Zuckertuten Festival

I'm pretty sure I posted about this last year, but there's a certain German tradition we've embraced at our school- the Zuckertuten Fest. Zuckertuten (or in Western Germany, Schultuten) means candy cone. It's not just any candy cone, but a six-year-old-sized candy cone filled with (you guessed it) candy (and these days, DVDs, CDs, and sometimes, cell phones). Kids entering first grade (the first year of big kid school in Germany) get them and the kids have a huge party with parents, grandparents, and friends. Think first-Communion-meets-Halloween-meets-first-day-of-school. It's quite the scene. I've included a few pictures so you can see the sheer size of these things- apparently, they get bigger each year. They're threatening to overtake the children at this point.

The best part of this tradition is the way it is adapted for grownups. Russ got a small Zuckertuten on his first day as Director, and we gave our new teachers little Zuckertutens on the first day of school. It's a nice feeling to start something new (a school year, a job) with a big candy cone in your office. It's to sweeten the year ahead- and I think it works!