Things You'll Need

Instructions

1

Display a winter scene. Snowflakes and white billowy mounds of snow can be the perfect setting for a Christmas attitude without the Christmas theme. Have the children cut snowflakes from construction paper to hang about the room.
2

Create a "Timothy Tree." A permanent covering for a bulletin board can be created using fabric and felt. Balloons for sayings, like "Timothy Tree says November is the month for Thanksgiving", can be made from large white paper. During the summer the tree can have leaves made of felt added to demonstrate the summer branches, color changes in the fall can be done gradually as the leaves are changed to the fall colors. For the winter and Christmas month the bare branches can be used to display simple picture ornaments made from shower curtain rings. The circular hangers are first backed with a picture of the student glued to a circle slightly larger than the curtain hanger. Once the glue has adequately dried. The surplus backing can be clipped away. Glue can be put around the outside of the shower curtain hanger and then dipped in white crystal glitter to emulate snow, and a ribbon hanger attached. These can be hung from the bulletin board tree, and Christmas still has a tree but not the traditional Christian version.
3

Make snowmen out of Styrofoam balls and toothpicks, and paint them with paint pens or puff paints to add the features. A stovetop hat can be made from construction paper, and fabric can be added for a scarf for the snow ladies. Set aside a corner to lay cotton batting for display.
4

Enjoy the music while you make the nutcracker soldier for a scene from the Nutcracker Suite. Use cardboard carpet tubes to fashion the body of the Nutcracker soldier and arms and legs created from the empty wrapping paper rolls. Put glue over the body of the tube and use a red wrapping paper to create the uniform. Other colors of construction paper will suffice for the face, pants and hat. This could be a class project or the children can create individual two dimensional nutcrackers from construction paper.
5

Practice random acts of kindness throughout the month of December. A bulletin board with room for addition can be created. Either every day or once a week, the class can participate in a discussion of their most recent random act of kindness. Emphasize that it only counts if they don't tell the recipient that they were being kind. Helping their little brother pick up toys is just one small example. Designs for the holiday, such as ornaments, snowmen and stars made of construction paper can be created for the child to add his latest kind act. These can be prominently displayed on a bulletin board.
6

Create a board for projects that help others. These projects can be small items for the family, such as helping with the dishes to larger classroom projects like singing and taking cookies to a senior home. Try to vary them and do as many as possible. Kindness and thinking of others is not identifiable to any one religion but should be part of society, and yet fits with the spirit of Christmas better than a Christmas tree.