Preparing for the Holidays

Preparing for the Holidays

The holiday season brings a great deal of excitement to the classroom. Most students are anticipating how they will spend their break and what gifts they might get. They are excited about spending time with family. Unfortunately, this is not the case of all of our students. Some children do not have celebrations during the holidays because of cultural or religious differences. There are also a number of young people who struggle emotionally during this period of time.

Many children, particularly those with autism, do not respond well to change. Staying home from school for winter break is a complete disruption of their daily routine and can generate a great deal of anxiety and stress. According to U.S. Census Bureau, in 2015 there were 49,361,000 students were enrolled in K-12 schools. We know that about 1 in 68 has autism; that means there were about 725,900 autistic students. 

Other children do not look forward to long breaks because they do not have a happy home life. Some are homeless, in foster care, come from abusive homes, and/or live below the poverty level. These children do not have the same expectations their classmates do of expensive gifts and fancy meals.

• About 1.3 million children throughout the United States are homeless. 
• According to the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), there are over 400,000 U.S. children in foster care.  
• Statistia.com shows that though the poverty level has been dropping, 13.5% of U.S. children are living in poverty.

Other young people are struggling because they have lost a parent either through divorce or through death. The holidays can be a challenging time for young people who have suffered a loss, especially those who find it difficult to express their feelings. Some may experience feelings of guilt, particularly in family where a divorce has occurred.

So, I'm not writing this to be a Debbie Downer. I think it is important as educators that we are aware that some of our students may not be looking forward to winter break. We need to be sensitive to students who might be having a difficult time this holiday season. Here are some suggestions.

1. Try to provide opportunities for students to open up and share their feelings about the holidays.
2. Provide alternate assignments if you are doing some holiday-related activity. Be creative. For example, if you assign students the task of writing about how their family spends the holidays, you could offer students the option of writing about their dream vacation or perhaps how they envision the perfect holiday to be. If children are making a craft to give to a parent as a holiday gift, you might offer the option of making a gift for a friend or even for themselves. If a child lost a parent or another loved one, you might suggest that they make something to honor that person.
3. Some schools have little holiday shops that are open for children to buy gifts for their families. Come up with a fun alternative activity for students who cannot, or just do not want to shop. That way those who have little or no money, or have no one to buy for, will not feel left out.
4. If you think a child is struggling, keep in touch with other teachers and guidance counselors in your building who see the same student. Find out how they are doing in their other classes.

Keeping all of our students in mind when planning holiday activities may lead to a more positive learning environment, help struggling students cope, and still offer a nice distraction from the everyday for everyone.

Thank you for listening.