Description:
http://ResearchOnKids.com is the home of the real Santa Claus. Get a letter or call from Santa.
Contents:
Christmas Around the World
Christmas Around the World
Christmas in the Birthplaces of Traditions -- Bethlehem, Germany and England.
Christmas as celebrated today is a culmination of centuries of traditions that are religious and secular and which came from different countries around the world. It is interesting therefore to look at some of the general ways in which Christmas is celebrated in these countries. The traditions examined for each country will be examples of some of the things that are unique to that country and which are done today, or which were once done by people in those countries.
To begin, it is symbolic to look at the town of Bethlehem, which is believed to be the birthplace of Jesus. The Church of the Nativity is located in
Bethlehem and at Christmas it is decorated with a lot of flags and other Christmas decorations. A very large crowd usually gathers at The Church of the Nativity on Christmas Eve to see a dramatic parade procession of horsemen, led by police who are mounted on Arabian horses.
Following the police in the procession is a lone horseman who carries a cross, followed by churchmen and government officials. Members of the procession solemnly enter the doors of The Church of the Nativity and place an ancient effigy of Jesus in the church. A silver star located deep in an underground cave-like section of the church marks the site where Jesus was born. A star is also set atop a pole in the town's square. In Bethlehem, homes of Christians usually have a cross over the door and a manger scene is usually set up inside the house.
In Germany, home of the Christmas tree tradition, the Christmas tree is not seen until Christmas Eve. The tree is usually kept in a special room, or elsewhere, and decorated in secret with lights, ornaments, tinsels, angels, candies, nuts and cookies. It is then lighted, the presents placed underneath and then shown to the delight of Children on Christmas Eve.
In Germany, Dec. 6 is known as St. Nicholas Day when Santa visits the homes of boys and girls. On the day before, Dec. 5, children leave a shoe or boot outside or by the fireplace for Santa Claus. If they were good, he places gifts and candies inside the shoe. But if they were naughty, children will find twigs or a rod in their shoe. Dinner on Christmas Day includes roast goose, long loaves of bread filled with raisins, nuts and dried fruits. Other sweet delicacies are also enjoyed.
Many traditions in England are similar to those in the United States because such traditions originated in England and were brought to the United States by
immigrants. The tradition of sending Christmas greeting cards started in England and is still popular at Christmas, as well as the tradition of neighborhood
caroling on Christmas Eve. Children also hang stockings on Christmas Eve in anticipation of Santa Claus filling them with Christmas gifts or treats. The holly, ivy and mistletoe are also used a lot in Christmas decorations.
In England, the traditional Christmas Dinner is roast turkey, goose or chicken with stuffing, vegetables and roast potatoes. Dessert consists of the British or
Christmas pudding with brandy sauce. A rich, ruit-filled Christmas cake may also be enjoyed later in the day. A tradition of pulling Christmas crackers also goes with the serving of food on Christmas Day.
A cracker is a paper tube that contains a party hat, riddle, toy or trinket, and is brightly colored and twisted at both ends. It gives out a crack as the contents pop out when it is pulled at each end. Also on Christmas afternoon, the Queen broadcasts a Christmas message to the nation, which is heard on radio and television. The day after Christmas is also a holiday that is known as Boxing Day.
http://ResearchOnKids.com
Spreading Goodwill at Christmas
Spreading Goodwill at Christmas
The real meaning of Christmas, the season of good cheer, is about giving especially to provide some assistance to those who need help for their daily
survival and who therefore don't have the material resources to enjoy the Christmas season. The importance of giving to those in need during Christmas is
embodied in the story of Jesus' birth, which is the reason Christmas is celebrated.
For Christians, Jesus was born to save mankind from sin by giving everlasting Salvation to all who believe in the Word of God and chose to follow
the principles for living in the Bible. Jesus therefore gave in the ultimate way - he offered himself as a sacrifice for every living person. Christians
therefore believe that Christmas should be about following the example of Jesus by giving of oneself to others, especially to those who are in need.
The Christmas season should therefore be about spreading goodwill and good cheer. This purpose of Christmas is very significant because research by social
service organizations has shown that Christmas happens to be a high time for depression among the have-nots, among people with problems and others who just
don't have the means and resources to enjoy the merriment of the holidays.
The hundreds of Santa letters written by children are often a sad testament to the many unmet needs of families and individuals during the festive
Christmas and holiday times. Just about every child is told the story of Santa Claus, or hears about him because his presence is everywhere at Christmas. And
up to the age of 7 to 8 years, most children believe the story about Santa Claus bringing toys and other gifts. That's the reason why so many young children
often write letters to Santa at Christmas time in which the innocently plead for toys and other gifts because they their parents or other relatives will not be
able to give them those Christmas toys or Christmas gifts that they want.
