Holidays Around the World
As the ‘80s song goes, there’s a party goin’ on right here.
But at the end of the year, parties are everywhere you look around the world. From Christmas and Kwanzaa to Boxing Day and Yuletide, celebrations abound in the month of December and for New Year’s.
Here at The Behavior Exchange, we absolutely love the holidays because they’re social occasions and mean lots of fun with family and friends. When nights are longer and sunshine is scarce, the winter holiday season brings much needed light to our lives and warmth to our hearts.
So let’s celebrate with the world and dream of a new year filled with good cheer for those near and far!
How many of these winter holidays do you know?
Let’s start with the obvious one:
Christmas
Christmas is celebrated around the world as a Christian holiday, commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. It’s also a secular holiday where Santa Claus (aka Kriss Kringle) delivers toys to good boys and girls around the globe. Because of that, he also goes by:
- Sinterklass in the Netherlands
- Der Weihnachtsmann in Germany
- Père Noël in France
- Dedt Moroz in Russia
- Noel Baba in Turkey
- Father Christmas in England
- Babbo Natale and La Befana in Italy
- Święty Mikołaj in Poland
- サンタさんor Santa-san in Japan
- Shaka Santa in Hawaii
Hanukkah
Hannukkah is a Jewish holiday commemorating the miracle of a small amount of oil lasting for eight nights, keeping a menorah lit in the temple after it was reclaimed from invaders during an ancient battle. During the eight days of Hanukkah, families give gifts, play games, and enjoy special foods.
Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa is a week long celebration of African community and culture. Children are honored during the holiday with gifts and encouraged to take important roles in the celebrations based on the seven principles of unity, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, self-determination, purpose, creativity, and faith.
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year starts on the second new moon after the winter solstice, when we experience the longest night of the year. It’s a celebration that happens in many places around the globe. In China, the two-week holiday is marked by impressive fireworks, lion dances, family dinners at home, and gifts of money in red envelopes given to children for good luck.
St. Lucia’s Day
St. Lucia’s Day in Sweden is on December 13. It’s part of their Christmas season where the oldest girl in each family is celebrated. They dress up in white and wear a crown of candles, representing an early Christian saint of the same name. Boys join in by wearing white and singing in parades.
Boxing Day
Boxing Day takes place on December 26. The holiday is said to have originated in England when the wealthy gave boxes of gifts and money to staff to reward them for their service throughout the year. Today, it’s celebrated in multiple countries and is marked by sales and shopping. In Australia and New Zealand, it’s also known for big sporting events.
Yule or Yuletide
Yule is a historical Germanic festival with pagan roots that’s associated with Odin and the Wild Hunt. Nowadays, people celebrate Yule like Christmas with gifts and family gatherings. Burning the Yule log comes from this tradition.
Omisoka
Omisoka is a Japanese festival on the last day of the year. It’s a unique celebration marked by activities for preparing for the new year, like purifying your home by removing clutter and cleaning. Families also gather for giant feasts with traditional foods, and bells ring from temples at midnight as a spiritual event.
Whatever your holiday traditions are, the fun doesn’t have to end! Contact us today to learn how our autism experts can help your child and family reach their full, meaningful potential through a playful approach to ABA therapy. The results will have you celebrating!
Developing Your Illustration Skills at Home
Illustrators! We have gathered a range of recommendations to help keep students and budding illustrators busy at home during this time.
Our recommendations include books, podcasts, brief generators, drawing exercises, and virtual networking opportunities – read on to discover more.
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Recommended reading
Artist and Illustrator Lisa Congdon presents this beautifully illustrated guide to finding your unique visual identity. Featuring advice from Lisa and interviews with a range of fellow artists, this book will build confidence, resilience, and trust in your creativity as you learn to appreciate the value of your personal artistic journey.
A drawing a day keeps the cobwebs at bay – dive right in with 642 creative prompts to help you build up your 10,000 hours of illustration practice. From observational to conceptually mind-bending challenges, there is no worrying about how to fill a blank page with these exercises.
Virtual Networking
Artist and Illustrator Carson Ellis is running a ‘quarantine art club’ via her Instagram page – currently they are up to assignment #18 and have tackled a wide range of topics including drawing an imagined still life, designing a treasure map and ‘#TransmundaneTuesdays’
Illustrator Stephanie Unger held a ‘socially distanced’ virtual exhibition via Animal Crossing, complete with private view you could attend via the platform. You can view Highlights on her Instagram page or read about the process in art journal, Lecture in Progress.
Developing your Practice
We’ve found two great brief generators with options specific for Illustrators! Expand your practice in surprising new ways with goofbrief which allows you to select an industry to illustrate for. Alternatively take a look at Fake Clients for totally random quick exercises.
YouTube is one of the best places to look for tutorials on an infinite number of techniques. We’ve chosen to include some booking binding tutorials that you can easily replicate with the minimum of tools from home – explore the full playlist of Sea Lemon’s tutorials for more inspiration whether you just want a new sketchbook or are planning an illustrated children’s story.
Podcasts
Creative Pep Talks – This podcast is designed to support all aspects of your creative practice alongside practical business advice for established and budding illustrators alike.
Illustration Age – Hosted by illustrator Thomas James, this podcast includes conversations with illustrators, art directors and a whole host of other professionals within illustration, giving a true insight into this industry.
We’re still here to help you. Did you know we have online short courses on different elements of interior design including lighting, sustainability and styling? Check out how online short courses can help develop your practice here.
