How does teaching Christmas around the world make you feel? Does it make you overwhelmed with the thought of researching a bunch of different countries’ cultures and traditions? I know I was always so busy this time of year that it was hard to teach these things in a meaningful way.
I wanted to come up with something that would make it much, much easier and more convenient for you. Meet Christmas Around the World Digital Resources – downloadable digital presentations for you to use with your students in the classroom. There are seven different countries to choose from (or snag them all and save) and a few ways you can use them.
One thing just about any holiday does – no matter the culture or religion – is bring people together. Teaching our students about how other countries celebrate Christmas helps them become more understanding and empathetic towards others. For our younger learners, we focus on what we have in common with others and the special uniqueness of others.
Becoming more aware of cultures and traditions outside of our own helps us relate to others better and have more respect for them. The same is true in our primary students. They often enjoy learning something new about people, especially when they find out it relates to someone in their own class!
(You can read more about celebrating family traditions in the classroom HERE.)
The Christmas Around the World Digital Resources are available for seven different countries: Mexico, Italy, Sweden, Germany, Australia, France, and America. Each presentation comes with a voice-over in PowerPoint and an option without a voice-over in Google Slides.
Each country’s presentation includes:
You can watch a quick video where I show you what’s inside this resource HERE.
One way to use these resources is to pick several countries (or all seven) and teach one country a day in a whole group setting. Use either the voice-over edition to make teaching a breeze, or use the Google Slides edition to add in your own content. You can complete the interactive activity together and do the Venn diagram as shared or interactive writing. You can also have students do the Venn diagram in their journals and share.
Another way to use these resources is to set them up as rotation stations in the classroom. This is always so fun for students, and they love the sense of independence they get from working through stations. Here’s how I did it:
That’s it -super simple and minimal teacher prep! Because each country’s presentation follows the same format, students will easily pick up on the pattern and know what to expect.
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While these units are meant to stand alone, they correspond perfectly with Christmas Around the World Flip Up Books. You can have students work through the flip up book as they go through the PowerPoint if you want to extend a bit more. You can have students do the flip up books in a whole group setting with you or complete one at each station if you set up rotations.
I’m a K-1 teacher who is passionate about making lessons your students love and that are easy to implement for teachers. Helping teachers like you navigate their way through their literacy block brings me great joy. I am a lifelong learner who loves staying on top of current literacy learning and practices. Here, you’ll find the tools you need to move your K-2 students forward!
