Christmas, a family ritual worth preserving

Of course, stress aside, the holidays also bring lots of fun and happy memories. And although holiday traditions have stayed pretty much the same for years, I sometimes find myself missing certain activities and other rituals I grew up with. I remember the incredible wait for Santa Claus to leave the presents under the tree, waiting for the twelve strokes of midnight before opening the gifts, the cookies and glass of milk I'd carefully set out near the glowing tree, the parties that went on all night long...

All in all, I get the feeling that some of my childhood rituals have disappeared or completely changed over the years. Could it be for lack of time, lack of interest, out of necessity, or even because children no longer necessarily play the same role in the winter festivities? While we try to make the most of every family moment the Christmas season brings, we also know that family gatherings usually go hand in hand with disrupted routines (going to bed later, getting up later, eating more and being granted “special” permissions). In fact, these moments can become a great learning opportunity for children. Here are a few tips to make that happen:

• Bake homemade cookies, which your child can decorate all by themselves while exercising their creativity.
• Use a calendar to help them get a sense of time and learn their numbers.
• Build a snowman as a family. Use the moment to work on body parts and some spatial concepts (top, bottom, right, on, under).
• Use tree-decorating time to work on the concept of quantity (How many blue ornaments are there? Hang three stars on the branch).

When you think about it, what matters is certainly not the quantity of our rituals, but their quality. Some personal and/or family traditions may have been handed down to you by your parents, from one generation to the next. You may also have invented your own traditions, or your family may no longer celebrate certain holidays. Even so, it's still important to keep some customs alive. Besides strengthening family bonds, rituals help create happy memories and can become a reassuring moment for children, one they can hold on to over time. In the end, it's up to you to carry them on; let's rediscover the child in us and create our own magic!

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