Parents are concerned that some of their public schools are removing the joy from the upcoming holiday season. I remember as a child in a public elementary school, participating in a Christmas program where parents were invited. We sang Christmas carols, and put on a Christmas program.
This was a fun and joyous time for everyone in the school. We could walk down the hall and see decorations, a Christmas tree, and we’d practice Christmas carols in class. One of my best friends was Jewish, and Hanukkah was incorporated too.
There is so much focus on a child’s mental health, but what’s better than adding some joy to their school day?
You can still find it in the Christian, Catholic and Jewish schools. Ok, those are religious schools, so what can they do in a public school? A lot.
We all know, and acknowledge, that there are children from different faiths. But that doesn’t mean that the holiday season must be shut down.
Gateways to a Better Education helps teachers and administrators understand what they can do in a public school during the holidays — assuming they are not hostile to religion. They acknowledge why Christmas is good in the public schools. They also write about integrating faith and the public schools. How this is expected in some of the state academic standards without mixing church and state.
There are sources that parents can use, and share with their local public school administrators and school board.
With all of the misery surrounding COVID, masks, vaccines, school shutdowns, remote learning, and every other challenge in the local public schools, maybe it’s time for some joy.
When you walk into a religious school right now, you can feel the excitement. You can see the joy that comes with children celebrating the holidays. There’s no reason that children in public schools cannot enjoy the holidays at school too.
To those of you in the public schools who understand this, and have made this season special for your students, thank you. You will offer some much-needed joy for those working in the schools, and the students you serve.
Editor’s Note: This was supposed to publish this morning but the date was incorrect so you may have seen it added to the feed for yesterday morning if you scrolled down far enough. It has been rescheduled so readers can more easily find it today, as originally planned.
