Click on the day you wish to uncover to reveal a festive teaching idea, activity or game. When you...

Click on the day you wish to uncover to reveal a festive teaching idea, activity or game.

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begin!© www.teachithistory.co.uk 2015 24989 1

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2nd December(23 days to go)

Merry Misrule, the Feast of Fools!

In Tudor times, during the 12 days of Christmas, a Lord of Misrule would be appointed by the local parish. In some places, the Lord of Misrule was chosen by whoever came across the bean baked into a cake.

He was put in charge of the parish celebrations including the feast, drinking, entertainment and merriment!

Activity: create an advert for the Lord of Misrule

Create an advert for your local parish’s Lord of Misrule. Perhaps include: a job description, a list of duties, and images.Go

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3rd December(22 days to go)

Make your own advent calendar to help you to revise the topic you have been studying or to focus on a key historical figure or time period.

Make a revision advent calendar

How to…•Use Teachit’s advent calendar template, and fill in the blank calendar with a range of key dates, events, words and facts to help you to revise. •Cut out the calendar doors to reveal your notes. •Stick the calendar together, and share your work with a partner.

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http://www.teachit.co.uk/index.php?CurrMenu=1411&resource=20194


Create a Christmas cracker!Christmas crackers can be traced back to the Victorian times. The London confectioners James Hovell and Tom Smith first created them by rolling their sweets in a tube, wrapping it with coloured paper and draping it with a strip of paper bearing messages of love. Later, small toys and other items were also hidden inside

Christmas joke!What did the snowman say to the other snowman?

‘Can you smell carrots?’

Click for punchline!

4th December(21 days to go)

How to make a Christmas cracker1. Write an interesting fact

about the topic you have been studying, a Christmas joke and a history quiz question on a slip of paper.

2. Roll a piece of card to create a cylinder shape and put the paper inside.

3. Cover with wrapping paper and tie each end with a ribbon or string

4. Give this to your teacher who will dish out the crackers at random

5. Pull crackers and complete the tasks!

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St Francis of Assissi helped to create the first carols; songs which told the story of the nativity. They soon spread across Europe. The earliest recorded collection of Christmas carols in England dates from 1521, published by Wynken de Worde and includes The Boars Head Carol.

Listen to one of the traditional Christmas carols or songs, and read the words of the song.

Change some or all of the words to create your own version of the carol, but try to keep the same metre and rhyme scheme. Alternatively, write your own carol from scratch.

Christmas carols Did you know?

•Carol means a dance with a song.

•The traditional day to start carolling is 21st December.

•Silent Night was written in 1818 by an Austrian priest because his church organ was broken the night before Christmas and so he would be unable to play.

Carol lyrics and music

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http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/xmas/carols.html

http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/xmas/carols.html


Create a Wordle with all the key terms, people, places and events linked to the topic that you have been studying.

Present the Wordle in the shape of a Christmas symbol – a tree, a present, a snowflake etc.

Wordle creator

Winter Wordle What is a Wordle?

Extra challenge

Use different coloured, shaped or sized fonts for the most important words

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http://www.wordle.net/create

Ever wondered how the Christmas shoebox appeal started? It’s origins can be traced to WWI when Princess Mary raised money to send embossed brass tins to the sailors and soldiers fighting in the war. They were to be a ‘gift from the nation’ for Christmas. Families would pack the tins with a variety of items such as tobacco, boiled sweets, chocolate, plum pudding, knitted socks and letters.

Create your own Princess Mary tin to send to a soldier on the home front. Design the front of the tin and also draw the items that you would place inside to send as a present. Annotate to explain what you have chosen to include and why.

Shoebox appeal Extra challengeCreate characters – the person who is sending the tin and the person they are sending it to.

Include a letter with Christmas wishes and asking how things are on the front line. Explain how you are preparing for Christmas at home.

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10th10th December(15 days to go)

Put historical themes from the topic you have been studying on the outside folds and related historical questions inside, with the answers hidden inside the flaps.

Play in pairs, and test each other, choosing a different historical theme each turn.

Make an origami fortune teller

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Online tutorial: how to make a fortune teller


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1DArckNWdM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1DArckNWdM


Where do our Christmas traditions come from?

Split into groups of 4.

Each take a topic: modern, Victorian, Tudor or Viking and Saxon Christmas.

Read the research about the Christmas customs from the past.

Prepare a short speaking and listening presentation explaining all about Christmas during your period and share this with your peers.

4 way Venn diagram

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Challenge 1:Create a 4 circle Venn diagram in your group to help explain the similarities and differences between past Christmases.

Challenge 2:Hypothesise: what might Christmas look like in 50 years time?

