School on December 25th

Why is December 25th different than other days? No traffic! This morning it took 10 minutes to get to school while it usually takes 45. I got a much needed extra half hour of sleep. Other than that, school is exactly the same. It's nice passing the pretty, lit-up trees in my neighborhood, but there isn't much of that near school in Washington Heights. In public school, there is no difference on Chanukah, so why should school be any different for Jewish kids on December 25?