Birthdays Around the WorldWorld - University of...

© Copyright 2006 Susanna Vinson

Teachers may make copies for use in their classrooms.

Birthdays Birthdays Birthdays Birthdays

Around the Around the Around the Around the

WorldWorldWorldWorld

A 2A 2A 2A 2ndndndnd Grade Integrated Grade Integrated Grade Integrated Grade Integrated

UnitUnitUnitUnit by Susanna Vinson by Susanna Vinson by Susanna Vinson by Susanna Vinson


Teachers may make copies for use in their classrooms. 2

Table of ContentsTable of ContentsTable of ContentsTable of Contents

Title:Title:Title:Title:

Pg.Pg.Pg.Pg.

Inspiration Unit Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

3

Background Information. . . . . . . . . . . .

4

Daily Lesson Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

5

Bulletin Board Sketches . . . . . . . . . . . .

15

Bibliography

For Teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

17

For Students . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

18

Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

19

Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

20



Inspiration Unit MapInspiration Unit MapInspiration Unit MapInspiration Unit Map



Background InformationBackground InformationBackground InformationBackground Information

Welcome to our 2nd Grade unit on

Birthdays Around the World! In this unit, we

will learn how to properly write our birth

date and locate it on a calendar. We will

make graphs of the birthdays we have added

to our Calendar Bulletin Board. We will

discuss our one family’s birthday traditions

as well as exploring, researching, presenting,

and acting out some of the special birthday

customs of different countries around the

world. We will find those countries on a

Bulletin Board map, listen to birthday songs

from those countries, and learn how to say

“Happy Birthday” in different languages. We

will be studying Birthdays Around the World

for two weeks, so come on in and enjoy!



Lesson 1Lesson 1Lesson 1Lesson 1 –––– Introduction and Introduction and Introduction and Introduction and

Classroom BirthdaysClassroom BirthdaysClassroom BirthdaysClassroom Birthdays

Time:Time:Time:Time: 45 minutes

Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Calendar Name Cards (index cards cut into 4 pieces)

� Calendar Bulletin Board

� Birthday Book

� “I Am Collecting Birthdays” worksheet

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Students will recite the months of the year, label them on the

Calendar Bulletin Board, and know how many days each has

o Given their Birthday Books, students will correctly write

their birth date in two formats

o Students will successfully place their birthday card on the

Calendar Bulletin Board

Standards:Standards:Standards:Standards: o Social Studies TEKS 2(D)

Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Begin class by singing Happy Birthday (CD?)

(gather around the Calendar Bulletin Board)

2. Ask students to tell about their birthdays/favorite

birthdays/birthday celebrations(especially cultures

other than American)

3. Introduce unit – “We are going to do a whole unit

just studying birthdays around the world.”

4. Have students recite the months of the year and

label the months on the Calendar Bulletin Board

5. Discuss the knuckle method of remembering how

many days each month has in it (start counting on

the left pinkie knuckle and count each “hill and

valley.” Each “hill” has 31 days; each “valley” has

30 days (except for February). When you get to

July, the last knuckle on the left hand, go to August,

the first knuckle on the right hand.)

6. Ask the students when their birthdays are

7. Have students write their name on a Name Card and

place it on their birthday on the calendar

8. Move to the desks

9. Have students write their name (e.g. Susanna’s) on

their Birthday Book

10. Have students write their month, day, and year of

birth in their Birthday Book

11. Label the Calendar Bulletin Board with the months’

numbers

12. Have the students write their birthday in the

alternate format (_/_/_), referring to the Bulletin

Board for help

13. Review briefly, spending a little time for students to

split into pairs and quiz each other over the

“Knuckle Method” (If necessary)

14. Homework: Explain and send home “I am

Collecting Birthdays” worksheet.

15. Note: Review the names and number of days in

each month throughout the unit as necessary.



Lesson 2 Lesson 2 Lesson 2 Lesson 2 –––– Happy Birthday Who?Happy Birthday Who?Happy Birthday Who?Happy Birthday Who?


