Last stop is Africa

Our final stop traveling around the world is in Africa. We learned:
1. Kwanzaa is a Swahili word which means "first fruits of the harvest".

2. It is celebrated from December 26th through January 1 each year.

3. This holiday was started so African American people could learn about their African history, customs and traditions.

4. The colors represent: Red-struggles, Green-for the future and hope, and black-for the people.
We also made Kwanzaa braclets that represent the colors of the flag and what it stands for.

Next stop India

We traveled to India to start the week, which caused lots of excitement in the classroom from many children who have traveled to India before and celebrate Diwali.
In India we learned:
1. Christmas is a very small festival in India.
2. They decorate banana or mango trees.

3. Some people celebrate Diwali which means row of lights.

4. Diwali happens in October-November and is celebrated for 5 days.

5. Many people celebrate by giving gifts, decorating their houses with lights, and henna.
We made henna tattoos on our "hands" to remember our time in India.

Feliz Navidad....Mexico

Now we are off to Mexico. In Mexico...

1. They celebrate Christmas for 9 days.

2. The three kings bring gifts in Mexico.

3. They celebrate with pinatas.

4. The poinsettia comes from Mexico, in three colors (pink, white, red).

5. Feliz Navidad means Merry Christmas

We made a poinsettia and danced to Feliz Navidad to celebrate our time in Mexico...

Happy Hanukkah.....Israel

Our next stop is Israel where we learned about Hanukkah. In Israel...
1. In Israel they celebrate Hanukkah.
2. They light a Menorah for 8 nights.
3. They play dreidel games.
4. The children get gold coins called Gelt.
5. They celebrate by eating potato latkes

In Israel we made a hand print Menorah to remember our time and danced to the dreidel song!