Job Discussion Forums

[JimDunlop2]

I've already been on Genki English... And usually I can glean some things from there. Halloween was pretty darn useful, anyway... But I was a bit disappointed with the Christmas selection.....

Anyone have any wonderful ideas what I can do with elementary-school kids for a Christmas lesson?

For gr.1 and 2 (ichi to ni-nensei) I am teaching them a Christmas carol: "We wish you a Merry Christmas" and some Christmas vocabulary, with which we'll play some kind of game like "fruit basket." I also want to do "Santa Says..." (instead of Simon Says...) That will LIKELY take up most of my time I imagine...

I will also do the Christmas carol thing with grades 3 to 6, but I am drawing blanks as to how to do a good Christmas-related lesson to them.

Anything I do has to be VERY easy English, because at the elementary school I'm going, there are no English-speakers as such. The kids' teachers will understand VERY simple English.... So as much as I'd like to get into fun stuff like Christmas trivia, or Christmas stories (religious and/or secular) etc.. etc.. I can't really -- the language will be too difficult.

Can anyone help me out?

Thanks all!

P.S. I'm not stuck on Christmas.... I'd be just as happy to tell them about Chanukah but I think that would be even MORE language-intensive.

[homersimpson]

Hey Jim,
For grades 3-6 I'd start with simple X'mas vocab and maybe bring in (or draw) some pics of Santa, a Christmas tree, etc. Next it can get a bit nutty if you like (but the kids will really respond to it). If you have a cell phone bring it with you the class. As your teaching the vocab and nearly the end of the vocab lesson have one of the teachers, vice principal, etc. call your keitai from the staff room. Act surprised and tell the students and teacher (who is in on the gag) and tell them you must leave right away (some bogus emergency). After rushing out of the room go to bathroom, locker room, or other change into a Santa suit and head back to class with a bag full of props. Do the whole Santa routine and hand out the "gifts." After which you can play Santa says as you plan in your other classes. Then, time permitting, ask the students who wants to be Santa and you can change places and they can hand out gifts.
I know it's a bit detailed, but not so difficult or expensive to do. I don't know where you're living in Japan, but you should be able to scrounge up a cheap Santa ensemble somewhere. A local �105 shop will have some props.

[bshabu]

For lower grades
Take your Christmas vocab and review them. Put "Santa", "Snowman","Reindeer","Christmas Tree" in each corner of the room. Tell the kids to go to one of the corners while you stand in the center and count to 5.

Count to five with you eyes closed. the kids run to the corners. then spin with your finger piont out. Stop while pointing to one of the corners.

Now the kids in the corner will have to do a "Batsu Game". Here is what they do:

Santa: Hold your hands down from your chin to make a beard.
Reindeer: Hold your hands to your head to make antlers.
Christmas tree: Hold your hands above you your head to make a triangle.
Snowman: Bow out your legs and arms to make it look like a snowman.

Then say "Santa pose" "reindeer pose" "christmas tree pose" and "snowman pose" respectively.

[Willy_In_Japan]

Why don't you get some Christmas music, and download the instructions on making 'snowflakes'?

Photocopy a bunch of Circles, and demonstrate how you make a snow flake. Of course, you will have to have the children bring their scissors.

Play the Christmas music and hand out the paper to the kids as they finish each snowflake. As an option, you can then glue them on to black Construction paper. Perhaps even teach them to write their name in Romaji. Make sure that you spend at least 10 mins of the class cleaning up.

A Great time and paper waster, and the kids are happy, and they have something to take home and show Mom and Dad......from what I can gather, making paper snowflakes is not too common here.