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � “I Am Collecting Birthdays” worksheet (completed)


� Calendar Name Cards

� Birthday Books

� http://www.famousbirthdays.com

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Given their completed “I Am Collecting Birthdays”

worksheet, students will 1)make Name Cards for their family

and friends; 2)place them on the Calendar Bulletin Board;

3)transfer the information to their Birthday Books using neat

handwriting

o Students will create an imaginary friend (name and birthday),

make them a Name Card, place it on the Calendar Bulletin

Board, and enter the information in their Birthday Book

o Students will brainstorm about what other birthdays they

would like to add to the Calendar (famous people, countries,

buildings, ships, animals, etc. Ex. Independence Day is

“America’s Birthday”)

o Students will place a cards for their selected birthdays on the

Calendar Bulletin Board

Standards:Standards:Standards:Standards: o Social Studies TEKS 1(A)

o Social Studies TEKS 2(D)

Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Briefly review yesterday’s information

2. Have students take out their “I Am Collecting

Birthdays” worksheets and make a Name Card for

each person that they interviewed

3. Have students place these cards on the Calendar

Bulletin Board

4. Have students transfer the information from their

worksheets neatly into their Birthday Books

5. Have students create an imaginary friend with a

birthday, place their Name Card on the Calendar

Bulletin Board, and enter the information in their

Birthday Book

6. Ask students what other birthdays they know or

would like to know (See objective 3). Use the

website above to search for the birthdays of famous

people or see what other people have the same

birthdays as the students

7. Have students place Name Cards for these birthdays

on the Birthday Book and enter the information in

their Birthday Books



Lesson 3 Lesson 3 Lesson 3 Lesson 3 –––– Graphing BirthdGraphing BirthdGraphing BirthdGraphing Birthdaysaysaysays


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Graph paper


Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Given the completed Calendar Bulletin Board, Students will

graph the given numbers correctly

Standards:Standards:Standards:Standards: o Mathematics TEKS 11(A),(B)

o Mathematics TEKS 12(A)

Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Pass out graph paper

2. Talk through the following problems, giving details

about how to graph problems using graph paper.

3. Have students outline several boxes of the correct

size: 1)12x20; 2)2x50; 3)31x10

4. Problem 1: Graph how many birthdays/Name Cards

we have put on each month. Which month has the

most? Which month(s) have the fewest? Have

none?

5. Problem 2: Graph how many boys’ birthdays and

how many girls’ birthdays we have put on the

Calendar. Are there more boys or more girls

birthdays?

6. Problem 3: What day of the month(s) has the most

birthdays on it? Add the number of birthdays on

Jan. 1st, Feb. 1

st, Mar. 1

st etc. Graph each number.

Which is the highest? Lowest? What does the graph

tell us?

7. Have students complete other graphing problems

(from Math textbook)

8. Review briefly, then let students spend some time in

Birthday Centers if time allows (Birthday Centers

can include: Music, Computer, Books, Art).

9. Note: Throughout, if students have extra time,

they can spend time in the Birthday Centers



Lesson 4 Lesson 4 Lesson 4 Lesson 4 –––– BirtBirtBirtBirthdays Customs in the hdays Customs in the hdays Customs in the hdays Customs in the

U.S.A.U.S.A.U.S.A.U.S.A.


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Birthdays Around the World Bulletin Board

� Eeyore Story – in A.A. Milne’s The House at Pooh Corner

or text online at http://winnie-the-

pooh.ru/stories/english/birthday/ � Birthday Books

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Students will listen to the Eeyore story and discuss ways that

this celebration is the same or different from what their

families do to celebrate birthdays

o Students will describe their family’s birthday customs by

writing and editing a paragraph in their Birthday Book

o Students will, as a class, create a “Presentation Page” for the

United States and add it to the Birthdays Around the World

Bulletin Board

Standards:Standards:Standards:Standards: o English Language Arts TEKS 1(E)

o Social Studies TEKS 17(A)

o Social Studies TEKS 18(B)

o Music TEKS 5(A),(B)

Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Read the Eeyore story aloud to the class

2. Discuss the story and encourage students to find

was that Eeyore’s celebration is the same or

different from their own families’ celebrations.

3. Have students describe their birthday celebration by

writing a paragraph in their birthday book and

drawing a picture to go along with it, if they choose.

4. As a class, construct a Presentation Page of the

(general) birthday customs, song, and language of

saying “Happy Birthday” and add it to the Birthdays

Around the World Bulletin Board (place the page

near the edge of the bulletin board and draw a line

to the United States). While making the Presentation

Page, draw or print pictures of the important

birthday symbols in the U.S.A., write “Happy

Birthday” as one would say it in English, write or

print out any interesting facts that were found, and

sing the song, “Happy Birthday.” Put all the

elements collected onto a page of paper or a Power

Point slide (recommended – this way, you can

include the music and easily insert pictures). This

basic format is what the students will later use in

their presentations.

5. Review information from today and the last few

days, and if time is left, allow students to spend

some time in centers.



