Christmas Customs and Traditions

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Christmas Customs and Traditions

• Christmas Cards
• Christmas Tinsel
• Green, White Red

• Mistletoe
• First Christmas Tree
• Christmas Gifts

Click on the custom or tradition you would like
to learn more about.
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Green, White Red

• Have you ever wondered why we use the colors
  green, red and white to decorate our homes at
  Christmas in the United States?
• Click here to find out

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A legend tells us

• There was a little lamb traveling to Bethlehem to
  see the Christ Child.
• On his way, he became entangled in a thorny holly
  bush.
• As his skin was pricked, tiny drops of blood
  froze on his white fleece. They looked like the
  berries on the holly bush.

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Another belief about these colors

• The green comes from the evergreen trees of the
  season.
• The red comes from the berries on the holly bush.
• The white comes from the snow on the fields in
  winter.

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What colors would you choose?

• If you could choose any colors to decorate for
  Christmas, what would they be?
• Draw a Christmas tree and decorate it using the
  colors you choose.
• On the bottom of the page, write a brief
  explanation of the reasons you chose the colors
  you chose.

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Christmas Cards

• Do you and your family send Christmas cards to
  others at Christmas?
• Click below to learn where the tradition of
  sending Christmas cards began.

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The Very First Christmas Card

• The very first Christmas card was sent in 1870.
• J.C. Horsely designed a picture on a card and
  sent it to his friends.

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Christmas cards today

• Before long, most people sent Christmas cards to
  friends and family.
• Today, it is still a popular tradition.

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Christmas Tinsel

• According to a legend from long ago, the
  tradition of decorating with silver, shimmering
  tinsel came about from a poor womans desire to
  decorate her childrens Christmas tree.

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• She had no money to buy decorations for the tree
  and nothing from which to make decorations.

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Tinsel is created...

• However, the next morning when she awoke, a
  spider had come in the night and spun a
  shimmering web all over the tree.
• The glimmer of the web was beautiful and a new
  tradition of using tinsel was started.

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Captured Spider Webs

• If you see a spider web early in the morning,
  spray it gently with white spray paint.

• Then gently lift it from its
• place on a piece of black
• construction paper. It will
• stick to the paper.

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Mistletoe

• Mistletoe is an evergreen plant we have today,
  but it was also around in ancient times.
• The berries of the mistletoe are very poisonous.
  Never put them in or near your mouth.

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• The Greeks believed it brought good luck.
• The English would cut it out of trees and hang it
  in their doorways to bring luck to their houses
  and families.

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• Today, we also hang it in our doorways. Our
  custom is that anyone standing under the
  mistletoe must kiss.

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• This custom probably came from the legend that
  the English would only allow happiness to pass
  beneath the mistletoe. Therefore, everyone
  passing underneath it would kiss to show their
  friendship.

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O Christmas Tree

• Do you and your family decorate a Christmas tree?
  

• Have you ever wondered
• how the tradition of
• decorating a tree inside the
• house came to be?

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First Christmas Tree

• The first Christmas tree was cut down and
  decorated in 1605 in Germany.
• Martin Luther was admiring the beautiful night
  sky.

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• He thought that it appeared that the stars were
  floating down and resting on the branches of a
  fir tree.
• He wanted his family to enjoy this picture with
  him, so he cut the tree down and took it home.

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• He decorated it with lighted candles to resemble
  the stars.
• The tradition of decorating Christmas trees with
  lights and pretty decorations has spread world
  wide.

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Christmas Gifts

• The tradition of giving gifts at Christmas began
  with the Three Wise Men giving their gifts to the
  Christ Child in Bethlehem.

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• Countries around the world now have their own
  legends and customs of giving gifts at Christmas.
• Continue through this site to learn about many of
  these countries traditions and customs.