Curious...do NYC public schools celebrate any sort of holidays in the classroom? (home)

[lynn79os]

I hope this all makes sense!

Through research I have found that the public schools give days off in celebration of various religious holidays - but I'm wondering if they do anything IN the classrooms?

Where I grew up - partly in the suburbs of Chicago and then in Minnesota - we had holiday parties for nearly every holiday, they were kept secular in nature. I do remember a tree and Santa during December - and I never thought twice of it while I was a child; however, now, I imagine most people do associate them with Christmas (even though they technically have nothing to do with any sort of religion).

I'm just curious if there are these sort of things in the public schools or if they just skip over any sort of parties/celebrations due to the large mix of cultures and religion?

Also, if a child is a religion that doesn't fall into the schedule of days off already, are they allowed to take them anyway...example - every child is allowed X amount of days off in order to celebrate holidays? When they return they must make up work that was missed...that sorta thing. Is there a sort of flexible schedule with the religious holidays?

[ShayLove]

In my son's school they do! I actually look forward to him bringing home self made Easter baskets or Lanterns for Chinese New Years and Turkeys made from blown up latex gloves! I know one of the reasons why some schools or classes do not do holidays is because parents make a fuss out of it for either religious & cultural reasons. My son's preschool did not do anything for the holidays. But because it was about 95% Chinese… they went full throttle when it came to Chinese New Year! So it all depends..

[quixotic59]

Under the Bloomberg/Klein Reich all religious celebrations and religious holiday displays are prohibited. There are to be no decorations that relate to religious holidays. Any school that does engage in religious celebrations or displays does so at their own risk and in violation of DOE policy. Also, exchange of gifts is prohibited.
Bloomberg/Klein: taking the fun out of school one day at a time.

[lynn79os]

Thank you for the responses! So, between both posts - it seems the decorations are prohibited, but an actual party celebrating non-religious holidays are okay? Such as Thanksgiving, or the New Year (American, Chinese, or whatever...). Is that correct?

I can fully understand why it's prohibited from the classroom, there are so many religions and cultures in one small area - someone is bound to get upset, so it's easier and safer to just end it and keep to the subjects.

[mayorofnyc]

Yes...I remember having parties for the major holidays like Xmas and Halloween in Elementary & even Junior HS. However the parties pretty much stopped after I entered High School. However I'm very sure they still have parties for the little kids in K-6, at least I hope so.

[mayorofnyc]

Originally Posted by quixotic59

Under the Bloomberg/Klein Reich all religious celebrations and religious holiday displays are prohibited. There are to be no decorations that relate to religious holidays. Any school that does engage in religious celebrations or displays does so at their own risk and in violation of DOE policy. Also, exchange of gifts is prohibited.
Bloomberg/Klein: taking the fun out of school one day at a time.

I agree...I went to school during the Rudy Crew days and the school parties and decorations, I think we're very important in my development as a kid. Learning how to socialize without the school work and seeing the teachers and principals in a more relaxed mood tended to put all the kids at ease. It also boosted the morale of the community in the schools that were attended by the local kids. Parents would bring snacks and hangout with their kids and talk to some of the teachers, plus we got out early and you couldn't beat the treats we got at lunchtime before you went home . Yep those were the days

[Walter Greenspan]

1. Schools are not closed because of a religious holy day: they are closed because a significant numbers of teachers and administrative staff, who, because of their celebration of a religious holy day, are not present, which creates safety issues for the students who would attend if the schools were not closed for that day(s).

2. What you may or may not consider to be secular, and not religious, may be viewed by others of a differing faith as religious, and not secular. For example, while you may think that Christmas trees, Santa, Halloween costumes and Valentines Day parties, for example, are secular; others, of a different faith, may take a different view.

3. Not all religions have holy days where most types of work, including a prohibition against writing, are prohibited; thus, a religious holiday of one faith may not prohibit a child whose family practices that faith from attending school while a religious holy day of a different faith may prohibit a child whose family practices that faith from attending school.

[Coney]

They used to have parties, but it has become politically incorrect. Religious holidays are posted on the calendar and I forget the technical name given to these days, but there is a policy that standardized city tests cannot be administered on these days because some students might not attend school. Teachers are supposed to not give teacher-made tests on these recognized religious holidays or require major assignments to be due. In other words, students who are absent from school on a religious holiday are not supposed to be penalized for missing work, handing in an assignement later. etc. But it has to be for a holiday recognized by the Board of Ed. Festivus (for the rest of us) does not count.