A Culture Capsule

by Claire Walter

An
American
Christm
as
Table of Contents
What do you think?
1
Vocabulary 2
An American Christmas
3-19
What did you learn?
20

Activity One 20-25

Activity Two 23
Activity Three 26-
27
 What do you
think?
1. How many
celebrate
Americans
Christmas?
2. When did people
start celebrating
Christmas?
3. What is
mistletoe?

.... ................................
..................

1
 Vocabulary

Celebrate

To celebrate is to do
something special or
fun, like having a party.
What do you
think?
89%of Americans
celebrate
Christmas
What do you
think?

In 396, Pope Leo X

officially said that
Christmas would be
celebrated every year
on December 25.
 What do you
think?

Mistletoe is a
plant that says
green all year, so
people
decoratecan
with it.

If two people who love

eachother stand under
mistletoe theytraditionally
hug or kiss.
 Vocabulary

Decorate

To decorate is to make a
place or a thing look
pretty.
You can decorate with
lots of colors, lights, or
pictures.
 Vocabulary

Tradition

A tradition is something you

do over and over again for
a special reason.
Vocabulary

1. Tradition

2. Stocking

3. Present

4. Celebrate

5.
Decorat
e

2
 Vocabulary

Celebrate

To celebrate is to do
something special or
fun, like having a party.
Vocabulary

Present

A present is a gift,
or something
that someone
gives you.
Vocabulary

Stockin
Agstocking is a big
sock.
 Vocabulary

Tradition

A tradition is something you

do over and over again for
a special reason.
 Vocabulary

Decorate

To decorate is to make a
place or a thing look
pretty.
You can decorate with
lots of colors, lights, or
pictures.
 An American
Christmas

Christmas is a special day

and it is very
important
to many
people in
America.

Americans celebrate Christmas in

many different ways.

3
 An American
Christmas

Many Americans
celebrate Christmas
by giving presents to
others.
4
 An American
Christmas
Many families
decorate a
Christmas tree.
The presents go
under the tree.

On Christmas day,
people give the presents
under the tree to friends
and family.
5
 An American
Christmas
The tradition
of giving
presents
started with
Saint Nicolas.

Saint Nicolas lived in Germany

in 1285. He gave presents to
children who were very poor.

6
 An American
Christmas

One day, some

children had left
their stockings to
dry on the fireplace.

Saint Nicolas quietly left presents

for the children in their stockings.

7
 An American
Christmas
Today, American children
still leave their stockings
by the fireplace for Saint
Nicolas.

8
 An American
Christmas
American
children call
Saint Nicolas
Santa Claus.

But Santa is very

different from in
1285.

9
 An American
Christmas

Amercian writer, Washington

Irving published a story about
Santa in 1809. His book made
Santa famous in America, and
all over the world.

10
 An American
Christmas

A few years
later, in 1823,
Clement Clarke
Moore wrote a
poem called The
Night Before
Christmas.

11
 An American
Christmas
The Night Before Christmas tells
that Santa goes all around the
world giving presents to children.

The poem says that Santa flies in

a sleigh.
12
 An American
Christmas
'Twas the night before Christmas,
when all through the house
not a creature was stirring,
not even a mouse.

The stockings were hung

by the chimney with care,
in hopes that St. Nicholas
soon would be there.”

13
 An American
Christmas
Americans also
celebrate
Christmas with
songs.

Christmas songs are very

traditional during Christmas.
Sometimes Christmas songs are
called Christmas carols.

14
 An American
Christmas

One tradition at
Christmas time is to
go walking around
town, singing
Christmas
carols to
people.

15
 An American
Christmas
Some Christmas carols
are traditional and
people have
been singing
them for
many years.

16
 An American
Christmas
Some people
sing new Christmas
carols.

17
An American
Christmas
One popular Christmas
carol is “Jingle Bells.”

But everyone has their

own favorite Christmas
carols.

18
 An American
Christmas
Americans celebrate
Christmas in many
different ways.

What traditions have you

learned about?

19
What did you
learn?
1.What do people call
traditional Christmas
songs?

2. What poem first wrote

about Santa Claus's
flying sleigh?
3. Where do
American children
hang their stockings
to get presents from
Santa Claus?

20
What did you
learn?
1.What do people call
traditional Christmas
songs?

Christmas carols
What did you
learn?
2. What poem first wrote
about Santa Claus's
flying sleigh?

The Night Before

Christmas
What did you
learn?
3.Where do American
children hang their
stockings to get
presents from Santa
Claus?

American children hang

their stockings by the
fireplace.
Activity 1
Use the clues on the next
pages to put the right
words in the boxes.

21
 Activity 1

Down
1. Families sometimes _______ a
Christmas tree to make it look pretty.
2. Something that people do over
and over again for many years for a
special reason.
3. The story of ______ started with
Saint Nicolas.
4. At Christmas, people give ____ to
eachother.
8. Jingle Bells is a popular Christmas
_____.
22
 Activity 1

Across
5. At Christmas time, people
sometimes kiss under this green
plant.
6. The Night Before Christmas is a
____ about Santa Claus.
7. Children leave a _______ by the
fireplace to get presents from Santa.

23
 Activity 1
D
Here are the answers.
e
t c
r o S
a r a p
d a n r
m i s t l e t o e
t e a s
i e
P o e m n
n s t o c k i n g
s a
r
o
l
24
 Activity 2

“We Wish You a

Merry Christmas” is
a traditional
Christmas Carol.

Listen to the words.

Everytime you hear the words
on the next slide, sing along.

25
 Activity 2
We wish you a Merry Christmas;
We wish you a Merry Christmas;
We wish you a Merry Christmas
and a Happy New Year.

Good tidings we bring to you and

your kin;
Good tidings for Christmas
and a Happy New Year.
26
 Activity 3
Draw a line from the
picture to the word..

Christmas Tree
Stocking
Present

Santa Claus
Mistletoe

27
 Activity 3
Here are the answers.

Christmas Tree
Stocking
Present

Santa Claus
Mistletoe

28
 Great
Job!
You've learned so
much. Now,
there's just one
more thing...
Merry
Christmas
!