Pumpkin season is with us and yesterday Barron chose two beautiful pumpkins from our local walmart store, although Barron already won a prize for being the cutest pumpkin in the patch.
Behaviorally Balanced shop on TpT has a wonderful resource for free entitled "Carving Out Time To Practice Mindful Deep Breathing Brain Break - Mindfulness Pumpkin Style" downloadable with a TpT account at: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Carving-Out-Time-To-Practice-Mindful-Deep-Breathing-Brain-Break-Mindfulness-8804273
https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/VegasVectors has these cute designs:
https://www.madewithhappy.com/haunted-house-craft/
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Thanksgiving-Color-the-Cornucopia-Grades-PK-1-1528107
Advent Calendar
The Advent or Christmas calendar began as a plain card with paper backing. On the face were 24 windows, that when opened revealed various Christmas symbols and scenes. These windows or small doors were to be opened, one each day, over the 24 days leading up to Heiligabend or Christmas Eve. The largest window is still reserved for December 24th and usually offers a view of the Nativity. The Schwibbogen
https://www.german-way.com/history-and-culture/holidays-and-celebrations/christmas/advent/
https://www.german-way.com/history-and-culture/holidays-and-celebrations/christmas/christmas-candle-arch-der-schwibbogen/
The Advent tradition is a religious celebration in preparation for the arrival, or “advent” of the Christ Child (das Christkind) on his “official” birthday, the 25th day of December. The Advent season and its celebration have changed over the years from a more serious, somber character (including giving up things, as for Lent) to one of a more joyous nature — including such treats as chocolate-filled Advent calendars. The four weeks and four Advent Sundays leading up to Christmas Eve are a happy time – at least for those not too caught up in the increasingly hectic and commercial aspects of this time of the year.
Traditional, author unknown
An Advent song for children in German with English translation.
Advent, Advent,
ein Lichtlein brennt.
Erst ein, dann zwei,
dann drei, dann vier,
dann steht das Christkind vor der Tür.
Advent, Advent,
A little candle burns.
First one, then two,
then three, then four,
then stands the Christ Child at the door.
In some parts of Germany, mainly the south east of the country, children write to the Christkind/Christkindl asking for presents. The letters to the Christkind are decorated with sugar glued to the envelope to make them sparkly and attractive to look at. Children leave the letters on the windowsill at the beginning of or during Advent.
“Das Christkind” translates as “The Christ Child” in English but Germans don’t think of the Christkind as the baby Jesus. The Christkind is often described as a young girl with ‘Christ-like’ qualities.
It is the Christ child, or Christkind (Christkindl), who opens the annual Christmas markets in Nuremberg with “its”, or rather “her” prologue.
Here is an extract from the Christkind’s prologue:
…”In every year, four weeks before the time
When Christmas trees we decorate, and everyone awaits the feast,
Here on this square, just as of yore, this market does appear,
Which up and down the country they call Christmas Markt.
This little town is built from wood and canvas
Its splendor’s short, will soon be gone,
But yet it is eternal. My market is forever young,
As long as Nuremberg does exist, as long as you remember it”…
https://germanculture.com.ua/german-holidays/christ-child/?amp=1
Dear Christkind
12/24/2009December 24, 2009
In the small town of Engelskirchen, thousands of letters from around the world arrive at a seasonal Christmas post office, all addressed to one person. For over 20 years, postal workers have written back.
https://p.dw.com/p/LCs2
A letter to the Christkind
Thousands of letters arrive every Christmas in EngelskirchenImage: AP
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It's a tradition for young children around the world to send letters to Santa Claus with their wishes for Christmas. German children, however, practice a slightly different tradition. They often send letters to the Christkind, who is responsible for bringing the presents on Christmas. The Christkind is a symbolic representation of the Christmas spirit that is often depicted as a Christmas angel.
Many of those letters land in a small town in western Germany called Engelskirchen. Translated, the town's name means "Angels' Church" - a fitting name for the seasonal home of a Christmas post office. The post office, located on the town's aptly named "Angels' Square," is one of six official addresses in Germany for letters addressed to the Christkind.
Eva Sattler appears as the Nuremberger Christmas Child, during the traditional opening of the Christmas market thre.Eva Sattler appears as the Nuremberger Christmas Child, during the traditional opening of the Christmas market thre.
Germans picture the Christkind as a kind of fairy, or angelImage: AP
The tradition started in 1985, when other post offices around Germany weren't sure what to do with letters addressed to the Christkind.
"Since Engelskirchen was such a nice name, they ended up just sending them there," said Britta Toellner, a spokeswoman for Germany's mail carrier Deutsche Post. "And at the time, there was a manager here who opened the letters and saw that they were Christmas lists, so just for fun, she answered a few.". https://www.dw.com/en/dear-christkind-a-german-post-office-answers-christmas-letters/a-5054366
Christkind
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