One of best ways to create a sense of community in the dorm is by decorating the public areas for the holidays. As it is the biggest holiday of the year, Christmas is naturally the easiest theme to work around when it comes to decking out your dorm halls.
Start by selecting a theme to center your decorations around. You're working with Christmas, but will your lobby be a winter wonderland? Santa's toy shop? A wacky manger scene? Put up a notice a month in advance and ask residents for suggestions to up the creativity factor. If you get more than one good idea, have residents vote on their favorite. If you get one that's a sure crowd pleaser, you're more likely to have a community effort when it comes time to decorate.
Once you have your theme set, you'll need to start figuring out how to make it happen and what supplies you'll need. The less funds you have available, the more your decorations will lend themselves to creativity, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. A Christmas tree made out of Sprite cans is a novel and kitschy touch. Ask residents to scour their rooms for scrap pieces that could be reused as Christmas decorations. Snag some white paper from recycling trays in the computer labs to make snowflakes. And, when it comes down to it, popcorn strings are always a classic tree decoration.
When it comes time to put in man power, the resident assistants shouldn't be shouldering all of the work. Put up notices for nights that you will be working on decorations so more people can get involved. Set up a competition to create the best decorations among the residents and encourage creativity or, better yet, challenge another dorm to see who can create the best Christmas-themed scene. College kids are notoriously creative and humorous when it comes to constructing decorations without spending cash.
After the holidays are over, be sure to get those decorations down in a timely manner, otherwise you run the risk of over-killing the spirit. Save any decorations that you deem worthy of reuse, and make sure all of those snowflakes make it back to the recycle bin that they originated from.
So, with a little creativity and ingenuity, you can create a Christmas themed dorm that is sure to get everyone in the holiday spirit!
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