Holiday Stories

Remember the days of sitting around the fireplace as Grandma read favorite holiday stories to all the children? This season, with the help of the Internet, you can be the one to share holiday tales. On the Web, you can find stories from many different cultures all over the world.

Did you know that it is Japanese tradition to play Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at Christmas time? Read the heartwarming story "Symphony of Friendship" — with illustrations by Japanese schoolchildren — and find out how this custom began.

December holidays span a variety of religions and cultural traditions. For example, enjoy the musically animated pages of Hobo's First Christmas — an action-packed story of a bearded collie who helps Santa win back Christmas. Looking for Chanukah sites? Check out Chanukah stories and poems written and illustrated by 6th graders in New York City. Did you know that Kwanzaa means "first fruits" in Swahili? Visit the Kwanzaa Information Center to learn more about this holiday based on traditional African harvest festivals. Then, have your class write and send their own Kwanzaa greeting cards.

Make a holiday story your own with Oreo the Magic Rabbit — younger kids will particularly enjoy this simple story they can personalize with their own names, hometowns, and more.

So instead of sitting around that old fireplace this year, take Grandma surfing — on the Web, that is! Happy holidays!

Symphony of Friendship
http://www.mandala.co.jp
/B9/P00E.html

Hobo's Christmas Page
http://www.beardie.net
/christmas/hc-1.htm

Happy Chanukah
http://www.zuzu.org
/chan.html

Kwanzaa Information Center
http://www.melanet.com
/kwanzaa/

Oreo the Magic Rabbit
http://www.merry-christmas.com
/story.htm