Extra Challenges


http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/tudor-england/tudor-christmas/

http://fairlight.brighton-hove.dbprimary.com/brighton-hove/primary/fairlight/arenas/yule:asaxonvikingchristmas!


Pub quizWorking in 4-5 groups or teams, write 10 questions relating to a historical topic, person or event which your teacher will give you.

Choose a suitable name for your team.

Each team will take it in turns to read out the questions they wrote (your team won’t answer this round of questions).

Write down your team’s answers to the other question rounds.

The team with the highest score wins!

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How to:

What should you say to Father Christmas when he takes the register?

Christmas joke!

‘Present!’



Oliver Cromwell was a Puritan who ruled England as a Protectorate. His Puritan beliefs meant he felt that there had been a moral decay in England and that instead everyone should lead a simple life. Puritans believed that you should work hard in order to have a good soul.

In 1644, Cromwell decided to ban Christmas! He wanted people to observe Christmas as the day Jesus was born, not a day when you indulged too much! He banned Christmas food such as mince pies, decorations like holly and singing!

A Christmas with Cromwell

Hear ye, hear ye!

Create a poster to inform the public about the changes to Christmas.

Explain what people are no longer allowed to do and why. You should also inform them about what they should be doing instead. Try to use a strict, Puritan tone and include pictures for the peasants so they can understand!

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Debate

Do you agree with any of the changes Cromwell made to Christmas?



The Victorians popularised the playing of parlour games at Christmas. Since then, many new games have been created like Pictionary in 1985.

Every student in the class should write down a key historical word, event, or person’s name on a piece of paper, and put them into a ‘hat’.

Playing in teams, with each student taking it in turn to draw, students have one minute to guess the word from the drawings on the board. When time’s up, other teams can ‘buzz in’ to guess. The highest scoring team wins!

Christmas pictionary

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Christmas Tweet plenary display

Using green post-it notes or squares of paper, tweet me the most important thing you’ve learnt this lesson / during this term’s topic.

Keep it to less than 140 characters and use #s for the most important words.

Stick them to a wall in the shape of a Christmas tree for a lovely seasonal display!

Extra Challenge

Add a twitter handle for a peer to tweet back to you or ask them a question about this lesson’s learning or the topic.

Using a different coloured post it note, tweet back to your peers to add further decoration to your Christmas tree display.

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18th December (7 days to go)

Tudor Christmas dinners

The Tudor Christmas dinner table looked a little different from our own. Whilst Henry VIII did enjoy a good turkey, during later Tudor times the rich would enjoy a goose, swan or even peacock!

Don’t worry, the Brussel sprout was still served! It made its first appearance in 1587.

Did they have Christmas pudding? Yes! However, it was made from meat, oatmeal and spices and it was cooked in the gut of a pig. You might want to hold back on the custard…..

Tudor Christmas Come Dine with Me menu

Imagine you are a rich Tudor family creating a Christmas Come Dine with Me menu. Create the perfect menu with short descriptions of what the dish is made from. You could even write the recipe!

•Use adjectives (you’ve got to make this menu sound appetising to the other competitors not matter how grim it is! •Present your menu beautifully!•Consider the effect of layout (headings, bullet points, use of white space etc.)•Think about your choice of food – will you go for the presentation and chose peacock or demonstrate your royal loyalties by opting for the goose?

More information

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Christmas charadesPlay this Victorian Christmas classic by splitting into two teams.

Each team must write as many people, events or key terms about the topic that you have been studying onto different post it notes to create the charade cards. Aim for between 20-30.Swap packs of completed post it notes so that each team does not know what may come up!

Which team is the Christmas charade champion?

Did you know?The game of charades was popularised by the Victorians and is mentioned in the works of Charles Dickens and Jane Austen.

One article in 1854 wrote: ‘A Christmas evening without a good frolicking game of acting charades is simply a Christmas evening lost!’

Extra ChallengesYou could divide the charades cards into:•events•key terms•people•places.

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Topic garlands and bunting

Make historical character, event or topic paper chains to decorate your classroom.

Cover the chain links with key facts, dates, quotations, events, and images.

You could even use a traditional Christmas or topic related shape.

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Extra challenges

Divide the class into different groups. Each group can work on a particular theme related to the topic. Where the bunting/garland crosses over, can you make connections between the themes?

Did you know?

Tinsel was first created in 1610 and it was made from strands of silver! This changed afterwards to cheaper metal.

In WW1, tinsel production was cut back due to war needs.


It’s the holidays!

What are you doing here?

Go and have some festive fun!

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Eh? What are you doing here?

Did you get locked in?The bad news is that you’ll be stuck here until after Christmas.

The good news is that there are thousands of pages of resources on Teachit History, so you can plan next term’s lessons in peace!

