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?
This article is regarding a topic that many teachers are having to focus more on today. I really like the resources provided for teachers and now it opens the door for students to learn about multiple different celebrations. I like that it is not saying “here’s how to celebrate Christmas”, but is saying “here’s multiple ways to celebrate Christmas”. This article really highlights the importance of inclusion in many aspects of life, it is very fitting and helpful for teachers who really may not know how to best teach about the holiday season.
I found this article intriguing because most of the schools I have been exposed to only celebrate Christmas. Students and families who have different beliefs or traditions are left out, creating a strained relationship with the teacher and school. One of my favorite links in the article was the resource for teachers and how they can teach different holidays with their students. I think this is a great way to bring culture and diversity into the classroom and it helps create meaningful relationships with students who come from different backgrounds.
Around the holiday season, many people celebrate Christmas and The New Year. So, I think it’s always great to learn about a new religion. Sometimes things seem odd to us because we don’t do them. Learning these things won’t make them so odd. I like that there are lesson plans to learn about religious diversity.
I personally celebrate Christmas and a lot of schools also invest a lot of time into Christmas which leaves out Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. Teaching about the different elements of Holidays and how different traditions came to be is very intriguing. As children they like to ask questions and understand “Why?” for literally everything. Opening up children to different Holidays and their significance can help them be more rounded individuals. I am not sure if I learned about different religious holidays as a kid and would have greatly benefited from it.
This article will really come in handy when trying to teach about the Holidays without being one sided in what my beliefs may be. I enjoyed the links to the lesson plans for ideas. I also love how it gave ideas of how to teach of the different beliefs that made Christmas what it is today.
I found this article to be interesting and informative. I also think it is important to teach about other cultural perspectives for holiday traditions .
I really enjoyed this article. Going to Catholic schools all my life there was not a big emphasis on looking at other traditions during the Christmas season. I do not currently plan to teach in a Catholic school, so I think articles like this one are extremely helpful. It is good to expose our students to other cultures and not just follow the norm. The lesson plan from Education World sounds like a really good resource because it allows the students to explore different beliefs and ideas for themselves.
The lesson plans outlined throughout this article are really great resources to represent diversity in the classroom regarding holiday celebrations. I remember being in a field placement and only seeing Christmas represented and truly discussed with activities, but other holidays only being mentioned and like an afterthought. I also think it is important to include within these lesson plans to have discussions about how some people do not celebrate holidays and that that is part of their culture.
I was initially drawn to this article because I love Christmas, and I remember in Elementary School we got to learn about other cultures holidays in the winter. I remember we got to light candles that were projected on the white board during Hanukkah. We got to watch The Polar Express and wear our pajamas to school that day, the teacher and parents brought snacks, this was one of my favorite memorizes. As I looked at Education Worlds website for lesson plans about Christmas and found one for The Polar Express, but they had many lessons for diverse traditions during this time.
I was intrigued to read this article because of a recent experience I had in an elementary school. I was subbing in a kindergarten classroom right before the holiday season, and the kids were learning about “winter holidays.” They got to discuss various holidays celebrated in the winter-time including Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. I thought this was very interesting because all the classrooms I had been in before that only talked about Christmas. Just as the article states, I think it is very important to broaden our students’ global views, especially on holidays celebrated around the world. I really like the fact that this article also gives some resources to help with planning a diverse lesson.