Many of us grew up eating turkey with all the fixings at Thanksgiving and building gingerbread 
houses at Christmas.
For students attending the Douglas County School System’s Newcomer Center, exploring American holiday traditions is part of an overall focus on helping students, most of whom have been in the United States for less than a year, with language acquisition through integrated academic and cultural activities.
Last week, 48 students in the program made gingerbread houses for Christmas with teachers Dr. Araceli Hurley, Allen Newsome and Tammie Gilmore and learned about traditions and characters like Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
A total of 18 of the 48 students are celebrating their first Christmas in the United States this year, and the majority of the other 30 students are celebrating their second Christmas here, Hurley said.
“My goal is to support English language learners as they adapt to both social and academic
environments,” Hurley said. “To enhance cultural understanding and engagement, I incorporate activities exploring holiday traditions.”
The students at the Newcomer Center represent countries from across the globe: Chile, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Senegal and Venezuela.
At Thanksgiving, the students enjoyed a traditional American Thanksgiving feast, complete with turkey, macaroni and cheese and sweet potato casserole — all foods that the students had never tried before.
Hurley cooked the entire meal herself using food donated by The Pantry. As part of the experience, the students learned the history of the American Thanksgiving.
Hurley said the students made thank-you cards, many of which mentioned that the macaroni and
cheese was their favorite. The cards, written by students still learning English, included messages like “may God bless you with many food for you.”
“It was really adorable,” Hurley said. “It was a new experience for the majority of them.”
In addition to Thanksgiving and Christmas, Newcomer students carve pumpkins at Halloween. Hurley even roasted the seeds and brought them in for the students to try.
In the spring, the students will learn about the Easter tradition and participate in an Easter egg hunt.
“We continue to celebrate with these holiday traditions collectively, creating a strong sense of unity and family,” she said.