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December 1st (24 days to go)

Interesting Christmas storyWas Stalin the Grinch who stole

Christmas?

The Communists banned Christmas from 1917 as religion clashed with their beliefs. For Russians born after 1917, many never experienced a Christmas; even Stalin’s children! However, in 1935 Stalin sent his children to the British embassy. When they returned and excitedly told him all about it, Stalin decided to devise a cunning plan to create his own version so that he could get more support from his people in Russia. He was going to steal Christmas and turn it into his own celebration! His celebration took part on New Years Day and involved Russians giving each other a New Years tree, cards and putting up decorations. Comrades would say ‘S’Novim Godom’ (‘congratulations on the New Year’). Dez Moroz (Grandfather Frost) brought children gifts.

S’Novim Godom!Merry … New

Years?Challenge 1:Imagine you are writing a speech for Stalin to announce his new celebration.

Explain what this new celebration is and make clear how it is NOT at all like Christmas and that there are no similarities!

You have three minutes to write it!

Challenge 2:Create a New Years card for comrades to give each other to celebrate this festival. You could include Grandfather Frost and sayings like ‘S’Novim Godom’.Go

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Christmas coronation

In 1066, William the Conqueror was crowned King of England. This was after he had defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings. However, the English were not keen on having a Frenchman to rule their country!

Read the story to find more about what happened.

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What a drama!Create a script for a drama/play re-enacting the events of Christmas Day in 1066 around the Christmas dinner table. How is William feeling?Explain why he is King and how everyone feels including the festive spirit after the earlier drama!

Be creative. Was there any more drama? Did anyone burst in and interrupt the carving of the turkey to complain!?

Cliff hanger challenge



Interesting Christmas fact In the Czech Republic they enjoy dinners of fish soup, eggs and carp.

The number of people at the table must be even, or the one without a partner will die next year!

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You’re invited! Christmas

dinner party …If you could invite any five historical figures to come and sit at your Christmas dinner table, who would

you have and why?

Share your ideas. Anyone pick the same

guest?



Interesting Christmas facts Hanging stockings out comes from the Dutch custom of leaving shoes packed with food for St Nicholas' donkeys. He would leave small gifts in return.

The tradition of putting tangerines in stockings comes from 12th century French nuns who left socks full of fruit and nuts at the houses of the poor.

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Stocking surprise!

Pass the Christmas stocking around the class.

Complete the task which you pull out!

You might even pull out a treat!

Click to go to the tasks



Bling baublesPrince Albert helped to bring the Christmas tree tradition to England in 1841. The tradition soon caught on and family trees were decorated with little toys, biscuits, sweets and small bags containing sweet surprises.

From 1865 imported glass ornaments, wire ornaments, Sebnitz ornaments (artificial flowers) and Dresdner paperboard ornaments were also used as decorations. They were seen as status symbols and a way to show off your wealth. The more decorative and more bling, the wealthier you appeared.

Popular choices were: angels, stars, the Royal family, soldiers, flowers or birds.

Christmas baubles

Challenge 1: Design your own Victorian bauble. Complete the design and stick it on your classroom wall in a tree shape.

Challenge 2: Historians can look at baubles from different eras to try to work out the social history of the time. For example, Hitler created Nazi baubles to gain support by linking Nazism with Christmas! What will future historians learn about us from our baubles?

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For the 7th December activity

So at last on Christmas Day the English assembled at London for the king's coronation, and a strong guard of Norman men-at-arms and knights was posted round the minster to prevent any treachery or disorder. And, in the presence of the bishops, abbots, and nobles of the whole realm of Albion, Archbishop Ealdred consecrated William Duke of Normandy as king of the English and placed the royal crown on his head.

But at the prompting of the devil, who hates everything good, a sudden disaster occurred. For when Archbishop Ealdred asked the English, and Geoffrey bishop of Coutances asked the Normans , if they would accept William as their king, all of them gladly shouted out with once voice, if not in one language, that they would. The armed guard outside, hearing the noise of the joyful crowd in the church and the harsh accents of a foreign tongue, thought that there was danger and so set fire to some of the buildings. The fire spread rapidly from house to house; the crowd who had been rejoicing in the church took fright and many men and women of every rank and condition rushed out of the church in a hurry. Only the bishops and a few clergy and monks remained, terrified and the King who was trembling from head to foot. Some tried to fight the flames and many others hoping to find loot for themselves in the general confusion.

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Create a mnemonic for the topic you have been studying.

Create a mini mind map for the topic you have been studying.

Summarise your learning for this topic in 50 words. Highlight the 5 most important parts.

Create a song or rap for the topic that you have been studying.

Create 10 true of false quiz questions on the topic you have been studying.





















Christmas stocking tasks

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