Dr. David Childs, D.D. Ph.D.
Northern Kentucky University
Originally posted December 19, 2019 (With some new updates).
With the holiday season upon us, we thought it would be fitting to post another article on the topic of various holiday traditions. Religious pluralism is one of the hallmarks of a democratic society. People are free to practice their religion (Or not) according to their own convictions and not be concerned about repercussions or punishment from the government and or be intimidated by mob rule. Although Christmas is a religious holiday in its origins, it has also come to evolve into many secular traditions. Education World, an online resource for teachers, administrators and school staff, has created a lesson plan for teachers that allow students to explore this very topic, examining the diversity of beliefs and cultural influences that has made Christmas what it is today. Check out this lesson plan entitled Lesson Plan Booster: Surprising Origins of Modern-Day Christmas Traditions. It also allows teachers and students to get a deeper understanding of the historical and cultural background that makes Christmas what it is today. A fun and very informative article for students and the general public, it explores the historical origins of Christmas trees, it examines the significance of the date December 25, Santa Claus and even discusses the historical origins of Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer. One can also explore the various historic Christmas cultural traditions in a 2018 article we did entitled Christmas Traditions of the Past and Present: Teaching the History of Christmas. 
Saint Nicholas gifting gold through the window to the father of the three daughters (Gerard David circa 1500 – 1510)
Along the lines of religious pluralism and the holiday season, Educator World has also created a lesson plan that teachers can use to teach about the Jewish holiday Hanukkah. The article is entitled Lesson: Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights. The lesson includes ways to teach about the holiday across the curriculum. Here are other articles that shed more light on the holiday tradition of Hanukkah.
Other Resources
Hanukkah in the Classroom: Celebrate the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah with these lesson plans, articles, and teaching ideas
Teaching About the Holidays in Public Schools
Sharing Hanukkah at School
Hanukkah – Teacher Resources
Who Should Teach About Hanukkah and What Should They Be Teaching?
The article describes the importance of this in a society that is free to practice religion. Therefore, there are many religions and traditions celebrated amongst students in a classroom. The article includes many links that gives lesson plan suggestions. Which I think is very valuable to help create a diverse classroom.
This article is so wonderful and helpful when it comes time to teaching about the diversity there is when it comes to holiday celebrations. I remember when my elementary school did something like this around Christmas time. Students would go to different classrooms and learn about different celebrations while doing a craft, it was so much fun and I hope more elementaries do this.
I think the lesson plan is great! I now realized I don’t really know much about Christmas’s history and how it became the Christmas we celebrate today. Since it was always celebrated, I accepted the traditions and other aspects without questioning why we celebrate Christmas they way we do. I think learning about Christmas and other holidays can provide a new perspective on the holiday. Instead of just participating in the traditions or knowing certain aspects, you can understand the traditions and aspects.
i think its great that the article talks about how religious pluralism is one of the hallmarks of a democratic society. its great that the article as talks about how people are free to practice their religion if a person wants to or not according to their own convictions.
I like the idea of this! The only thing that is hard to gauge, is what age do you begin exposure to the diversity in holidays? I would love to be able to explain this to my child, however I feel like he (as a kindergartener) is a bit too young to expose him to, because it can cause confusion. I always thought it was so interesting how each family, culture, diversities have different ways of teaching their traditions and beliefs.
Lesson planning for all types of different ethics and backgrounds is so important and crucial in today’s world. As the world we live in is changing everyday we are noticing more and more students with different ethnicity. This goes for lesson planning for diversity in some holiday celebrations, this can be just as important as noticing and teaching for different backgrounds. This article taught me great ways and different tools I can use when teaching the Jewish Holiday Hanukkah. Thank you for sharing.
I think that it’s important that we be more inclusive with all holidays when it comes to being in school. Christmas is really celebrated in schools and we even get a whole break for it, but light really isn’t shed on any other holidays besides the Christian holidays. I think looking more into Christmas and everything involved with it is a fun way to get students engaged but we also need to put more focus on other holidays as well.
I think it is a really neat lesson plan. I personally know nothing about the historical significance of these different Christmas traditions/origins. It is such a huge holiday around the globe and I think it is important for people to know its history.
I went to a very small school corporation where everyone knew everyone. I can remember being in elementary school, and learning the true meaning of Christmas. I think learning the true meaning of Christmas at school made me be more grateful, and appreciative because I knew the true meaning behind Christmas at a young age.
I really like this post and thought it was great to learn about the different origins of Christmas. I do think that will be really good for students to learn all about Christmas and where it came from. I think it’s also good for students to learn about Christmas in different places and in different religions and beliefs. Students get a good sense of Christmas all around and the different ways that it is celebrated. It’s good that rather than just having a party and enjoying the holiday that the students are getting to learn the background of it and history of where it all came from.
I wish my elementary teachers would have done something like this. It is nice to celebrate our holiday in school but also would have been really cool to learn about others. I am also curious about Rudolph’s origins now.