#2761. Holidays Around the World

Social Studies, level: Elementary
Posted Tue Dec 10 13:58:49 PST 2002 by Mary Beth Spencer (dragon_mbs_2000@yahoo.com).
California State Hayward, Hayward, CA
Materials Required: Computer with Internet access, Art supplies and materials
Activity Time: An hour each day for at least 3 days
Concepts Taught: Students will be able to empathize, identify with and learn from children from cultures different fr

Subject: Social Studies

State Standards: 3.3 Compare and contrast different versions of the same stories that reflect different cultures; 1.5: 1. Recognize the ways in which they are all part of the same community, sharing principles, goals, and traditions despite their varied ancestry; and 3. Compare the beliefs, customs, ceremonies, traditions, and social practices of the varied cultures, drawing from folklore.

National Standards
Technology:
NT.K-12.1
NT.K-12.4
NT.K-12.5
Language Arts:
NL-ENG.K-12.2
NL-ENG.K-12.4
NL-ENG.K-12.5
NL-ENG.K-12.6
NL-ENG.K-12.8
NL-ENG.K-12.9

Benchmarks
To gain an understanding of cultures through exploration of holidays around the world

Lesson Topic
Understanding Holidays Around the World

Purpose
Students will be able to empathize, identify with and learn from children from cultures different from their own. They will be able to compare their own customs to those of others and recognize the ways in which all of us share in the same global community.

Instructional Materials
Computer with Internet access
Art supplies and materials

State Mandates included in this unit
Technology awareness
Higher order thinking skills (comparing)
Communication and Listening skills

Assessment
Teacher Observation
Collection and display of completed assignments
Student feedback/oral presentations

Previous knowledge
Students will be able to use their own previously acquired experiences with family/cultural holiday celebrations

Lesson Plan Procedure
1. Students select a country based on their family background, friends, familiarity with the holiday traditions of a country, or their curiosity about a certain country's winter traditions.
2. Students access Internet sites to collect information on their country. (Some are listed in the Useful Internet Resources section of this lesson)
3. Students create their report and presentation.
4. After each presentation, the class records in their Social Studies notebook 3-4 facts that they consider worth remembering about each report. (The class agrees on these facts; i.e., everyone records the same data.)
5. The students complete a multiple-choice exam custom-designed to the facts recorded by the class.
(Note: If there are any students in the class that do not wish to write about celebrations for religious reasons, they may also present their religion?s point of view to the class.)

Resources
Websites for Holiday Celebrations Grades 1-3

Written for teachers:

http://www.yahooligans.com/around_the_world/countries/united_states/holidays/

http://www.kidskourt.com/Holidays/KwanPage.htm

http://www.historychannel.com/cgi-bin/frameit.cgi?p=http%3A//www.historychannel.com/exhibits/holidays/main.html

http://www2.worldbook.com/features/features.asp?feature=holidays&page=html/holidays.htm&direct=no

http://anacostia.si.edu/kwanz.htm

http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org/

http://www.proteacher.com/090032.shtml

Written for Students::

http://www.yahooligans.com/Around_the_World/Countries/United_States/Cultures_and_Traditions/African_American/Kwanzaa/

http://www.yahooligans.com/Around_the_World/Holidays/

http://www.kulturezone.com/kidz/calendar/kwanzaa/index.html

http://www.billybear4kids.com/holidays/fun.htm

http://www.kidsdomain.com/holiday/kwanzaa/

http://www.kidsdomain.com/holiday/xmas/index.html

http://www.lil-fingers.com/holidays/kwanzaa/

http://www.ncsu.edu/midlink/dec98/hol98.html

http://www.bethanyroberts.com/ForKids.htm

http://www.zeal.com/exit.jhtml?cid=525265&wid=100657054&so=&xr=/category/preview.jhtml%3Fcid%3D525265

And a few added resources
Yahooligans! Hanukkah Resources http://www.yahooligans.com/School_Bell/Social_Studies/Religion/Judaism/Hanukkah/
Yahooligans! Kwanzaa Resources http://www.yahooligans.com/Around_the_World/Countries/United_States/Cultures_and_Traditions/African_American/Kwanzaa/
Yahooligans! Winter Solstice Resources http://www.yahooligans.com/School_Bell/Social_Studies/Religion/Paganism/Sabbats/Yule/
Yahooligans! Ramadan Resources http://www.yahooligans.com/School_Bell/Social_Studies/Religion/Islam/Ramadan/
Yahooligans! Christmas Around the World Resources
http://www.yahooligans.com/School_Bell/Social_Studies/ Religion/Christianity/Christmas/Christmas_Around_the_World/
Watchtower Article for Jehovah?s Witnesses http://www.watchtower.org/library/rq/index.htm?article=article_11.htm
Acknowledgements:

Lesson Plans: teacjers.net #1025. Scavenger Hunt-Holidays Around the World, Paula Barnes