We Wish You a Merry… what exactly? (no-prep lesson plan)

Do you sometimes wonder what’s the best phrase for the winter holidays? After all, not everyone celebrates Christmas, so maybe you should say Happy Holidays? And what about those who celebrate Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or Yule? What exactly are you supposed to say to your students?

Well, I think it’s best if you ask them!

That’s why I came up with a short lesson plan that will make your students do the research about various December celebrations and decide which holiday sounds most fun!

Activity: speaking, communication
Age: 15+
Level: A2 and above
Time: 45 min
Type of work: groupwork, pairwork
Vocabulary covered: winter celebrations, presentations, activities
Future skills: teamwork, critical thinking, presentation skills

Introduction: 5 min

Explain that you’re in a pickle – you’d like to say a phrase about enjoying winter holidays, but you can’t really decide which phrase would be the most suitable one. You may come up with a story how your friends and you had a discussion on the best phrase. Ask your students about their experiences – what’s the most familiar phrase for them? Have they ever wished e.g. a merry Christmas to a person who doesn’t celebrate it?

Winter celebrations – brainstorm: 10 min

Divide your class into groups or pairs and ask your students to use the Internet and come up with various winter celebrations, more and less popular, religion-oriented, cultural, pagan etc. Give them 5-7 minutes to complete the task and write down all the ideas on the board.

Winter celebrations – research: 15 min

Together with your students, choose some of the most interesting celebrations, and then assign them to the groups – if there are people who are interested in a specific celebration, ask them to choose the one they like. Then ask your students to spend 15 minutes on browsing the internet in order to find some facts and inspirations (e.g. special clothes, songs, customs) about “their” celebration.

Winter celebrations – presentation: 10 min

Once your students are done with their research, ask them to present all the facts they’ve learnt about the celebrations. Are there any interesting customs they liked? Or maybe there are some curious traditions the students have never heard of before? Share some stories!

Summing up: 5 min

To sum up the class, ask your students what kind of Merry/Happy/etc. wishes they would like to spread. After all, it’s the warm thought that counts!