Holidays

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Although we live in a society that has commercialized the Christmas season and made it about things that are so far from the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, we can teach children to celebrate it in a God honoring way. Since it is His birthday we celebrate, we must remember And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one oftheleastofthese My brethren, you did it to Me.’ This scripture teaches that the best gifts we can give Jesus is to care for His children. I have listed some ideas for activities that are geared to various content area teaching that involve outreach to those whom some might consider “the least of these” described in Mathew. Activities must be adapted to the age/grade of the student.

Activities with the Elderly: start with comparing prices and finding coupons to purchase ingredients for cookie or other appropriate treats to take to a retirement home. Make a budget with the number of individuals to receive the treats in mind. Take a calculator to the store and purchase the ingredients. If recipes need to be doubled or cut down, this is a good way to work on math skills involving fractions.

When the time comes to deliver the goodies to the residents, have the learner seek out one or two of the residents that can share with them, their favorite Christmas memory. It might be a good idea to have this set up with the staff, prior to the visit and get ideas of which residents might work best to engage in this conversation. Have the students write the memory on paper as it is told. The student should then formulate a plan to draw, do a craft item, fix a dish etc. to have something tangible to take back to the resident, that relates to their Christmas memory. Have them deliver it as close to Christmas day as possible.

If you are involved in a homeschooling network, consider going as a group to sing carols to the residents there.

Consider elderly people living in your community and have the learner assist them with a household chore (ex. wrapping presents).

Activities with needy individuals:

Consider accompanying your student to the local orphanage and have the student take a toy or other appropriate gift(s) to the children there. Have the students read Biblical Christmas stories and spend time playing age-appropriate learning games. Consider Oriental Trading Company for cheap games and prizes in bulk. Have the student be responsible for staying in the established budget, choosing and ordering the items (remembering tax and shipping). If appropriate, have the learner to exchange addresses with one or two of the children for the purpose of being Pen Pals.

With the appropriate permission, precautions and preparations, consider spending time with the student at hospital with a sick child.

Consider having the student ring the bell for the Salvation Army and work on social interaction skills.

If you are in a homeschooling network, consider pooling resources to deliver and serve a meal to a homeless shelter. Learners should keep within a budget, consider number of individuals to be fed, plan menu, purchase needed items and cook and serve the meal.

Give the learner a set amount of money (ex: $10.00) to purchase personal care items for someone in a woman's shelter. Challenge the student to prioritize what would be most important to them if they were in need of such things. Have the student shop the ads, use coupons and maximize the money to purchase the most stuff. Coupons can be found on many websites.

Also, consider having the learner write to a person in the Military who cannot be home for Christmas.

Christmas is also a good time to consider showing appreciation to public service workers. Taking a plate of cookies and having the student learn about the nature of the position(s) could be
beneficial. One example would be a visit to a local fire station. This cold be followed by a visit to a local fire museum (if available) to learn the history of fire fighting.

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