Thankfully there are many volunteer and charitable efforts carried out by groups and corporations that seek to fulfill the needs of children and also of adults during the Christmas season. One of the most notable organizations that do such charitable work is the Salvation Army, which has a history of giving service to those in need.
According to The Salvation Army's website, the organization as known today was started in 1865 by a Methodist minister, William Booth and his wife Catherine. They formed a group that preached, provided food and shelter to the homeless, the hungry and to alcoholics in need of recovery services. The services were provided in London's East End. Booth and his followers, first known as 'The Christian Mission,' started to use The Salvation Army name in 1878.
The Salvation Army is now uniquely associated with the Christmas season through its many representatives who dress up as Santa Claus and stand outside retail establishments ringing their bells while they kindly seek donations from shoppers to help the poor at Christmas.
Individuals also play Santa Claus at Christmas time and help out those in need by donating toys and gifts through their companies, other business enterprises such as banks or through their local municipality. These groups usually all have
a box or an area where new toys or clothing can be dropped off and the items are then donated to families in need or to social service providers for distribution
to the needy during the Christmas season.
Along with much charitable giving at Christmas time, other public interest groups also work hard to inform and educate consumers about avoiding the after
Christmas blues. This is often experienced in January when the bills and debts are due as a result of all the spending, much of it on credit, that is done for
the holidays.
These groups try to spread goodwill and cheer in a different way. They try to provide educational information on spending responsibly during the Christmas
season with the hope that the happiness and good feeling enjoyed during the season can also carry over after Christmas and not be spoiled by the burden of
having huge bills to pay.
http://ResearchOnKids.com
4th of July games
4th of July games
If you're hosting a 4th of July party, there are hours and hours to fill before the highlight events of the day begin - the fireworks. You'll want to have plenty of activities and games planned to keep everyone busy and entertained.
There are a variety of games you can plan that have a patriotic theme.
Balloon pass - This game involves relaying a balloon down a line of people. Use balloons that are red, white and blue and tell the participants they will be using their hands and their legs to pass the balloon down the line. Create two teams of people, and line them up in straight lines. Give the first person a balloon and tell them to put it between their legs, passing the balloon to the next person in line with their legs only. That person will take the balloon and pass it to the next person by putting it over their head. That third person will put the balloon between their legs and pass to the next person like that. The game continues until the balloon has passed all the way down the line. If you have a small group, require that the balloon get passed down the line and back again before declaring a winner.
Chalk it up - Pick a panel of judges (the oldest members of the family are the obvious picks) and have them become the official judges for a chalk contest. Break your guests into two teams (or more, depending on how many people are at the party) and give them each one or two containers of sidewalk chalk. Tell them to create a sidewalk picture that shows something patriotic, and tell them the flag must be included in the picture. Give them a time limit (depending on your group, this time limit might range from 10 minutes to 45 minutes) and then have the judges declare a winner after they have carefully examined all the artwork. You could have art-themed prizes for the winners.
Parade - One fun 4th of July activity that just screams "4th of July!" is a parade with decorated bikes, scooters and the like. Ask everyone who comes to the party to decorate their bike or scooter or other item in patriotic garb. You can have people bring them to the party already decorated and have a contest for "best bike", etc., but also fun is to have a decorating party within the party. Have all the items on hand to decorate the bikes and scooters and skateboards. You might have streamers, banners, flags, and ribbons. The children and adults can decorate their bikes and scooters as a party activity.
Guessing Game - These games are always popular for just about any occasion. Fill a large jar with peppermint candy (the red and white striped kind) and decorate it with blue and red ribbon. Have people guess how many candies are in the jar (which of course means you count as you place the candies in the jar). The winner, or the person who comes closest to the number without going over, gets the jar of candy.
Fireworks - If you're having fireworks at your home, you might have a big box of assorted fireworks. Everyone has their personal favorites and people might have clear ideas of what they want to see and hear. You can play a game to determine who gets to pick the next firework to go off next. You might ask trivia questions (why are there 13 stars on the flag?). Or you can have a dance off. While music plays in the background, each person who really wants to pick the next firework to go off has to dance the craziest, silliest dance they can come up with. Someone who's been designated a judge will decide who won the dance off and that person gets to pick the next fireworks item. Unless there are more fireworks than people, each person only gets to pick once.
http://ResearchOnKids.com
Christmas Day Games
Christmas Day Games
Just because the gifts are opened and the paper strewn about the living room doesn't mean the fun of Christmas is over. Add some fun party games to Christmas day to extend the fun of Christmas.
If you have a large gathering on Christmas day, have fun with the hat game. When they arrive, give everyone a Santa hat. These are inexpensive and can be purchased for $1 at the dollar store, or even less in bulk, if you plan ahead. As everyone goes about their business of getting food, chatting with others and the like, the room will look very festive with everyone wearing their Santa hats.
