Christmas at Fredericia Gymnasium, Denmark

Fredericia Gymnasium starts off with putting up different Christmas decorations – such as a Christmas tree, strings for each class at the school and much more. These strings are for each class to decorate. The last day before Christmas holiday, a jury, which is a group of teachers and our principal, will choose a winner-string, and pronounce it for the students. The class whose string it is wins a prize – the prize can for example be a cake from our canteen at the school.

All through December we listen to Christmas songs, and this year have some students decided to make a Christmas-radio called “FG-morgen nisserne” (Fredericia Gymnasium-morning elves). So each school-day, in our first break between classes, a podcast with music, contests and Christmas stories are being played. The first week the contest was to find a cardboard Santa Claus that was made for this particular contest, and then take a selfie with it.

BONUS INFORMATION

Julenisse, noun

Elf: Is a small mythological creature from Scandinavian folklores. Often is an elf associated with Christmas and the whole winter season.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is something most Danes look forward too.  In the morning the whole family bakes and cooks such things as pepper cookies,  a sweet biscuit flavoured with vanilla and cinnamon. In the afternoon we watch “Disney’s Christmas Show” while we eat our cookies and drink hot beverages.

The Christmas tree is in the living room with small Christmas hearts and a star on the top of the tree. The star symbolizes the star that lead the three wise men to visit baby Jesus. During the day we go to the local church to celebrate Jesus Christ’s birth.

The family comes over to the house, to celebrate the evening together. We “hygger” which means that we have a good time together, and we drink Christmas punch, and eat delicious food. We eat pork and duck with candied potatoes and red cabbage and normal potatoes with brown sauce.  After the meal we dance around the Christmas tree and sing Christmas songs. After that we open the Christmas presents that we bought for each other, and enjoy each other’s company. Then at the end of the evening we just sit and talk and listen to some music and enjoy being together as a family.

  

Annual School Ball at Fredericia Gymnasium

School ball

Made by: Stefan Jagd and Alberte Sørensen

Every year in November the school hosts the biggest party in the city, the school ball. The week before the party, all the students practice an old traditional dance, called “lancier”. The first day in the week, lancier is introduced and we get a little teaser on how it is going to look. Then Tuesday the oldest and youngest start to learn the dance, so some of the classes are replaced by lancier, the next couple of days the 1^st and 2^nd year students dance together in the gym, while the 3^rd years dance at other times than the youngest students. The oldest students also have more lancier classes than the youngest, because it is their prom.

 

Students entering the Gym for the dance

  

In the evening of the party, the 1^st years eat dinner at the school with their parents. They  also play games and have competitions, and the tables are decorated. After they have eaten, the parents go to the canteen, where there is entertainment, while the students go and see the older students dance lancier. The 2^nd years also eat dinner at the school but they are not allowed to bring their parents, and they eat down in the basement. The 3^rd years do not eat at school, but at different restaurant depending on what the different classes have chosen to do.  Afterwards the oldest students arrive at the school in their dresses and suits, they have bought for the party, and they get ready to dance. The 3^rd years families are allowed to come and see the students dance, and take pictures of the young people in their clothes.

Headmaster Poul Erik Madsen with some of the students.

After the oldest students have danced, the youngest students and 2^nd years students and whoever wants to, dance lancier, There is also entertainment, throughout the evening by different musicians, and also by some of the students.

It is something everyone looks forward to especially the 3^rd year students