Most importantly, pray! As you learn about different areas, use You Can Change the World as a prayer guide. In this book, I found that Christianity has been so removed from the culture in Uruguay that Christmas Day is now called Family Day, and it is illegal to talk about  religion in school or at the university. What a sobering reminder that we need to pray for and guard our religious freedom here in America, as well as pray to for those in other lands.

May you have a blessed time studying Christmas around the World!

Resources:
Much of this information was taken from the all new Hands-On Geography:
Exploring God's Creation by Maggie Hogan. Find this and other resources like
outline maps, reference maps and atlases at her Web site:
www.BrightIdeasPress.com

www.ywam.org
You Can Change the World - prayer guide for children.
Operation World - for high school and adults. The definitive (and
long-awaited new edition) prayer and reference handbook for the church, 800
pages or CD-Rom. Both of these books plus other great resources like Operation World maps,
prayer calendars, are all available from YWAM ministries.

Web Sites
www.techdirect.com/christmas
 "Christmas is celebrated by Christians the world over. Why Christmas is
special to you depends on the customs and traditions that were handed down
in your family from generation to generation. While Christmas is viewed as
too commercial by most, those who keep their traditions alive renew the Joy
that is associated with the birth of Christ each year." A large, lovely site
with many links.

www.soon.org.uk/country/christmas.htm
 "It is interesting to see how different countries celebrate Christmas. We
asked some of our friends to explain what happens in their countries."
Simple site with nice photographs.

http://northpole.net/world.htm
 A very basic site good for young children.

Maggie Hogan is a motivational speaker and co-author of The Ultimate Geography and Timeline Guide, Gifted Children at Home, and other resource books. She and her husband Bob have been home schooling their boys since 1991. Involved in local, state, and national home-schooling issues, they both serve on boards of home education organizations in Delaware. They are also owners of Bright Ideas Press ( www.BrightIdeasPress.com ), a home-school company dedicated to bringing the best practical, fun, and affordable materials to the home-school market. Maggie's e-mail address is  Hogan@BrightIdeasPress.com .