'A world of possibilities'
Dec. 23—HANCEVILLE — Hanceville Elementary School Assistant Principal Emily Brown wanted to make school a "magical" place where students could learn about the much bigger world outside their small town's city limits. So, she leveraged the most magical holiday and created a way for classes to spend a day celebrating Christmas around the world.
Throughout December, classes took turns boarding "Holiday Airways flight 1225" and enjoyed frequent layovers in various countries learning different ways each culture celebrates its versions of Christmas. Students were told about how in Mexico celebrations are extended to January 5 and after children write letters to the Three Wise Men, they wake up to find more presents under the tree for Three Kings' Day. In Sweden, Tomten — a mischievous gnome who acts as the country's equivalent to Santa — has a sleigh pulled by the beloved Yule Goat instead of Rudolph.
Brown said it was the experiences from her time in elementary school that she remembers more vividly compared to the day-to-day lessons inside the classroom. She recalled the time she portrayed Mexico in the annual spring festival at Holly Pond Elementary, and wanted to offer the students at Hanceville a similar experience.
With the help of her teaching aide, Brown began preparing the recently vacated old elementary building for the maiden voyage of flight 1225. Booths lined the hallways which featured displays of each country. Brown incorporated items her grandparents had collected during their military travels throughout the journey to add a personal touch. She credits their experiences, along with her own trips to EPCOT at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla. and mission work in South America to opening her eyes to the rich diversity across the world at an early age and hoped to pass along that lesson to her students through her seasonal passion project.
"A lot of these kids don't get magical experiences. They may not get to go to Disney World — they may never even get out of the state of Alabama — and I want education to be something magical. I want it to be something that they want to do, not something they have to do," she said.
Brown is hoping to grow the project next year — and for many more after — by inviting Hanceville alumnus with varying cultural backgrounds to play the role of "flight attendants" and discuss their various versions of Christmas with the students. While she may be using the holidays as a lessons vehicle, she said her main goal is to teach students about the "world of possibilities" outside their hometown.
"I think the biggest thing when I started this was show kids that there are things that are bigger than they are. I just don't want kids to think that there's nothing else out there. There's a world of possibilities and I hope this opens their eyes to that," Brown said.
Patrick Camp can be reached at 256-734-2131 ext. 238
