Across 30 countries, 150 Society of the Sacred Heart schools rock around the Christmas tree in their own way. Schools of the Sacred Heart each have unique traditions, decorations, and celebrations. 
Alice Aubin, a student at La Perverie Sacre Coeur in Nantes, France, recently came to Sacred Heart Greenwich on exchange with sophomore Sally Carter. Alice noted many differences between celebrations in France and celebrations in Greenwich during this holiday season. 
“In the high school of the Sacre Coeur in Nantes, the celebration of Christmas is important,” Alice said. “Students usually dress in red and white, and often exchange small gifts with each other to preserve the tradition.”

While the older French students enjoy gift exchanges and dress in festive clothing, younger students at Sacre Coeur decorate the lunchroom. Sacre Coeur Upper School students also organize an annual Christmas Mass for the entire school.
Along with the Christmas Mass and decorations, students in Nantes bring in the holiday spirit by gathering with their classmates, friends, and teachers.
“In class, some teachers propose to organize a snack during which we eat cakes prepared by the students and watch a movie,” Alice said.
One such treat is yule logs. This special Christmas treat, a favorite of the students, consists of gingerbread and ice cream cake.
Similarly, the Mount Anville Secondary School in Dublin, Ireland celebrates in unique spirits. 
Sofia O’Boyle and Ava Clancy exchange their Irish lifestyles with Sacred Heart sophomores Avery McCloskey and Elizabeth Trimble this winter. At Mount Anville Secondary School, the students celebrate Christmas through an annual gift exchange, carols, and community service.
“The carol service would probably be the main thing. The orchestra, the folk group, the choir, and all the music groups at the school get assigned a song,” Sofia said.
The students also celebrate with a traditional Kris Kindle gift exchange. Similar to Secret Santa, each student receives an assignment to give a small gift to a randomly assigned classmate.
In religion class, the students from Mount Anville Secondary School observe an advent calendar with chocolates and prayers. For every day that passes during the season, the students read a specific prayer. 

The Sacred Heart school also participates in a unique service opportunity around Christmastime. The students choose a child between ages zero and 14 and gather small gifts for the child in a shoebox. The school then sends the boxes to children in Africa, Romania, and other areas of the world. 
Mount Anville Secondary School’s devotion to charity is a tenement of Irish culture as a whole. For example, the city of Dublin celebrates the holidays by giving back to the community through a charity concert. Every year, on Grafton Street, famous Irish performers such as U2, Hozier, and Bono, return to their home country for the event. The annual concert, which began in 2009, collects proceeds to donate to the Simon Community, a homeless charity in Dublin, according to rollingstone.com.