Lesson 5 Lesson 5 Lesson 5 Lesson 5 –––– Introduction to Introduction to Introduction to Introduction to

Researching BirthdaysResearching BirthdaysResearching BirthdaysResearching Birthdays


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Books about birthdays around the world (see materials)

� Websites about countries’ birthday traditions

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Students will begin to explore the birthday customs, music,

and language of different countries by reading, using the

Internet, and discussing their findings with other students and

with the teacher

Standards:Standards:Standards:Standards: o Social Studies TEKS 17(A),(B),(C),(D)

o Social Studies TEKS 6(C)

o Second Language TEKS 2(A)(B)

o Music TEKS 2(B) and 5(A),(B)

Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Invite students to spend some time reading the

books in the classroom and looking at the Internet

sites provided for them (on Bibliography for

Students) in order to know what country they would

like to study. Students can work alone or in small

groups according to common interest.

2. Rotate among students/groups aiding them in

finding information.

3. Spend 5-10 minutes at the end of class to discuss

interesting findings as a class

4. Instruct students to think about their decision over

the weekend – they can do more research (for the

purpose of deciding interest) and talk to friends and

family to help them decide which country they

would like to research and present.



Lesson 6 Lesson 6 Lesson 6 Lesson 6 –––– Guided ResearchGuided ResearchGuided ResearchGuided Research En En En English glish glish glish


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Books (see materials, supplement with library resources)

� Websites (see materials)

� Birthday Books

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Students will research the country of their choice and record

their findings in their Birthday Books

StandarStandarStandarStandards:ds:ds:ds: o Social Studies TEKS 7(A),(B),(C),(D)



o English Language Arts TEKS 20(B),(C),(D)

Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Briefly review last week’s information

2. Form students into groups or 2-4 based on their

common interests in researching

3. Explain the research process and aid students in

using the books, CD’s, and computers

4. Students should record facts about how the

countries celebrate birthdays, listen to their music,

and learn how to say “Happy Birthday” in the

language of their country. Students can also find

and print pictures or draw them

5. Note: If there are any special parts of the celebration

that the students would like to do with the class,

make a note of this and plan with them how to

implement that along with their presentations



Lesson 7 Lesson 7 Lesson 7 Lesson 7 –––– Guided Guided Guided Guided ResearchResearchResearchResearch


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Books (see materials, supplement with library resources)

� Websites (see materials)

� Birthday Books

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Students will research the country of their choice and record

their findings in their Birthday Books





Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Briefly review last week’s information

2. Form students into groups or 2-4 based on their

common interests in researching

3. Explain the research process and aid students in

using the books, CD’s, and computers

4. Students should record facts about how the

countries celebrate birthdays, listen to their music,

and learn how to say “Happy Birthday” in the

language of their country. Students can find and

print pictures or draw them

5. Students (if ready) can begin to construct their

Presentation Page or Power Point Slide. See next

lesson.

6. Note: If there are any special parts of the celebration

that the students would like to do with the class,

make a note of this and plan with them how to

implement that along with their presentations



Lesson 8 Lesson 8 Lesson 8 Lesson 8 –––– Preparing PresentationsPreparing PresentationsPreparing PresentationsPreparing Presentations


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Power Point or Colored Paper

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Given the information they have gathered, students will

create a presentation aid including interesting facts about the

country they are researching, “Happy Birthday” written in

that language, pictures, and music (if possible)

o Students will plan their presentation, including any activities

they want to include





o Technology TEKS 1(A),(B) and 2(A),(B)

Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Show the students a finished product and explain

how they will construct their presentation pages

2. Split them into their groups and rotate to help them

plan and create their presentation aids

3. Discuss and plan with students what activities they

would like to do with the class as part of their

presentation

4. If needed, send home a note with the children about

materials/permissions needed for tomorrow



Lesson 9 Lesson 9 Lesson 9 Lesson 9 –––– Presentations Presentations Presentations Presentations and and and and

CelebrationsCelebrationsCelebrationsCelebrations (and a little review) (and a little review) (and a little review) (and a little review)


MateMateMateMaterials:rials:rials:rials: � Presentation Aids

� Birthdays Around the World Bulletin Board

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Students will give and listen to oral presentations about the

countries they have researched.

o Students will compare the information by discussing what

they learned in a class discussion

o Students will review what they have learned

Standards:Standards:Standards:Standards: o Social Studies TEKS 18(A),(B)


Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Students give their presentations in turns. As the

students make their presentations, add their pages to

the Bulletin Board

2. Discuss what was learned/what they liked

3. Review briefly for the test tomorrow



Lesson 10 Lesson 10 Lesson 10 Lesson 10 –––– PresentationsPresentationsPresentationsPresentations, , , ,

Celebration, and EvaluationCelebration, and EvaluationCelebration, and EvaluationCelebration, and Evaluation


Materials:Materials:Materials:Materials: � Presentation Aids

� Birthdays Around the World Bulletin Board

Objectives:Objectives:Objectives:Objectives: o Students will give and listen to oral presentations about the

countries they have researched.

o Students will compare the information by discussing what

they learned in a class discussion

o Students will complete the summative assessment

Standards:Standards:Standards:Standards: o Social Studies TEKS 18(A),(B)


Sequence:Sequence:Sequence:Sequence: 1. Finish the presentations.

