Starting on Monday, when we return from break, we will be having spirit days until we leave for Winter Break. To kick us off, Monday 12/2 is “Home Alone Day” so wear your coziest sweats, joggers, or comfy sweatshirts to stay warm and motivated!
12/2 - Today is “Home Alone Day” so look out for classmates in their coziest sweats and sweatshirts staying warm. Tomorrow is “Toasty Toes Day” so wear your warmest and most festive socks.
12/3 - Today is “Toasty Toes Day” so look out for classmates in their warmest and most festive socks. Tomorrow is “Holiday Characters Day” so dress like a holiday character (i.e. elf, reindeer, etc.) or a character from your favorite holiday movie.
12/4 - Today is “Holiday Characters Day” so look out for classmates dressed like a holiday character (i.e. elf, reindeer, etc.) or a character from their favorite holiday movie. Tomorrow is “Jingle Bells Day” so wear your best holiday bling.
12/5 - Today is “Jingle Bells Day”. Throughout history, bells have been used to ward off bad luck, diseases and evil spirits as well as to announce the arrival of something like the holiday season. Look for classmates in their best holiday bling. Tomorrow is “Bright Lights Day” so wear as many colors or the brightest colors you can.
12/6 - Today is Bright Lights Day”. In the 17th-century, candles were attached to Christmas trees using wax or pins to illuminate the ornaments and help them be seen. Around 1915, glass balls and lanterns replaced candles and in 1882, the first Christmas tree was lit by electric lights in New York. The string of Christmas lights we are used to today were available for sale around 1890. Look for classmates in their bright colors. Monday is “Frosty the Snowman Day” so wear white or something with snowflakes.
12/9 - Today is “Frosty the Snowman Day”. Frosty the Snowman was a popular Christmas song in 1950 and was turned into a children’s book and short film in the same year. Later, there were other TV specials based on the character. Look for classmates wearing white or snowflakes. Tomorrow is “Tinsel Tuesday” so wear white or something with snowflakes.
12/10 - Today is “Tinsel Tuesday”. The word tinsel was used in the 16th-century for a variety of lightweight fabrics with a metallic effect made with silk and gold and silver thread. More commonly, tinsel is a thin strip of sparkling material used to decorate during the holidays to mimic the effects of ice. Look out for classmates that are standing out in their shiniest outfit.Tomorrow is “Candy Cane Day” so wear red and white stripes.
12/11 - Today is “Candy Cane Day”. Candy Canes became popular in 1919 and are traditionally red and white striped and peppermint flavor, however, they now come in a variety of colors and flavors. Look for classmates wearing red and white stripes today. Tomorrow is “Grinch Day” so wear green.
12/12 - Today is “Grinch Day”. The Grinch was first known from a Dr. Seuss poem in 1955. He later reappeared in How the Grinch Stole Christmas! which has been made into a song and movie. Look for classmates wearing green today. Tomorrow is “Whoville Day” so wear your hair as crazy as possible.
12/13 - Today is “Whoville Day”. Whoville is the fictional town that appears in How the Grinch Stole Christmas! but also in Horton Hears a Who!, both by Dr. Seuss. Look for classmates with crazy hair. Monday is “Miser Brother’s Day” so wear red if you can relate to Heat Miser or blue if you can relate to Snow Miser.
12/16 - Today is “Miser Brother’s Day”. A Miser Brothers’ Christmas is a 2008 film about the two brothers battling the third son of Mother Nature and their brother: North Wind. Look for classmates wearing red or blue to see which brother is more popular. Tomorrow is “Kwanzaa Day” so wear red, black, and green.
12/17 - Today is “Kwanzaa Day”. Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Korenga in the United States during the Civil Rights Movement. The word Kwanzaa comes from the Swahili phrase meaning “first fruits of the harvest”. Kwanzaa is a week-long celebration of African heritage and culture.
There are seven principles of Kwanzaa:
Umoja (Unity) - to strive for and to maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race.
Kujichagulia (Self-Determination) - to define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves.
Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility) - to build and maintain our community together. To make our brothers’ and sisters’ problems our problems, and to solve them together.
Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics) - to build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together.
Nia (Purpose) - to make our collective goal the building and developing of our community. This is in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.
Kuumba (Creativity) - to do always as much as we can, in the way we can. This is so that we can leave our community more beautiful and better than we inherited it.
Imani (Faith) - to believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.
In the kinara, the one black candle represents the unity of the people, the three green candles represent the future of African lands and communities, and the three red candles represent the past bloodshed from African ancestors.
Look for classmates wearing red, black, and green today. Tomorrow is “Hanukkah Day” so wear blue.
12/18 - Today is “Hanukkah Day”. Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish celebration of the military victory of recovering Jerusalem from foreign rulers. It is also known as the Festival of Lights and represents joy. The word Hanukkah means dedication. Look for classmates wearing blue today. Tomorrow is “Christmas Day” so wear your ugliest Christmas sweater.
12/19 - Today is “Christmas Day”. Christmas is a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus. It is celebrated on December 25th and is traditionally represented by red and green decorations, trees with lights, ornaments, and a star, stockings, bells, angels, and doves. Look for classmates wearing their ugliest Christmas sweater today. Tomorrow is “Polar Express Day” so wear school-appropriate pajama bottoms. Tomorrow is only for pajama bottoms so please do not bring slippers, blankets, or other items not involved in spirit week so we don’t lose the privilege of having pajama days in the future.
12/20 - Today is “Polar Express Day”. The Polar Express is a 2004 computer-animated movie based on the 1985 children’s book of the same name in which a young boy is invited onboard a mysterious train that stops outside his window on its way to the North Pole. Look out for classmates in their coziest sweats, joggers, or comfy sweatshirts.
12/20 PM Announcement - Regardless of the holidays you celebrate, spend your Winter Break with the people you care about, resting and having fun, and stay safe! We will see you all in 2025!