German ginerbread tradition transformed to permanent keepsakes at Canfield school

CANFIELD

C.H. Campbell Elementary students employed math skills to make miniature gingerbread houses Thursday afternoon.

“We’re making Christmas ornaments with the kids for their parents,” explained Barry Tancer, lead builder and former Canfield school board member. “I love doing it.”

The idea stemmed from an old tradition of making gingerbread houses out of cookies.

“We said, ‘I wish we can make them more permanent,’” Tancer said. “Five years later, and a couple thousand houses, we are still making them out of wood. It’s something they can have forever.”

Second-grade teacher Crystal Schneider said she loves it because the class studies traditions, folk tales and their origins – and the German origin of gingerbread houses goes right into her lesson.

“Gingerbread houses come from the German folktale of Hansel and Gretel,” she said.

Math skills also come into play during their creation.

“We learn about angles and parallel lines and more,” Tancer said.

Read more about the activity in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.