Create a Holiday
Subject: Language Arts
Grades: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12
Brief Description
Students create holiday themes, complete with symbols, colors, and more!
Objectives
Students create themes and carry them out completely.
Keywords
holiday, creative writing, theme
Materials Needed
paper, pencils, construction paper
Lesson Plan
To begin, I ask students what their favorite holiday is and why. Then I show them the Seinfeld episode in which George's father creates Festivus, a rather strange holiday. It gets students thinking about holidays. Then students get together in small groups (two or three students) to create their own holidays. Their descriptions might include information such as
- a name for the holiday
- a holiday symbol (such as Christmas's Santa Claus or Halloween's pumpkins)
- featured holiday colors
- food for a holiday-related tradition
- holiday-related gifts
- the date or dates on which people celebrate the holiday
- a history for the holiday
- the significance of the holiday.
Assessment
Students present their holidays to the class in booklet form, with the holiday's symbol on the cover. Extra credit (15 percent) is earned if they create greeting cards for their holidays.
A rubric will help assesses students' creativity, colorfulness, originality, design, and overall presentation.
Submitted By
Lorri Vaccher, John Glenn High School and Franklin Middle School, Westland, Michigan
10/19/2001
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