December Holidays Library Lesson & Scavenger Hunts

This December Holidays Library Lesson covers winter December holidays from all over the world! Features Christmas, Hanukkah / Chanukah, Kwanzaa, Las Posadas, Pancha Ganapati, Boxing Day, and La Befana.

Please note that this presentation is designed to complement a read-aloud. The actual read-aloud story comes from you!

This holiday lesson includes:

• 59-slide Lesson Presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint + Google Slides
  • All body text is editable; you choose which slides you want to use.
  • 25 slides are whole class lesson slides.
  • 29 slides are “scrolling presentation” slides that are great for extending lessons or scrolling in the library during checkout and downtimes.
• Two (2) editable, differentiated scavenger hunts (3 pages, PowerPoint and PDF)
  • Students “hunt” for images and information in the Part 2 scrolling slides part of the presentation. This gives students something to focus on during library checkout and downtime.
  • “Easier” version – Students color the objects as they find them.
  • “Harder” version – Students answer questions about the information in the slides, plus find smaller images.
  • Answer key is included.
• List of 32 recommended books to accompany this lesson (1 page, PowerPoint and PDF)
  • The list is great to hand out to parents, teachers, and students looking for related books.
• Take-Home Extension Activities (2 pages, PowerPoint, Google Slides, and PDF)
  • Text is editable, and includes several ways for students to share what they learned during the lesson.
• Detailed, pre-filled Library Lesson Plan in editable PDF and PowerPoint formats (2 pages), aligned to:
  • AASL National School Library Standards for Learners,
  • National Common Core ELA Standards, and
  • Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).
• Lesson tips and tricks for librarians on a “specials rotation” (6 pages, PDF)
• Google Classroom Basics (4 pages, PDF)
• Instructions on how to set up PowerPoint slide timings for scrolling slides (1 slide)

25 Lesson Slides:

Part 1 is a guided whole-class discussion. The slides walk you through the entire class discussion, from start to finish.

• Storytime song: “Jingle Bells”
• ASL sign language for “holiday” — includes video links
• Brief information about multiple December holidays and traditions (listed below)
• Slide for your read-aloud (paste the book cover on the slide).
• Checkout reminders slide — Add your own reminders!
• “What Should We Do Now?” slide — This is very clear instructions on what students should be doing after the lesson.

December holidays and traditions included:

• Christmas
• Hanukkah / Chanukah
• Kwanzaa
• Pancha Ganapati (Hindu)
• Boxing Day
• Las Posadas (Mexico)
• La Befana (Italy)
• Christmas in Australia
• Ugly Sweaters
• Three King’s Day / Candlemas (Spain, Philippines, Mexico, Latin America)

29 Scrolling Slides:

Part 2 is the scrolling slides. Set them on a timer to scroll on a screen during library checkout. Students can use the scrolling slides to complete one of the two Scavenger Hunts.

• Vocabulary Word of the Week: “evergreen” and “Epiphany”
• Terms: shammash, kinara, sufganiyot, posadas
• Fun facts about Christmas trees, annual snowfall, ugly sweaters
• 2 holiday jokes
• Weekly and daily agendas (you fill in the template)
• Would You Rather’s?
• This or That?
• Trivia questions and answers
• Happy Birthday to…
• Weekly and daily agendas (you fill in the template)

Take Home Extension Activities:

Students love sharing their knowledge! With the editable 2-page take-home activities, students can:

• Quiz siblings, friends, and family members about some of the December holidays facts they learned in the scrolling slides (Part 2);
• Prepare a holiday recipe (banana eggnog);
• Review holiday vocabulary words from the lesson;
• Learn to draw a polar bear using simple, step-by-step directions;
• Remember how to sign “holiday” in American Sign Language;
• Complete a holiday maze.

Standards Addressed:

AASL National School Library Standards – See the AASL Standards Framework for Learners to view full text. 

• Inquire –  C.1.
• Include – B.1. – C. 2. – D.2.
• Collaborate – A.2. – D.1.
• Explore – A.1.

Common Core English Language Arts Standards –
© Copyright 2010 National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.1 – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.10.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1 – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.10.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1 – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.10.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.1 – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.10.

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