Creative Christmas Stories

My students make me smile!  I hope you feel the same way. :)

Prompt:  Something pops up behind you while you are sledding!  What is it? What happens next?!

I was at the top of the South Street Hill on my new sled.  It had a steering wheel, brakes, and plenty of leg space.  I jumped on it, then I went down real fast.  I was only a quarter down the hill when my cat, Bilbo, pops up behind me wearing a Santa suit and says, "Meeeowy Cwismeows," and I was amazed.  So, we kept going down the hill at about 20 mph.  At the end, we went back up and did it again.

A chill went down my spine.  Someone was behind me on my sled.  I didn't dare look back.  This was the most dangerous slope.  You had to dodge tree after tree and brake at the end to avoid going down the ravine.  I swerved around the first tree, trying to throw whatever it was off the sled.  It didn't work.  I went off a jump but my passenger was still there.  I was nearing the ravine.  The thing put an arm on my shoulder.  I bailed out, turned around, and watched as Santa Claus, riding my sled, went down the ravine.  He yelled, "You're getting coal this Christmas!"  Oops.

Prompt:  Explain to Santa why he should use the iPhone, iPad, etc. that you are sending him.

Dear Santa, I'm sending you a this laptop so that instead of having to write all these letters and get writer's cramp, I can just send you emails.  Also, instead of the elves having to make all the toys, you can just order them on Amazon.  And if you insist on making some of the toys, you can use iTunes to put on a happy Christmasy tune to make it fun.  And one last thing -- all the kids will think you're cool.  Sincerely, B.  P.S.  I'm hoping this will get me extra good points!

Dear Santa, I'm giving you this iPad to help you through this journey.  It can help you because it has a GPS app to help you get around.  Another use for an iPad is you can take pictures with the camera on the front and back.  You can also listen to Christmas music like "Let It Snow" and "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town."  Also, I know how long of a trip it is to get from England to America, so you can also play games on the way!  I hope you will like it! Your friend, L.

Prompt: Tell about your experience from the perspective of a wise man or shepherd.

I was walking down the street when I saw a star.  I went to my friends and told them about it.  We decided to go check it out and figured out there was a new king.  We went to Bethlehem and told about The King to the king, and he seemed to have a real weird face, but whatever.  By the time we found Him, He was about 2 years old.  So, we worshiped Him and felt His presence in us.  We gave Him gifts: myrrh, gold, and frankincense.  We felt joy and went home and had hot chocolate.

Yo!  I'm the one that's bringin' gold 'cause dat's how we roll.  So far it's been perty rough.  We be cruisin' all day, first one of the wise men got motion sick, then one got dehydrated and was talking about the stars being aliens.  Ain't nobody got time fo' that!  Then we made it after years of travelin'.  Boy, that was hard!  (I promise, this student actually has great grammar!  It's just well-written dialect!)

Christmas in Kandern!

I've been delaying this blog post in hopes that I could load some photos to SHOW you Christmas in Kandern... and it magically worked!  Mysterious.  Hope you enjoy these highlights of Christmas celebrations in Kandern!

The picturesque view of snowfall from my bedroom window last week.  Unfortunately, the rain we've had the past few days has completely rid us of the winter wonderland.

My small group went Christmas caroling last Wednesday.  We visited 5 other small groups and 5 BFA families.  This was one of my favorite small group times ever!  We had a lot of fun together as we drove around to the different houses.  We even sang to everyone as they arrived back at the high school at the end of small group time, and snow began to fall gently.  How delightful!

The middle school and high school choirs sang carols together at the downtown Christmas market last Thursday.  It was c-c-cold, but they did a great job!

The middle school parents blessed us with a middle school staff luncheon last Friday.  My classroom was transformed and we enjoyed cheeses, soups, and yummy desserts.

My roommate Brittany and I ventured into downtown Basel for their Christmas market last weekend!  It was fun to walk around a look at the different stalls.  We even got to participate in a flash mob (singing "How Great Is Our God" in German) organized by an alliance of churches in Basel!

Brittany and I had the middle school chapel band students over to our house for a Christmas party on Monday after school.  We played several Christmas carol games and ended by playing this favorite, Whoonu.  What a fun group of middle schoolers!

Wednesday was the annual small group Christmas party.  My group joined with Brittany and Justina's group to eat yummy soup, watch Home Alone, decorate cookies, and sip homemade hot chocolate.  It was a fun, relaxing time for everyone!

We did a major locker clean-out this week... some of the students needed it more than others!

During the last two English classes before break, the sixth graders wrote creative stories about different Christmas-related prompts.  I'll be posting some of these soon so you can hear how hilarious and clever they are!

Next time I write, I'll be on the other side of the Atlantic.  I'm looking forward to spending this Christmas in PA with some of YOU!