Christmas Activities C1

Christmas vocabulary definitions
Boxing Day The day after Christmas Day

Card This has a message written in it and is given from one person to
another at Christmas
Carols Traditional songs sung at Christmas
Christmas The day before Christmas
Eve
Holiday A special time of the year when you do not have to go to work
Holly A green, thorny plant with red berries used to decorate people’s
homes
Mince pie A traditional sweet pastry filled with fruit
Mistletoe Couples traditionally kiss underneath this plant at Christmas
Mulled wine Hot, spiced wine which is drunk at Christmas
New Year The celebration between December and January when January 1st
begins
Party A meeting of people for a celebration, usually with music, food and
dancing
Present A gift given from one person to another
Reindeer The animals that pull Santa’s sleigh
Snow Soft pieces of frozen water that fall from the sky when the weather is
cold
Stocking A large sock into which gifts are placed on Christmas Day
Tree A tall, green thing which is decorated and placed in the house over
the Christmas period
Turkey Large bird traditionally eaten at Christmas
Reading text about Christmas customs in the UK
Christmas is traditionally a time of celebration and gift giving, both in the UK and also in many
places all over the world. But Christmas is not the same everywhere, and there are some traditions
which are common in the UK but not in other cultures. However, many things about the way
Christmas is celebrated in the UK may be very familiar to those from other parts of the world.
First, of course, in the northern hemisphere, Christmas is more or less in the middle of winter, and
Christmas Day is just three days after the winter solstice, the shortest day, so there is not much
daylight in the UK at this time of year and the weather can be quite cold, with snow and ice, and
Christmas is connected in people’s minds with winter traditions. Much of the imagery and many of
the customs which are followed over Christmas are related to the fact that it is the winter.
Lights and colours are very important during this season; people like to fill their houses with
brightly coloured decorations and lights, which help to make the dark winter seem brighter and
warmer. It’s common to bring a small tree, either a real or artificial one, into the house, and cover it
with small presents for children, and coloured balls or figures, and this tree often becomes the
centrepiece in people’s living rooms over the Christmas holiday.
Gift giving is very important, and under the Christmas tree is often the place where people put
presents, wrapped in brightly coloured paper and ribbons, in anticipation of Christmas Day, when
they are all opened. Children look forward to opening them, and Christmas is often a chance for
parents and relatives to spend a lot of money on buying things for the young ones in their families.
Another famous tradition connected to gift giving is the stocking, a large sock, usually a red colour,
which children hang up in front of the fireplace in the living room. On Christmas Day the children
find that this stocking is full of gifts, and they believe that Santa Claus, riding on a sleigh pulled by
reindeer, has visited the house, entered the room through the chimney, and filled the stocking.
People tend to eat very rich foods over the Christmas period, and eating and drinking are very
important parts of the customs at this time of year. On Christmas Day itself, families usually get
together for a large meal, the main course of which is usually turkey served with potatoes and a
variety of vegetables. This is often followed by a large, sweet pudding made of fruit and a lot of
sugar, called Christmas pudding, and in the afternoon or evening, people may eat mince pies, and
drink hot mulled wine. Of course, many people eat too much on Christmas Day, and all over the
holiday period, and quite often they begin the new year by promising to go on a diet or planning to
get much more exercise!
The Christmas holiday period is often a whole week in total, usually starting on Christmas Eve
(December 24th), when people may finish work early and go to parties, where they will meet friends
or family. Music is important at these parties; sometimes people sing traditional carols, which tend
to be older traditional songs about Christmas, or they may prefer to listen and sing along to more
modern Christmas pop songs, which are now becoming a very important part of Christmas customs.
Christmas Day itself (December 25th) is mostly spent with the family, and people do not tend to go
out as there is not usually any public transport and the shops are all closed. The following day is
called Boxing Day, which was traditionally a day for visiting neighbours and relatives, but it is
becoming increasingly common for this to be a shopping day in the UK, as many of the shops open
and have sales starting on Boxing Day. Many people have the whole week between Christmas Day
and New Year as a holiday, and New Year’s Day itself is also a public holiday when most shops and
services in the UK are closed.
Questions
a) Is Christmas Day the shortest day of the year?
b) What do people do to change the appearance of the insides of their houses at Christmas?
c) What different sorts of Christmas tree do people bring into their houses?
d) What do people put under the Christmas tree?
e) Who fills the stockings with presents?
f) Are Christmas foods healthy?
g) What is a common regret about the food at Christmas, and what do people do about it?
h) What is the difference between the two types of music people listen to at Christmas?
i) When are the shops open and closed in the UK over the Christmas period?
Paragraph headings
a) What music do people listen to?
b) How long does the festival last?
c) How do people decorate their houses?
d) What gifts do people give each other?
e) Is this festival the same everywhere?
f) What season is this festival?
g) What do people eat?

Writing activity plan
Choose a festival whose customs you would like to write about.
Look at the following topics. Which ones can you include in your writing? Which ones are not relevant?
Cross out the ones which are not relevant, and then write in some other topics you can include. Make notes
about the topic, then decide which order the topics are going to appear in and write the paragraph number
in the box.
Show your plan to your partner and discuss it. Your partner may be able to make some suggestions about
how to improve it.
Name of the festival:
What music do people listen to? What do people eat?

___________________________________ ___________________________________
Paragraph number: Paragraph number:
How long does the festival

last?
____________________________
What season is this festival?

___________________________________
How do people decorate their

houses? Paragraph number:
___________________________________
Paragraph number:
Paragraph number:
Is this festival the same
everywhere?
___________________________________
What gifts do people give each
other?
___________________________________
Paragraph number:
Paragraph number:

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Christmas vocabulary definitions

Boxing Day The day after Christmas Day

a) What music do people listen to?

b) How long does the festival last?

c) How do people decorate their houses?

d) What gifts do people give each other?

e) Is this festival the same everywhere?

f) What season is this festival?

g) What do people eat?

Choose a festival whose customs you would like to write about.

What music do people listen to? What do people eat?

Paragraph number: Paragraph number:

How long does the festival

What season is this festival?

How do people decorate their

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