However, the object of this game is to not have your hat on. As people forget about the hats, the object is to get rid of your hat and not be the last one wearing a Santa hat. Inevitably there will be one person so wrapped up in a conversation or the buffet table, they forget to take off their hat and will be left the game's loser. This is a game that can be played again and again as you head forward with the day's festivities.
One fun memory game that kids particularly like is to make everyone pay careful attention to all the gifts that are opened on Christmas day. After the gifts are removed from the room (or you remove yourselves from the gift room) have everyone try and remember every single gift everyone got. Include stockings and any food gifts. Tell people they only have to remember the items that were opened that day, not any gifts they received and opened prior to Christmas day. This can be a fun game that's particularly popular with kids because they love to relive the gift magic. In addition, if they were so immersed with their own gifts they didn't notice anyone else's this is a good chance for them to educate themselves about what everyone got that day.
If you need a game to keep everyone busy before dinner, try the "guess me" game. Buy some large heavy socks, not low-rise, but the type that are worn outdoors in the winter that are thick and come at least to the calf. Put several items in the socks. Make sure identical items are in each sock. These items should be related to Christmas in some way. You might include a small ornament, scotch tape, a pinecone, a Hershey's kiss, and the like. Have each person feel the socks (having two socks just makes the game go faster, but you can play with just one sock), and write down their guesses about what's in the socks. Be sure to tell everyone how many items are in each sock. The winner gets, you guessed it, one of the socks!
If you have a bunch of wanna-be performers in your group on Christmas day, how about playing a little game of "Christmas Idol"? Set up a small table for the "judges" and have teams of 2 people (or individuals, if they want) sing a Christmas carol. Tell them to have a lot of fun with the song, and even add a Santa hat or other dress-up items if they wish. The winners can take home a CD of Christmas music. This game is particularly fun if just the children want to perform and be judged by the adults, or if, conversely, the adults perform and are judged by the children.
http://ResearchOnKids.com
Asides - Interesting Facts/ Notes About Christmas
Asides - Interesting Facts/ Notes About Christmas
It is an accepted fact that the Christmas tree tradition is one that was brought to the shores of America by German immigrants who continued a practice that was popular in their former homeland. Today, a Christmas tree, even a
miniature one, is present in just about every home at Christmas. It is therefore
interesting to note some little-know facts about the Christmas Tree and other
traditions related to Christmas.
The first interesting fact is the source of real Christmas Trees for some
Americans. These can be bought at a Christmas Tree Farm or at many local stores
and other places of business in just about every town and city across the
country around Christmas time. But according to the National Christmas Tree
Association, Americans buy about 330,000 Christmas trees that are real through
e-commerce or from a catalogue and have them shipped by mail-order.
The scent of real Christmas trees is the reason they are so popular. But as they
stand silently in their decorative wonder, they also are providing another
benefit. The Christmas Tree Association says the amount of oxygen produced on a
daily basis by one acre of Christmas tree is enough to provide enough oxygen for
18 people. And during the first week, a Christmas Tree at home will use up to
one quart of water each day to help retain its longevity for the many days of
Christmas.
Since Christmas celebrations gained popularity in America, the Christmas Tree
has always been a big tradition. During the 1950s however, artificial Christmas
trees were not always green. It was very popular during those times to have
artificial trees with other colors such as silver, pink and aqua. The appeal in
having these colored Christmas trees may have been due to the fact that they
looked shiny and bright and appeared like tinsel instead of green foliage.
An important ceremony related to the Christmas tree that gains national
attention during the Christmas season is the lighting of the National Christmas
Tree at the White House. This tradition can be credited to President Calvin
Coolidge who lit the first decorated Christmas tree outside at the White House
in 1923.
The lighting of the National Christmas Tree has also been used to convey some
symbolic meaning not related to Christmas. It was not lighted until Dec. 22 in
1963 because of a national mourning period of 30 days for the assassination of
President Kennedy. And while Teddy Roosevelt was President he gave an order that
banned the Christmas tree from the White House, not for the assassination of
President McKinley in 1901, which caused him to become president, but for
reasons related to the environment.
Also of note is that when the National Christmas Tree was lighted on Dec. 13 in
1984, temperatures were in the 70s during an unusually warm December.
Christmas has been celebrated in the United States since the 1600s although it
wasn't always very popular. It took more than two centuries into the mid-late
1860s for Christmas to become a popular holiday season all across America. So
maybe the rest of the country owes the holiday of Christmas Day to the state of
Alabama, which in 1836 became the first state to declare Dec. 25 a legal
holiday.
It is interesting to note that on Christmas Day of 1789 Congress was in session.
And to show how far ahead of the game Alabama was, it wasn't until June 26, 1870
that the federal government declared Christmas as a federal holiday.
