Category: Photos

It’s holiday time!

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Winter Holidays Around the World

Winter is a special season. The days are shorter, the nights are longer, and in many places, it is cold and snowy. Around the world, people celebrate different winter holidays with family, friends, food, and traditions. Let’s look at some of the most popular winter holidays.

Christmas

Christmas is celebrated on December 25th in many countries. People decorate a Christmas tree, hang lights, and give gifts. Families often eat a big meal together. In some traditions, children wait for Santa Claus to bring presents. Popular Christmas colors are red, green, and gold.

Hanukkah

Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday that usually happens in December. It lasts for eight nights. Families light a special candleholder called a menorah. They eat foods fried in oil, like latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts). Children often play with a small toy called a dreidel.

Kwanzaa

Kwanzaa is celebrated in the United States from December 26th to January 1st. It honors African traditions and culture. Families light candles in a holder called a kinara. Each day represents a different value, such as unity, creativity, or faith. Music, dancing, and storytelling are also part of Kwanzaa.

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day

All around the world, people celebrate the New Year on December 31st and January 1st. Many people stay up until midnight to welcome the new year. Fireworks, parties, and special foods are common. People also make resolutions—promises to themselves about things they want to do in the new year.

Vocabulary to Remember

  • Tradition – something people do again and again over many years
  • Celebrate – to enjoy a holiday or special event
  • Candle – a stick of wax with fire at the top for light
  • Meal – food eaten together at one time
  • Resolution – a plan or promise for the future

✨ Winter holidays bring light, joy, and warmth during the cold season. Even though traditions are different, the message is often the same: spending time with loved ones and sharing happiness.

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KEEP COOL IN NYC!

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Many people like summer sunshine, but too much heat can be dangerous and unhealthy. Hot and humid weather can cause heat illness and even death. If you or someone you know has these symptoms, you need to cool down quickly!

  • Heavy sweating
  • Muscle cramps
  • Light headedness, feeling faint
  • Headache
  • Decreased energy
  • Loss of appetite, nausea

Luckily, New York City has increased the number of ways to Keep Cool during heat emergencies. The parks department has concentrated on water features, drinking fountains, and tree cover as ways to beat the heat outside.

Here’s a link to a map of all the places where you can cool off:

https://www.nycgovparks.org/about/health-and-safety-guide/cool-it-nyc

Spray showers are fun and feel great for kids. The sprinklers are turned on when the temperature reaches 80 degrees F. These are indicated on the map as well as the beaches and outdoor pools that are open to all. NYC even provides free sunscreen at the pools.

There are thousands of drinking fountains across the city – even some for pets!

 The map also shows the parks with thick tree coverage, as well as the shadiest blocks to walk.

Another option: If you’re looking for a fun and safe way to beat the heat, consider requesting an official hydrant opening. You can go to your local firehouse and they might open and close a hydrant safely for you.

And if you’re not an “outdoors person,” NYC has many cooling centers.  They are located in air-conditioned facilities that offer people relief from the heat, such as:

  • Libraries
  • Community centers
  • Senior centers
  • NYCHA facilities

   To find a cooling center:   https://maps.nyc.gov/oem/cc/

Most important: drink lots of water even if you’re not thirsty, wear loose light-colored clothing, and avoid sun and strenuous outdoor activity between 11 AM and 4 PM.

Enjoy the summer in the city!

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W1 Tourism Presentations

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New York City, as everyone knows, is a famous tourist destination. Some of its most well-known landmarks include the Empire State Building, Times Square, and Central Park.

This weekend, Lynne’s W1 class did an amazing job introducing the W2 and W3 classes to some other great, lesser-known places to visit in New York, including the Irish Hunger Memorial, the Noguchi Museum, Historic Richmond Town, the African Burial Ground, Federal Hall, Fraunces Tavern, Roosevelt Island, Green-Wood Cemetery, Dykeman House, the Eldridge Street Synagogue Museum, Gracie Mansion, the Merchant’s House Museum, and Castle Clinton.

The Irish Hunger Museum

Merchant’s House Museum

Green-Wood Cemetery

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Daytime and Evening Holiday Parties

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HOLIDAY PARTIES (Jingle Bell) ROCK!

There was plenty of good cheer, food, and fun at the University Settlement’s Holiday Parties this year. The Daytime and the Evening classes contributed dazzling dishes from their home countries. The music, the festive decorations, and the games added to the fun. Both teachers and students celebrated the winter holiday season and had an excellent time together!

Setting up for our Daytime students was as much fun…
…as the party!

We played games to see who would eat first:

and then we ate!

Waiting to eat.

Abby and her students:

What’s a party without presents and reindeer?

And Joe and Christine celebrated with their students!

Our Evening classes had an equally good time!

The games were so exciting!

Time to eat!

All our friends together, celebrating:

Our Evening teachers:

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And then the dancing started….

AND A GOOD TIME WAS HAD BY ALL.

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Weekend End of Year Party

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Our weekend students wrapped up their 10 month study with a potluck party yesterday. Before sharing food, Joan’s W3 students talked about their exprerience of a NYPL tour and sang ABBA’s song, “I Have A Dream” with their beautiful voices.

Lynne’s W1 students recited Maya Angelou’s “And Still I Rise.”

https://videopress.com/v/UbP2CvDL?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true

We also had Perfect Attendance and Best Punctuality award ceremony.

After that, we had a good laugh while playing Kahoot about our school information.

https://videopress.com/v/XEZFLGFu?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true

Have a happy summer and keep practicing English!

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Learning about Different Topics

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Our students learn English about different topics not only in their regular classes but also through workshops presented by different partner organizations. To name a few, our intermediate and advanced level students learned about Martin Luther King, Jr. in February and March from Mae of the Chinese Progressive Association New York, about the U.S. education system and parent-teacher conferences in March from Courtney who was our previous weekend teacher, and about workforce readiness such as writing a resume, preparing for a job interview, and searching for a job online in March and April with Washington Heights Workforce 1 Career Center. There are more topics to come ahead!

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