Traditional Christmas trees take over Morton East families and the world.

According to ChatGPT, the tradition of the Christmas tree was introduced to the United States by German immigrants in the 18th and 19th centuries. One of the earliest known instances of a Christmas tree in the United States dates to the 18th century in the German settlements of Pennsylvania. Over time, the custom evolved, and various regions in the United States developed their own unique ways of decorating and celebrating with Christmas trees. Today, the Christmas tree is a central and cherished symbol of the holiday season in the United States, with families decorating trees in their homes and communities organizing public tree-lighting ceremonies.

Scenes, or Nacimientos, are one of the most popular Christmas decorations in Mexico. Therefore, they are often very large and colorful. Some families do not put up Christmas trees at all but put up Nacimientos instead. Other cultures place their Christmas trees in earlier stages. For example, Puerto Ricans usually put up their Christmas trees and decorations by Thanksgiving and don’t take them down until mid-January, so the island feels especially magical during the holiday season.

In a survey of 42 Morton students, 36 said they will put up a tree, and 3 said they won’t for Christmas.

Some Morton students said specifically what their favorite ornaments they will put on their Christmas tree.

“My favorite ones to put up are the special ornaments like glass ones or homemade ones, just because I put them in the best spots to make the tree look nice,” Morton student Aaron Saucedo said.

“The ornament that I made back in preschool, it’s my first ornament and I had my handprint in it. It brings me back to how fun preschool was,” Morton student Marco Ortiz said.

“My family puts ornaments, some extra Christmas lights, Christmas foil, and we put a Christmas star on top,” Morton student Pedro Romero said.

Some students also explained what they will put on top of their family’s Christmas tree.

“I will either use a star or an angel, depending on the color we decide on for the tree,” Morton student Alondra Cuevas said.

“Putting lights outside the house because the house looks so colorful,” Morton student Moises Aguilar said.