Reading: Halloween T.

Mourad BOUMAHDI
Ask and answer the questions below with a partner or in small groups,
 Where is Halloween celebrated? What date is it on? Do you know anything about
the history of Halloween?

Introduction:

(1)Halloween is a celebration that happens on the 31st of October. The holiday was mainly
celebrated in America and from there has spread to many other countries.

(2) On this day, people dress like witches and ghosts to make
the bad spirits go away. People often put up decorations for Halloween parties, and they
play games: “ bobbing for apples”.

(3)Children go “trick or treating”. They dress like witches and ghosts, and go to
the houses in small groups. When someone answers the door, the children say: TRICK
OR TREAT? and the person in the house must decide. They may give the children a treat (chocolate, fruit, sweets…)
or the children will play a trick on them. The children sometimes throw eggs at the house.

The Origins Of Halloween

(4)In the past, people believed that bad spirits came in winter. They wanted bad
spirits to go away, so they made fires outside and used pumpkins to make jack o’ lanterns.

(5)To make a jack o’ lantern, people cut a hole in a large fruit, usually a pumpkin.
Then, they put a candle in the hole, and cut a face in the side.

1. Read the text and complete the table about Halloween. Then, share your answers with the experts group.

Celebration Imilchil Wedding Ceremony Valentine’s Day Halloween The Chinese New Year
When is it
celebrated?
Where is it
celebrated?

Special
activities

Origins of the
celebration

2. Work with your home group and complete the table about the other celebrations.

3. Find in the text the same as:

a. occurs ( paragraph 1) : ………………. b. wear ( paragraph 2): ……………….
c. evil ( paragraph 2): ……………….

4. Group discussion:
What’s your favorite celebration? When is it celebrated? Where is it celebrated? What are its special activities and rituals? Do
you know its origins? Why do you like it? …
 Reading: Valentine's Day T. Mourad BOUMAHDI
Ask and answer the questions below with a partner or in small groups,
 Is Valentine's day celebrated in your country? What date is it on? 2. Do you know anything about the history of
Valentine's day?

Introduction:
(1)Valentine's day occurs every year on the 14" of February. It is commonly celebrated in the United
States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France and Australia and is popular in other parts of the world
too. It's not a public holiday, but people often celebrate this day of ‘love' by giving or sending Valentine's cards
to their partners, or someone they love. Some couples also exchange gifts such as flowers, chocolates or
jewelry. On the night of the 14h, they often spend special time together by cooking a romantic meal at home or
going to a restaurant for a candlelit dinner.

The origins of Valentine's Day

(2)Valentine’s Day is named after Saint Valentine. According to legend, he lived during the 3rd
century in Rome at a time when many Romans were converting to Christianity. There are many stories about
Saint Valentine’s connection to love and romance. The most popular story is that of St Valentine's secret
marriage.

(3)The Emperor at the time, Claudius II, who was pagan, wanted to have a big army, but many young married men
didn't want to join the army because they didn't want to leave their wives and children. To solve his problem, he introduced a
law to prevent young Christian men from marrying.

(4)For St Valentine, marriage was an important part of the Christian. So, he was strongly
against to the new law and started to hold secret marriage ceremonies for the soldiers. After some
time, the news of the secret marriages reached the Emperor, and St Valentine was imprisoned for
his crimes and ordered to be killed. While he was in jail, the daughter of his jailer visited him, and
after some time, the two fell in love.

(5)According to the legend, the girl was blind and Valentine cured her blindness. He
also cared for the other prisoners. Just before his execution, Valentine sent the girl a love letter
and signed it: “from your Valentine”, a phrase which is commonly used to this day in
Valentine's cards. Valentine was beheaded on the 14" February 269, and so, Valentine’s Day
marks the anniversary of his death.

1. Read the text and complete the table about Valentine’s Day. Then, share your answers with the experts group.

Celebration Imilchil Wedding festival Valentine’s Day Halloween The Chinese New Year
When is it
celebrated?
Where is it
celebrated?

Special
activities

Origins of the
celebration

2. Work with your home group and complete the table about the other celebrations.

3. Group discussion:
What’s your favorite celebration? When is it celebrated? Where is it celebrated? What are its special activities and rituals? Do
you know its origins? Why do you like it? …
 Reading: The ImilChil Marriage Ceremony T. Mourad BOUMAHDI
Ask and answer the questions below with a partner or in small groups,
 Where is The Imilchil marriage ceremony celebrated? What date is it on? Do you know anything about
the history of The Imilchil Marriage Ceremony?

