Home      Team      Students´ Corner      Activities        HALLOWEEN TIME   Halloween is an ancient pagan festival. People used to believe that it was the night that witches flew and that horrible beasts and monsters walked around. Lanterns would be lit all night to keep evil spirits away. Good spirits were kept happy with food and warmth. Halloween used be to known as the 'Festival of the Dead'. Christians changed the name to Halloween, meaning 'All Hallows' Eve'. It comes just before 'All Saints' Day' (1st November) and 'All Souls' Day' (2nd November). This period marks the beginning of winter.     The pagan roots to the festival are reflected in the images of Halloween seen today: witches, skeletons, ghosts, and lanterns. Halloween night is a night for mischief, which became 'trick-or-treating' in the US - many of the traditions now associated with Halloween are American in origin.  Every year there is a Jack o´ Lantern and biscuits´ competition with spooky prizes after sharing them during the break.   Guy Fawkes and Bonfire Night Bonfire Night is celebrated across the UK on 5 November. The date marks the failed attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament by Guy Fawkes1 along with a group of co-conspirators in London in 1605. The intention was to kill King James I and wipe out everyone in government. The group were Catholic extremists who wanted to return England to the Catholic faith. One of the conspirators had a friend in the Houses of Parliament and sent a letter to him, warning him to stay away from the House on the day the attack was supposed to take place. The letter was intercepted and handed to the king. Meanwhile, Guy Fawkes and friends, having formulated their plan, known as the 'Gunpowder Plot', had rolled 36 barrels of gunpowder into the cellars of the Houses of Parliament, and were waiting for the king to arrive when guards broke in and arrested them. They were tortured and executed. This year a Guy Fawkes´ effigy witnessed our first contest with different challenges. Delicious prizes!       THANKSGIVING       In the USA, Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. The first Thanksgiving in the USA was a feast in 1620 shared by the Pilgrims (who had recently settled Plymouth Colony in what is now Massachusetts) and the Wampanoag Indians, who shared their corn, pumpkin and wild turkeys.  This first feast was not repeated until more than ten years later. Thanksgiving was declared a national holiday in 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln. On Sept. 6, 1620 the Pilgrims left Plymouth (England) for the New World on a ship called the Mayflower. They were 110 men, women and children. The voyage took 65 days. When they arrived, the Pilgrims were afraid of the local Native American Indians. But the Patuxets were a peaceful group and did not do anything bad to them. The first winter was very hard for the Pilgrims: of the 110 Pilgrims who left England, only 50 survived the first winter. But on March 16, 1621, an Indian walked into the settlement. His name was Samoset. He soon returned with another Indian named Squanto, who could speak English and taught the Pilgrims how to plant Indian corn. The harvest in October was very successful and the Pilgrims had enough food for the winter. It was time to celebrate. Nowadays, Thanksgiving Day in America is a time to offer thanks, of family reunions and holiday meals. A time of turkeys, pumpkin pie and Indian corn. A time of holiday parades, football games on TV and giant balloons. Looking forward to participating in our Treasure Hunt? Lots of fun! Break time. CHRISTMAS IN BRITAIN   Christmas is Britain's most popular holiday. Its traditions and early ceremonies were rooted in pagan beliefs and date back hundreds of years. They are still part of contemporary Christmas celebrations. The Druids, for example, honoured the mistletoe in their religion and sacrificial rites. The red berry of the holly was believed to protect one against witchcraft. Ivy symbolised immortality. The Vikings introduced the Yule log which used to be burnt in honour of God Thor. The English adapted this practice for Christmas and today's (electric) Christmas candle is a holdover from baronial days. The custom of sending Christmas cards to friends and family originated in Britain, too. In 1843 John Calcott Horsley designed the first one for Sir Henry Cole. Thus began a real spread of sending Christmas cards and this practice soon became an established tradition. Favoured designs were Christmas feasts, church bells, plum and turkey as well as religious themes. Every year more than a billion Christmas cards are now sent in the United Kingdom. Many of them are sold in aid for charities. Since 1840 the decorated and illuminated Christmas tree has gained popularity in England. Prince Albert brought this rite over from Germany. In 1848 the Illustrated London News published a picture of the Royal Family around one. The English families followed the Royal example and it can truly be called a Victorian innovation. Each year a giant Christmas tree is set up and decorated near the statue of Lord Nelson in Trafalgar Square. It commemorates Anglo-Norwegian cooperation during World War II. On Christmas Eve carols are often sung by groups of singers walking from house to house, and children hang a stocking on the fireplace or at the foot of their bed for Father Christmas to fill. Caroling dates back to the Middle Ages when beggars were seeking for money, food or drink wandering the streets singing holiday songs. On Christmas Day gifts are opened in the morning. Later the family will gather for the traditional Christmas dinner consisting of Brussels sprouts, fried potatoes with roast turkey, roast beef or goose. Sweet mince pie or Christmas pudding is served for dessert.  The pulling of Christmas crackers often accompanies food on Christmas Day. Invented by a London baker in 1846, a cracker is a brightly coloured paper tube, twisted at both ends, which contains a party hat, riddle and toy or other trinket. When it is pulled by two people it gives out a crack as its contents are dispersed. The pudding might contain coins or lucky charms for children. For afternoon tea Christmas cake is offered. It is rich baked fruit cake with marzipan and icing. A party favourite are Christmas crackers. There will be one to each plate on the Christmas dinner table. A Christmas cracker is a brightly coloured paper tube, twisted on both ends and filled with a party hat, a riddle and a toy. The annual broadcasting of the Queen's Christmas Message is on Christmas Day afternoon. In 1932 King George brought this custom into being. Boxing Day is on December 26th. This day takes its name from a former custom giving a Christmas box to delivery men and trades people called regularly through the year. Nowadays dustmen, milkmen, or postmen get a tip for a good service at Christmas time.  Pantomimes are popular among British children at Christmas time. These are song and dance dramatizations of well-known fairy tales that encourage audience participation. Come to see ours this year on Dec 22 in the auditorium! You will not regret it! Ah! Don’t forget the Christmas Cards and Christmas Carols competition either! Last day before Christmas holidays.