2. Add the presentation pages to the Birthdays Around

the World Bulletin Board

3. Administer and collect the summative assessment

(written and oral)(See Evaluation Ideas)



Calendar BuCalendar BuCalendar BuCalendar Bulletin lletin lletin lletin

BoardBoardBoardBoard



Birthdays Around the WorldBirthdays Around the WorldBirthdays Around the WorldBirthdays Around the World Bulletin Bulletin Bulletin Bulletin

BoardBoardBoardBoard



Bibliography For TeachersBibliography For TeachersBibliography For TeachersBibliography For Teachers

Books:Books:Books:Books: � Enderlein, Cheryl L. Celebrating Birthdays in Australia (Birthdays Around the World).

Online at http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1560657596/102-2118623-

1565717?v=glance&n=283155

o Note: Enderlien wrote a series of books like this, including Celebrating Birthdays

in China, Celebrating Birthdays in Brazil, and Celebrating Birthdays in Russia.

http://my.linkbaton.com/bibliography/Enderlein,+Cheryl+L.

� Lankford, Mary D. Birthdays Around the World. Online at

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/068815431X/102-2118623-

1565717?v=glance&n=283155

� Milne, Alan A. The House at Pooh Corner. Chapter 6. Full text online at http://winnie-

the-pooh.ru/stories/english/birthday/

Websites:Websites:Websites:Websites: Note: websites marked with an * may not be appropriate for students to use on their own. I chose

to use them because they provided useful information, but I recommend that the teacher access

the information and provide it to the students indirectly.

� http://www.kidsparties.com/traditions.htm - Describes briefly birthday customs in many

countries, as well as the special traditions of many families.

� http://www.childrensmuseum.org/birthday/birthday_world.html - Find birthday

traditions, a person’s birthday memories, and the birthday song from these countries:

China, Germany, Nigeria, Spain, Greece, and Japan.

� http://www.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/planning/BirthdayCelebrations.asp - Gives a

history of birthday celebration and information about birthday traditions in Latin

America, Europe, Africa, the United States, Asia, and the Middle East.

� http://www.birthdaycelebrations.net/traditions.htm - Learn how to sing “Happy Birthday”

in different languages, read about the history of birthday cake, cards, candles, balloons,

and more, and explore the traditions of many different countries.

� http://www.famousbirthdays.com - Find out who else has the same birthday as you!

Search for a famous person’s birthday by name or browse by month and day.

� www.worldatlas.com – a great map resource for teachers.

� * http://www.shabbir.com/romance/bday.html - lists how to say Happy Birthday in many

different languages



Bibliography for StudentsBibliography for StudentsBibliography for StudentsBibliography for Students

Books:Books:Books:Books: � Enderlein, Cheryl L. Celebrating Birthdays in Australia (Birthdays Around the World).

Online at http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1560657596/102-2118623-

1565717?v=glance&n=283155

o Note: Enderlien wrote a series of books like this, including Celebrating Birthdays

in China, Celebrating Birthdays in Brazil, and Celebrating Birthdays in Russia.

http://my.linkbaton.com/bibliography/Enderlein,+Cheryl+L.

� Lankford, Mary D. Birthdays Around the World. Online at

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/068815431X/102-2118623-

1565717?v=glance&n=283155

� Milne, Alan A. The House at Pooh Corner. Chapter 6. Full text online at http://winnie-

the-pooh.ru/stories/english/birthday/

� Wilder, Laura Ingalls. Ill. Doris Ettlinger. A Little House Birthday (My First Little

House). Online at

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/006443494X/qid=1144089921/sr=1-

17/ref=sr_1_17/102-2118623-1565717?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

� The American Girls Series – each girl has a birthday story. Online at

http://store.americangirl.com/pls/ag/ags_search.body?searchstr=birthday

� Brown, Marc. Arthur’s Birthday.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316110744/ref=sib_rdr_dp/002-0224259-2156017?