Introduction:
(1)The Imilchil marriage ceremony takes place in the Atlas Mountains every year in September.
Two main Amazigh tribes participate in the festival; Ait Hdidu and Ait Ouazza. Hundreds of young men
and women meet and marry at the three-day event. Because the villages are snowbound for most of the
year, the festival offers an occasion for trading, amusement and wedding.
(2)Hanna, a reddish-brown organic dye, is applied to the bride's hands and feet before the wedding
to ward off the evil eye. A tray is kept next to the bride with sugar loaf, two raw eggs, and some perfume.
On the next day, the dried henna is washed off leaving beautiful patterns which last for up to six weeks.
(3)Hospitality is very important to Moroccans. A host traditionally welcomes
guests by offering them milk and dates. During the wedding ceremony, the bride and
groom share a bowl of milk and feed each other dates, thus symbolically becoming both
guest and host of each other.
(4)On the third day of the festivities, all the newly married couples must go to the
lakes of Isli and Tisli for a traditional visit.
The Origins Of The Imilchil Marriage Ceremony
(5)According to the legend, long ago, a young man married a young girl whose
parents did not approve. The couple ran away and cried all night and their tears created the
two lakes which are called ‘Isli and Tislit’ in the Tamazight language, meaning “groom and
bride” in English.

1. Read the text and complete the table about Imilchil Wedding festival. Then, share your answers with the experts group.

Celebration Imilchil Wedding Ceremony Valentine’s Day Halloween The Chinese New Year
When is it
celebrated?
Where is it
celebrated?

Special
activities

Origins of the
celebration

2. Work with your home group and complete the table about the other celebrations.

3. Find in the text the same as:

a. occurs ( paragraph 1) : ………………. b. shopping ( paragraph 1): ……………….
c. prevent ( paragraph 2): ………………. d. accept ( paragraph 5) ……………….

4. Group discussion:
What’s your favorite celebration? When is it celebrated? Where is it celebrated? What are its special activities and rituals? Do
you know its origins? Why do you like it? …
 Reading: The Chinese New Year T. Mourad BOUMAHDI
Ask and answer the questions below with a partner or in small groups,
 Where is The The Chinese New Year celebrated? What date is it on? Do you know anything about
the history of The Chinese New Year?

Introduction:
(1) The most important Chinese holiday is the Chinese New Year. In China it is also known
as the Spring Festival and begins on the 10th February 2013. This marks the start of the Year of the
Snake. The festival lasts for 15 days and ends with Lantern Festival.
(2) Chinese New Year is not a religious event, it is a time to celebrate, remember family
members and to wish everyone happiness, peace and prosperity in the coming year.
(3) Families spend lots of money buying decorations, presents, food and new clothes. People
also have their hair cut. Houses are decorated with lights and cleaned from top to bottom to get rid of any bad luck from the old
year and to make way for good luck.
(4) On the Eve of Chinese New Year, families get together and have a large feast. Chicken,
pork, duck and sweet things are eaten at the feast and the night is ended with firecrackers which are
meant to scare away evil spirits. The next morning, children wish their parents a healthy and happy
new year and are given red paper envelopes called 'Hong Bao' with money or sweets inside.
The Origins Of The Chinese New Year
(5) Tales and legends say that the Chinese New Year started with the fight against Nian, a
mythical monster. On the first day of New Year, Nian would come to the village and eat people's
livestock, harvests and even children! Villagers put food outside their homes to protect
themselves. They believed that if the Nian ate the food, it wouldn't attack any more
villagers. One day, people saw that the Nian was scared away by a
child wearing red clothes. People then started hanging red
lanterns on their windows and doors when the New Year was
about to come. Nian stopped coming to the village and was eventually caught
by Hongjun Laozu, an ancient Taoist monk.
The Chinese calendar is made up of a cycle of 12 years. Each year is named after an animal. Below are the
animals that make up the Chinese zodiac.
1 zi (rat) 7 wu (horse) 4 mao (hare, rabbit) 10 you (rooster)
2 chou (ox) 8 wei (goat) 5 chen (dragon) 11 xu (dog)
3 yin (tiger) 9 shen (monkey) 6 si (snake) 12 hai (pig)

1. Read the text and complete the table about The Chinese New Year. Then, share your answers with the experts group.

Celebration Imilchil Wedding Ceremony Valentine’s Day Halloween The Chinese New Year
When is it
celebrated?
Where is it
celebrated?

Special
activities

Origins of the
celebration

2. Work with your home group and complete the table about the other celebrations.

3. Group discussion:
What’s your favorite celebration? When is it celebrated? Where is it celebrated? What are its special activities and rituals? Do
you know its origins? Why do you like it? …