John F. Kennedy Center
Comparing Cultural Holidays
A lesson examines the holidays, Día de los Muertos and Halloween. After an exciting clip from the movie Coco, class members review vocabulary and discuss what they know about Halloween. The conversation leads into the history of Día...
Curated OER
Red, White, and Blue Holidays Timeline
Fifth graders create a time line listing six national holidays in chronological order of occurrence. In this historical events lesson, 5th graders research holidays and write a paragraph summarizing each one. They then place each holiday...
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Making The Holidays Special
Students examine ways in which holiday television specials reflect some of the religious, historic and cultural themes of the holidays on which they focus. They create their own holiday television specials in groups, each focusing on a...
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Comparing Cultural Holidays
Students discover facts about the Mexican holiday, Day of the Dead. For this compare and contrast lesson, students explore Halloween and the Day of the Dead. Students create an alter to memorialize a family member or friend that has...
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Comparing Cultural Holidays
Third graders explore art that reflects their cultural background. In this writing and research lesson students compare and contrast the Halloween with El Dia de los Muertos. Students study the visual art of these holidays. Then students...
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December Holidays:Create A Comparison Chart
How are Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, Las Posadas, and Ramadan similar? How are they different? Learners research the different December holiday celebrations around the world and compare the dates, symbols, countries, foods, and...
Children's Theatre of Cincinnati
A Charlie Brown Christmas Study Guide
Bring A Charlie Brown Christmas to social studies, language arts, math, science, and art class! Learners ponder the meaning of Christmas trees, write about Christmas during the original release of the television special,...
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Keith Anderson Songs
High schoolers can sharpen their research skills by employing the Internet to find the answers to the trivia questions presented in this on-line worksheet. This worksheet focuses on the musician, Keith Anderson.
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Surfin' Santa Card
Students explore December climates in Southern and Northern Hemispheres, including areas close to the equator. In this surfin' Santa card lesson, students research how Christmas is celebrated in warm climates and create greeting cards to...
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Masks of Many Cultures: Celebrations of Life
Bring art and society together with this highly creative and interesting instructional activity. Learners research various uses of masks in ceremonies. They then create a ceremony of their own and a mask to go along with it. They film...
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Chinese New Year Dragon Parade
Students research Chinese New Year celebrations to find out about traditions such as food, music, red banners on doors, parades, and fireworks. Students then view images of traditional Chinese dragons, and create their own dragons.
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Dramatic Day of the Dead Designs
Students research customs and activities associated with the Mexican celebration of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Students then analyze their favorite aspects of the holiday and represent them in drawings with bilingual displays.
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Kwanzaa Symbol Strips
Research the African family holiday of Kwanzaa and find the symbols for the seven principles of Kwanzaa. Learners analyze the symbols and how they may relate to their own lives. They then create an original art following the designs...
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Russian Star Ornaments
Students research Russian Orthodox Christmas traditions in pre-soviet Russia and in other parts of the world. Then they create a handcrafted ornament in the style of old Russia. Students also decorate their Russian Star Ornament with...
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What is Kwanzaa?
Describe the general characteristics of Kwanzaa after reading Seven Candles of Kwanzaa. For this Kwanzaa lesson, learners study the principles of the Kwanzaa holiday and interpret the principles through music and dance. They...
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December Concentration Game
Students play the classic game of Concentration using cards with December holiday and weather pictures on them. They research different December holidays and adapt the details to the game of concentration.
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British Christmas Crackers
Students, after researching the history and tradition of the British Christmas Crackers, other cultural traditions and Tom Smith, create a replica of the cracker. They also write a holiday message to include inside and share it with...
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Dia de los Muertos Sugar Skulls
Students research information about the Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos), a major celebration in Mexican culture, and compare it to similar holidays in other cultures. They discover various folk arts and festive traditions associated...
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Egg-stravagant Egg Basket
Students discover that the egg has been revered by humans for thousands of years as a symbol of birth, life, and hope. They research the connection of the egg to spring and religious festivals around the world. They then create their own...
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Elaborate Eggs for Easter
Students connect the symbol of the egg to the celebration of Easter as well as the arrival of spring and new life. They research the custom of exchanging eggs, which began when the Egyptians and Persians exchanged eggs decorated in...
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Fancy Foil Easter Card
Students research the traditions of Easter and the symbolism of eggs in the celebration of Easter and spring. They discover egg decoating in various cultures around the world and then create an egg-shaped greeting card with cutouts over...
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Harvest Wreath
Learners research the traditions of harvest celebrations and festivities. They choose one country and explore what fruits and vegetables grow there. Afterward, students paint coffee filters in fall leaf colors and then design paintings...
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Heart-y Creatures
Pupils research the historical background of Valentine's Day. They identify symbols and examine how this occasion is celebrated today. They create imaginative creatures made out of chenille sticks and paper hearts or other geometric shapes.
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Starry Night Ornaments
Students are introduced to the impasto technique used by Vincent Van Gogh. Using the internet, they research Vincent Van Gogh's life and work. To end the lesson, they make their own ornaments using the impasto technique and lots of color.