Our Celebrations & Traditions

This week, the students found another series of notes from Ginger the Gingerbread man.  In Ginger's first note he let us know that he had gone to learn about Kwanzaa.  He then gave us clues to where in the school he went to learn about Kwanzaa.  One day the students followed the trail and found Ginger sitting in the Runnymede office with a book on Kwanzaa.  On another day they followed the clues and found him with another book in with our reading buddies in room 125.  Through reading different books on Kwanzaa, the students made connections to how Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa were similar.  The students found that all of these celebrations involved lights.  The kinara which holds 7 candles reminded the students of a menorah.  The colours of Kwanzaa are red, green and black which the students found were very simialar to Christmas colours.  The students also found that these celebrations also involved family, food, music and presents.

After the students had finished studying Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa they shared with holidays and traditions were important to them.  Over the course of the week, the students completed artwork surrounding their favourite family celebration on tradition.  Some students wrote and drew about family trips to the cottage each summer, decorating the Christmas tree or playing dreidel with their family over Hanukkah.  The students worked to create patterns around the border of their artwork using fingerprints or symbols.

To celebrate the last week of school before the holidays, the students had the opportunity to participate in a variety of holiday/winter crafts and activities.  They made winter soaps, had the chance to meet Santa, make holiday trees and gingerbread houses.  The students also made gingerbread play-dough and made their own gingerbread people.