Introduction

Task

Process

Evaluation

Conclusion

Introduction

Holidays are very important to people all over the world.  Which is your favorite holiday? Why do you like it so much? Four very important holidays happen each year, but not always at the same time. Kwanzaa and Christmas are always celebrated in December.  Hanukkah usually is too.  When is Hanukkah celebrated this year? Ramadan, however, occurs at different times during the year, according to the cycle of the moon. Sometimes it is in the summer instead of the winter. When is Ramadan this year?

Task

Your job is to learn about how one of these holidays is celebrated in a country other than your own.  You know what happens in your home country; your job is to learn something new. For example, do you know that many children in Europe get Christmas gifts in January instead of December? Do you know that Jewish children enjoy a game played with a dreidel?  Do you know that in many countries of the world many people fast from dawn to dusk during the month of Ramadan before they have a big feast called Eid El Fitr? When you have finished conducting your research, create a PowerPoint slide show to share with your classmates that presents your newly discovered information. You might also want to make a special treat enjoyed on that holiday to share with your classmates.

Process

Use the links below to help you find out about one of the holidays.  Think about what you'd like to know.   Do people in other countries exchange gifts during holidays?  Do they eat special foods?  Are there special customs such as lighting candles or decorating trees that go along with the event?

There are two organizers included in this WebQuest to help you organize the answers to these questions. You can add more questions to the organizer, if you want to know something that is not already there.

Inspiration 6.0

Inspiration 7.5

Research Links

Holidays on the Net	Hanukkah
Ramadan	Kwanzaa
Holidays Around the World	December Celebrations
Our Holiday Traditions	Christmas (Yahooligans)

Evaluation

See rubric.

Conclusion

After seeing your classmates' presentations, spend some time discussing these questions:

• What holidays did you learn the most about?
• Which countries have customs that were very unusual?
• If your family were to add a new custom to its celebration of a holiday, what would like to do?
• What holiday custom seemed to be the most fun?

Teacher Page