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Halloween
- The Story Behind Halloween – Lesson
- The Story Behind Halloween – Quiz
- Are You Too Old To Go Trick-Or-Treating? – Lesson
- Look out for the Blue Pumpkin – Lesson
- Is the White House Haunted? – Lesson
- Is the White House Haunted? – Quiz
- Mummies Discovered in Egypt – But That’s Nothing to Fear – Lesson
- Salem Witch Trials: When Being Called a Witch Meant Death – Lesson
- Halloween Around the World: It Isn’t Just Costumes and Candy – Lesson
- Halloween Around the World: It Isn’t Just Costumes and Candy – Quiz
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Thanksgiving
- The Evolution of Thanksgiving – Lesson
- The Evolution of Thanksgiving – Quiz
- The Political Roots of Thanksgiving – Lesson
- The Political Roots of Thanksgiving – Quiz
- Turkey for Thanksgiving – But Why? – Lesson
- Turkey for Thanksgiving – But Why? – Quiz
- This Thanksgiving, Consider Helping the Less Fortunate – Lesson
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Christmas
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Easter
- Good Friday: Christ Carried Sin to the Grave – And Left It There – Lesson
- Good Friday: Christ Carried Sin to the Grave – And Left It There – Quiz
- Easter Traditions: From Rabbits to Egg Jarping – Lesson
- Easter Traditions: From Rabbits to Egg Jarping – Quiz
- Easter Monday and Egg Rolling at the White House – Lesson
- Easter Monday and Egg Rolling at the White House – Quiz
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Federal Holidays and Observances
- New Year’s Day: Just as Political as Anything Else – Lesson
- This Presidents’ Day, Let’s Remember the Weird – Lesson
- Astounding Facts about US Presidents – Lesson
- Astounding Facts about US Presidents – Quiz
- Memorial Day: A Time of Honor and Respect – Lesson
- Memorial Day: A Time of Honor and Respect – Quiz
- From Decoration Day to Memorial Day – Lesson
- From Decoration Day to Memorial Day – Quiz
- Who Was the Poppy Lady, Moina Belle Michael? – Lesson
- Who Was the Poppy Lady, Moina Belle Michael? – Quiz
- The Origins of Flag Day – Lesson
- The Origins of Flag Day – Quiz
- America’s Flag – An Evolved Banner for an Ever-Changing Country – Lesson
- America’s Flag – An Evolved Banner for an Ever-Changing Country – Quiz
- Celebrating the 4th of July – Lesson
- Celebrating the 4th of July – Quiz
- Who Should We Thank for Labor Day? – Lesson
- Who Should We Thank for Labor Day? – Quiz
- Constitution and Citizenship Day – Lesson
- Constitution Day – The First Day of Constitution Week – Lesson
- Constitution Day – The First Day of Constitution Week – Quiz
- The Political Origins of Columbus Day – Lesson
- The Political Origins of Columbus Day – Quiz
- Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples’ Day? – Lesson
- Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples’ Day? – Quiz
- Veterans Day: A Day to Honor Those Who Served – Lesson
- Veterans Day: A Day to Honor Those Who Served – Quiz
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Other Traditions
- Valentine’s Day Love Poems – Lesson
- Love Poems for Valentine’s Day – Lesson
- Who Was St. Valentine? – Lesson
- Who Was St. Valentine? – Quiz
- No Love for Valentine’s Day in the East – Lesson
- No Love for Valentine’s Day in the East – Quiz
- Beware the Ides of March – But Why? – Lesson
- Beware the Ides of March – But Why? – Quiz
- St. Patrick’s Day: A Celebration of the Irish – Lesson
- St. Patrick’s Day: A Celebration of the Irish – Quiz
- May Day: Dancing ‘Round the Maypole – Lesson
- May Day: Dancing ‘Round the Maypole – Quiz
- Cinco de Mayo: Celebrating Mexico’s Victory in Puebla – Lesson
- Cinco de Mayo: Celebrating Mexico’s Victory in Puebla – Quiz
- Mother’s Day: The Anti-War Effort Turned Holiday – Lesson
- Mother’s Day: The Anti-War Effort Turned Holiday – Quiz
- Father’s Day: More Than Just a Day for Ties – Lesson
- Father’s Day: More Than Just a Day for Ties – Quiz
- Presidential Fathers: Responsible for Their Kids and the Country – Lesson
- Presidential Fathers: Responsible for Their Kids and the Country – Quiz
- Proof of the Hanukkah Story Found? – Lesson
- Proof of the Hanukkah Story Found? – Quiz
- Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue – April Celebrates Poetry, Too – Lesson
- Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue – April Celebrates Poetry, Too – Quiz
Gingerbread: A Holiday Tradition and Much More – Lesson
The world’s biggest gingerbread house is the size of a tennis court.
The holiday tradition of little gingerbread men and fancy decorated gingerbread houses comes from a long history of courtly gesture, medicinal uses, and knightly love. The tasty treats are made with ginger root, which was first cultivated in ancient China and used as a medical treatment. The spice didn’t make its way into Europe until the 11th century, when the Crusaders brought it back from the Middle East and gave it to the aristocrats’ cooks for experimentation.
Ginger was used during the Middle Ages to disguise the taste of preserved meats. King Henry VIII of England reportedly used it in a concoction that he hoped would build up his resistance to the plague. Today the spice is used for other remedies such as nausea and stomach ailments.
Gingerbread
The first known recipe for gingerbread came from Greece in B.C. 2400. The Chinese developed recipes in the 10th century, and the Europeans had their own methods by the late Middle Ages.
The hard cookies were sometimes decorated with gold leaf and shaped like animals or kings and queens. In France, England, Holland, and Germany, they were staples at the medieval fairs. Gingerbread tied with a ribbon was popular at these events and, when exchanged, became a token of love. Later, some of the festivals became known as Gingerbread Fairs and the cookies served were called “fairings.” The shapes of the confections were changed according to season, from flowers in the spring to birds in the fall. William Shakespeare, in his work Love’s Labour’s Lost, said, “And I had but one penny in the world, thou should’st have it to buy gingerbread.”
The cookies were made into various shapes to tell the news of the day, depicting everything from monarchs to religious symbols. Queen Elizabeth I is credited with creating the first gingerbread man. When visiting dignitaries arrived, they were blown away by little gingerbread cookies she’d had created in their own likeness.
Gingerbread houses originated in Germany during the 16th century. These marvels, which were usually more for display than actual ingestion, could be very elaborate with cookie walls and frosting, decorated with foil in addition to gold leaf. They soon became a Christmas tradition, and their popularity only grew once the Brothers Grimm wrote the story of siblings Hansel and Gretel, who got lost in a forest and found a house made completely out of candy and other edible goodies.
Centuries later, the tradition of gingerbread men and houses still thrives. The world’s largest gingerbread house is in Bryan, Texas, and currently holds the Guinness World Record. It covers an area of 2,520 square feet (about the size of a tennis court) and is 21 feet tall. Although the frame is wood, the exterior of the house is all edible.