� Saenz, Benjamin Alire. A Gift from Papá Diego/Un regalo de papa Diego.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0938317334/qid=1142903575/sr=2-

1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-0224259-2156017?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

Websites:Websites:Websites:Websites: Research:Research:Research:Research:

� http://www.kidsparties.com/traditions.htm - Describes briefly birthday customs in many

countries, as well as the special traditions of many families.

� http://www.childrensmuseum.org/birthday/birthday_world.html - Find birthday

traditions, a person’s birthday memories, and the birthday song from these countries:

China, Germany, Nigeria, Spain, Greece, and Japan.

� http://www.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/planning/BirthdayCelebrations.asp - Gives a

history of birthday celebration and information about birthday traditions in Latin

America, Europe, Africa, the United States, Asia, and the Middle East.

� http://www.birthdaycelebrations.net/traditions.htm - Learn how to sing “Happy Birthday”

in different languages, read about the history of birthday cake, cards, candles, balloons,

and more, and explore the traditions of many different countries.

Games:Games:Games:Games: � http://www.billybear4kids.com/holidays/birthday/tictactoe/index.html - Tic-Tac-Toe

� http://www.akidsheart.com/holidays/bday/bdgames.htm - Has several different games,

including Pin the Tail on the Donkey and Jigsaw Puzzles as well as cards that you can

print.

� http://www.kidsdomain.com/holiday/birthday/jokes.html - Birthday riddles.



EEEEvaluation Ideasvaluation Ideasvaluation Ideasvaluation Ideas

� Birthday Books – create a simple rubric with categories like

1. Complete

2. Accurate

3. Neat (Handwriting)

� Pictures of the Completed Calendar Bulletin Board and Map Bulletin Board

� Student Presentation Pages or Powerpoints

� Daily Work

1. “I Am Collecting Birthdays” worksheet

2. Graphing Pages

� Unit Test

1. Write your birthday correctly in two formats

2. Show me your birthday on a Calendar

3. Name the months of the year in order and tell how many days they each have

4. Graph a birthday problem

5. Locate the places we studied on a world map

6. Answer “What are some different resources you can use when researching a

topic?”

� Describe the birthday customs of two countries (United States/own family = written,

other country = oral presentation)



“I Am Collecting Birthdays!” Name: _______________________

Name: __________________________________

Birthday: ___________ __ __, __ __ __ __

(Month) (Day), (Year)

Or __ __ / __ __ / __ __

Name: __________________________________

Birthday: ___________ __ __, __ __ __ __


Or __ __ / __ __ / __ __

Name: __________________________________

Birthday: ___________ __ __, __ __ __ __


Or __ __ / __ __ / __ __

Name: __________________________________

Birthday: ___________ __ __, __ __ __ __


Or __ __ / __ __ / __ __

Extra: Name: __________________________________

Birthday: ___________ __ __, __ __ __ __


Or __ __ / __ __ / __ __

Instructions:

�Ask at least 4 of your family members and friends what their birthdays are.

�Write each birthday down carefully, the same way that we did it in class.

�As soon as you are done, put this sheet in your homework folder. Make sure to bring it back

to school tomorrow so we can add your friends and family to our Birthday Calendar!



______________’s

Birthday Book

Place

Photo

Here



About Me

� My full name is:

______________________

� I am _____ years old

� My Birthday is:

_________ __ __ , __ __ __ __


� Another Way to Write this is:

__ __ / __ __ / __ __



How I Celebrate My Birthday:

________________________________

________________________________

________________________________

________________________________

________________________________

________________________________

________________________________

________________________________

________________________________



Notes on My Research:

Group members:_____________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

The country we are researching is:___________

______________________________________________

It is on this continent:________________________

The language spoken is:______________________

This is how you write “Happy Birthday” in

that language:________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

This is how people in this country celebrate

birthdays:____________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

I have listened to or sung a birthday song

from this country: �

Other interesting facts: ______________________



______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

______________________________________________

Pictures:



Month: ________________________

1. ________________________ 17. _____________________

2. ________________________ 18. _____________________

3. ________________________ 19. _____________________

4. ________________________ 20. _____________________

5. ________________________ 21. _____________________

6. ________________________ 22. _____________________

7. ________________________ 23. _____________________

8. ________________________ 24. _____________________

9. ________________________ 25. _____________________

10. _______________________ 26. _____________________

11. _______________________ 27. _____________________

12. _______________________ 28. _____________________

13. _______________________ 29. _____________________

14. _______________________ 30. _____________________

15. _______________________ 31. _____________________

16. _______________________

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