Although Christmas is based on the Christian religion, not all Christian groups
celebrate the season. Among the Christian groups who do not celebrate Christmas
and related traditions such as sending greeting cards are Jehovah Witnesses.
Jehovah Witnesses and other non-participating Christian groups say Christmas
isn't specifically mentioned in the Bible as a time or reason to celebrate and
since they strictly adhere to the word of the Bible, they refuse to celebrate
Christmas.
http://ResearchOnKids.com
Christmas Shopping During Big Sales
Christmas Shopping During Big Sales
Several times a year retailers offer big sales on many of their items. Some of these times include President’s Day, Easter, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and of course Christmas. Retailers hold sale events during these times of year to encourage shoppers to get out and make some big purchases. The last minute Christmas shopping frenzy which takes place each year can be largely attributed to the sale events at Christmas time. Many shoppers specifically wait until the last minute to do their Christmas shopping because they know many items will go on sale at this time. While this is an excellent way to save money, savvy Christmas shoppers know that doing a little bit of their Christmas shopping at these other sales during the year can help to ease the stress and financial burdens often associated with last minute Christmas shopping.
Christmas shopping during big sales is definitely a good idea but it is important to remember that there are some ways to really take advantage of a big sale and some ways to have your Christmas shopping deterred by a big sale. This article will discuss a few basic strategies for doing your Christmas shopping during big sales without falling into some of the common pitfalls often associated with shopping during sales.
One of the biggest pitfalls associated with doing your Christmas shopping during big sales events is to end up purchasing many items you don’t need and would not have purchased if they weren’t on sale. This can be a problem especially if it causes you to exceed the budget you have set for Christmas shopping. This often happens when shoppers encounter a sale they think is simply too good to pass up. For some shoppers a discount of more than 50% seems very appealing and they may be tempted to buy these items just because the price has been reduced by so much but they might not really need the item. In this case the shopper may be saving 50% off of the original price because of the discount but if they wouldn’t have purchased the item if it wasn’t on sale they are really spending more than they would normally spend and are essentially losing money. To avoid this pitfall, it is wise to make a list of each person on your list and what you intend to purchase for them so you will not be tempted by big bargains.
Another problem associated with Christmas shopping during big sales is that hesitancy often causes the shopper to miss out on an item. When you are Christmas shopping during a big sale it is important to be slightly impulsive. If you see an item you think you would like to purchase for someone on your Christmas list, you have to either buy it right away or run the risk that it will be gone if you come back later to look for the item. Retailers often put items on sale when they only have a limited quantity of the item in stock and therefore once they sell out the item is gone. So it is important to remember that when you are Christmas shopping during a big sale, you have to make decisions quickly. You need to either decide to purchase an item or completely forget about the item because it will likely be sold soon after you leave the store.
<a target="_blank" href="http://researchonkids.com" title="Santa Letters">A letter from Santa</a>
http://ResearchOnKids.com
Christmas Is Coming!
Yes, believe it or not Christmas is not that far off. And, you know what? Now, is the time to knock off a few things on your Christmas gift list. A good gift to give people is a "letter from Santa." You can have Santa Claus send anyone you know a letter by visiting http://ResearchOnKids.com today. But, rest assured, unless you request otherwise, he won't send it till early December. It will get there before Christmas.
Christmas Lights: The Ultimate Way to Decorate Your Home
Christmas Lights: The Ultimate Way to Decorate Your Home
Christmas lights; we have all seen them and most of us have used them before. When it comes to Christmas lights, we often associate those lights with Christmas trees. While Christmas lights are most commonly used to decorate Christmas trees, did you know that they can also be used for much more? If you are planning on decorating your home for Christmas this year, you are advised to examine what else Christmas lights can be used for. After a close examination, you will likely see that they can be used for a lot more than you may have originally thought.
As previously mentioned, when it comes to Christmas lights, we often associate Christmas lights with Christmas trees. This is because a large number of individuals decorate their Christmas trees with Christmas lights. What is nice about using Christmas lights on a Christmas tree is that the lights come in a number of different sizes and styles. It is possible to purchase Christmas lights with small light bulbs, as well as large ones. Traditional Christmas lights come white in color or with a combination of all different colors. In recent years, the popularity of different colored lights has skyrocketed. You can now purchase single colored Christmas lights or lights with a specific color combination. These types of lights are ideal for those who are looking to theme their Christmas tree.
Although many individuals choose to use Christmas lights for their Christmas tree, as stated above, there are other uses for them as well. One of those uses is for decorating the outside of your home. Online and in many retail stores across America, you can easily find Christmas lights that are designed for outside use, particular around a home. These type of lights are often referred to as icicle Christmas lights. Icicle Christmas lights allow the lights to hang off the side of a house. While it is possible to find multicolored outdoor Christmas lights, you will find that they are most commonly sold in the traditional white color.
Home
|
|
