Holidays: a bridge into cultures

Holidays are a bridge into students’ cultures, local cultures, and global cultures. So, if the ultimate goal for teaching a World Language is to increase empathy and cultural competency, and to reduce bias, then exposing our students to a wide variety of holidays may invite their curiosity, appreciation, and respect.

All the presentations shared below have either been authored or proofread/reviewed by people who belong to the various cultures presented. Please make your own copy if you wish to edit them. I hope you and your students find these helpful!

I always remind myself:

  1. I am not necessarily the expert, but I strive to model curiosity, appreciation, and respect 🙂
  2. I do not put my students on the spot as representatives of their cultures unless they have specifically provided interest/consent to lead, co-present, or complement.

If you see any typo or if you know of trusted presentations for more holidays or for a different level, please contact me to have them added to this list.

NOVICE LEARNERSINTERMEDIATE LEARNERS
DiwaliDiwali
(credit: Pav from fleavecmmed)
Hanukkah
Holi and Hola Mohalla
(credit: Natasha Faroogh, Shah Singh Family, Veronique Sumbu, and Roopali Chaudhary)
Kwanzaa (in progress)
Lunar New Year
Norooz
(credit: Khorshid Gharaee-Kermani
Natasha Faroogh)
Ramadan
Rosh Hashanah
(credit: The Comprehensible Classroom)
Shana Tova handout
Posters French Spanish English
(credit: mundo de Pepita)

3 comments

  1. Hi Cecile,

    I am wondering if you are still doing le petit journal? If yes, where can I get the subscription information?

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