

 OR you could study people’s beliefs in, and use of, lucky charms as an anthropologist or historian:

• https://www.americananthro.org/AdvanceYourCareer/Content.aspx?ItemNumber=1783
• https://www.geteducated.com/careers/anthropology-jobs/

Hats Off To Hats!

Hats can keep us warm and dry – and they can denote status as well as just be a fun thing to wear. Wrap your head around these online activities about hats. I’ll tip my hat to you.

CONNECT:

• Travel through 100 years of fashionable hats, for both him and her at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqdTxWbtra4
• Who do so many religions have headwear? See the reasons at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meZLctPgV88
• Hats off to the beret! Watch how they are made at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQkYriD97Co

CREATE:

• Hats are fun to make as well as to wear: be a sailor, a bunny, and dragon – they are all possible as hats – and there are even more hat ideas. Just follow the directions at https://redtri.com/simple-and-fun-hat-crafts/slide/2
• And you thought paper plates were just for eating on… You can make hats for several holidays. See how at https://alphamom.com/family-fun/holidays/diy-holiday-hats-for-every-occasion/
• Let’s party with hat party games at https://www.kids-partycabin.com/kids-hat-party-games.html

CARE:

• Sunscreen doesn’t protect you completely from the sun – even better is wearing a hat. Find out why at https://www.sunsafetyforkids.org/sunprotection/hats/
• Why do you need to wear a hat when it’s cold outside? Harvard Medical School tells you at https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/cold-out-why-you-need-to-wear-a-hat
• Make a hat-themed game for a friend. Here are some great facts and pictures to use: https://kids.kiddle.co/Hat

CAREERS:

Use your head to make a career out of hats: in fashion design, manufacturing, sales, and event planning.

https://www.careerigniter.com/careers/milliner/

https://www.careershifters.org/success-stories/from-fashion-to-millinery

https://blog.printsome.com/best-event-planning-jobs/

And many jobs require hats: firemen, police, cowboys, cooks, athletics – what are some other jobs where you need to where a hat?

Toot Your Horn!

It’s New Year’s time, and you may hear lots of horns. Do you know why? Horns are usually associated with celebrating. It’s time to toot your own horn as you engage in these rootin’ tootin’ activities!

CONNECT:

• Horns were created more than 2500 years ago. Discover their history at http://www.hornplanet.com/hornpage/museum/history/horn_history1.html
•  Car horns have been needed since the start of cars in order to warn others of their coming; it’s a lot simpler than the other warning suggesting: having a man walk in front of each car and wave a red flag. Read more about car horn history at http://www.cogapa.com/history.htm
• Animals have natural horns ; look at the top ten amazing horns in the animal kingdom at https://themysteriousworld.com/10-amazing-horns-in-the-animal-kingdom/
• Watch and hear the shofar being blown for Rosh Hashana at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRpwei1Qs88

CREATE:

• Make your own French horn by following these visual directions: https://www.savvyhomemade.com/homemade-french-horn-for-kids/
• Watch this video to create unicorn horns: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM9udMbTfbk
• Have your horn and eat it too with these edible party horns that you can make: http://cookingwithmykid.com/2010/12/28/countdown-to-2011-edible-party-horns/
• Explore the science behind horns with a plastic bottle horn: https://www.childrensmuseum.org/blog/saturday-science3a-handmade-horn

CARE:

• Music can be an important part of life, but instruments can be expensive. “Horns for kids” (http://www.hornsforkids.org/) supports music education. Consider donating to this cause – or start your own musical instrument donation project.
•  Animal horns have been desired by people for thousands of years, and have sometimes been cut before the animal is dead. What are the consequences – and what can you do? https://www.savetherhino.org/rhino_info/thorny_issues/dyeing_rhino_horn_and_elephant_ivory
• Discover how technology in rhino horns can help save them: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/technology-save-rhino-extinction-180956958/
• Find out how the National Park Service is using horns at https://parkplanning.nps.gov/projectHome.cfm?projectID=35955

CAREERS:

What can you do with horns? Manufacturer them, sell them, play them, repair them, teach how to play them – and that’s just as a musical instrument. You can also product them as they exist on animals.  It’s time to blow your own career horn!

https://www.careersinmusic.com/

https://music.usc.edu/music-teaching-careers/

https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes499063.htm

http://wildlife.org/next-generation/career-development/careers/

Go Gaelic!

Around Christmas time, you may see Gaelic art or hear Gaelic-inspired songs. Discover this rich culture with the following activities. Start with watching a Scottish Gaelic Christmas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8v0_Hj_cG4 and learn Christmas words in Gaelic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDg_6CT87tI

CONNECT:

• Football means different things in different countries. Gaelic football is the most popular spectator sport in Ireland. See this explanation of this form of football at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSOe-USZzok
• Gaelic is a Scottish language related to Irish. Find out about its history and use at https://wiki.kidzsearch.com/wiki/Scottish_Gaelic_language
• Gaelic first names started in the 4^th century and still continue; see the variety at http://www.babynames.net/all/gaelic
• With English rule in Ireland, Gaelic language was threatened. So in the late 1800s, its culture was revived. Learn about those efforts then and now at http://www.gaelicmatters.com/gaelic-revival.html
• Watch Irish Gaelic dancing at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F__a-30Axc4

CREATE:

• Learn simple Gaelic online at https://learngaelic.net/lg-beginners/index.jsp
• Learn traditional songs as a family activity at https://www.gaelic4parents.com/nip/listen-and-sing
• You too can sing Gaelic. This is a song about emigration from Scotland: https://learngaelic.scot/beginners/beagairbheag/songs/illean/index.jsp
• The Celtic cross has it’s beginning in Gaelic Ireland. Discover its meaning at http://www.gaelicmatters.com/celtic-cross-meaning.html. Try your hand making your own.

CARE:

• Learn Celtic and Irish Christmas blessings in Gaelic at: http://www.celticchristmasmusic.com/christmas-traditions/learn-celtic-irish-christmas-blessings-in-gaelic.htm
• How about using drama to learn a language or share a culture? See a Gaelic nativity play as an example: http://gaelic.co/gaelic-nativity/
• Color Celtic art (https://www.colorwithfuzzy.com/celtic-coloring-pages.html), and give it to a friend.
• Try writing with the Irish Gaelic alphabet; it looks great on holiday cards that you can make for others: http://www.gaelicmatters.com/gaelic-written-alphabet.html

CAREERS:

Learning other languages can broaden your career options. You can also use knowledge about Gaelic history and art can also lead to lifelong work.

http://www.feisean.org/en/feisgoil-en/gaelic-learning/gaelic-arts-culture-heritage/

https://gradireland.com/career-sectors/languages-and-culture/careers-using-the-irish-language

https://www.teagasg.com/en

https://www.e-careers.us/lifestyle-interests/languages/scottish-gaelic-package