If you’re at home with the kids, and there’s no snow for the holidays, check out “I Want To Go Outside”. Used to be when there wasn’t snow in December things were at least brown … so I wrote
“but when I look outside its all quite brown there’s no snow in our town”
But these days where I live, if there’s no snow, the grass is green –and possibly growing! So I changed the song words.
Enjoy your holiday, however you spend it.
Lesley
Check out other holiday specific songs in CanDo Music! Click: 1. “All Songs” 2. “Kinds of Songs” 3. Holidays
January can seem a bit dreary after the bright holiday season. I like to begin working on one or two pieces of music that work just as well in January as December. Jingle Bells is an easy one —the only Decembery thing in it is snow. Jingle Bells makes for easy singing and/or dancing. Add the 2nd and 3rd verses to set it in its original time period.
The Holiday Hop includes 6 video versions to help teach and/or choreograph a dance with your students. Again, its simply dance music with no deep ties to December so it can brighten up January days as well.
Dance into the holidays!
The deep connection between traditions and holidays for us may, or may not be because of their original significance to the holiday. I mean, I understand that being “home for the holidays” has a heart-catching sentimental string attached. But the first Christmas was all about making a home even if you were traveling and the only space for the night was in a barn.
Tell a few stories about holiday traditions —well known ones like dreidels for Chanukah, decorating trees for Christmas or enjoying special music for any faith. Then invite students to tell the stories of their special family traditions –which ones they really like, or maybe aren’t so fond of.
Oh, and about the man in red? I like to think of this story as a “let’s pretend” game many of us enjoy, and appreciate children letting us play. When you’re able to ignore the made up Hollywood version, he has a real connection with the religious story.
Instead of trying to do everything this year —choose the traditions that are really important for you, and enjoy them.
