Christmas Lesson Plan for ESL and ELD Students

Help your ESL/ELD students get the most out of their first local Christmas with these language building activities. An introduction to basic Christmas vocabulary is a prerequisite for all of these activities. A basic Christmas vocabulary list is available here.

Reading Comprehension: Making Christmas Ornaments

There is one reading comprehension activities available for free at abcteach.com. The exercise is a practical, how-to article titled "Making Christmas Ornaments" and involves reading a homemade dough recipe and instructions on using it to make Christmas ornaments. A page and a half of multiple choice reading comprehension questions follow the exercise.

Language Practice: Christmas Flashcard "Go Fish"

Bogglesworld.com has an extensive collection of flash cards that can be used for language practice or game play. Their collection of Christmas flash cards include a short sentence and picture illustrating a common Christmas word or phrase in English. The flashcards include instructions to play "Go Fish" where players use the entire sentence in game play. Cards should be printed on cardstock or laminated for use in games. Sample cards from the Christmas set include:

Children singing carols.

A girl hanging up a stocking.

A man putting up lights.

Santa Claus checking his list.

Flash cards can also be used for question and answer language practice. For example:

Student A: What are the children doing?

Student B: They are singing Christmas carols.

Literary Reading: Christmas Carols

MusicalEnglishLessons.org breaks has three lessons based on the Christmas Carols "Away in a Manger," "While Shepherds Watched their Flocks at Night," and "We Three Kings." Lessons include vocabulary development, CLOZE activities, pronunciation practice, internet research, and discussion activities.

Vocabulary Practice: Christmas and Winter Crossword

To give students practice using their new vocabulary, esl-galaxy.com has a Christmas and winter crossword that requires students to answer questions, fill in the blanks, or decode other clues to complete the assignment.

Oral Language Practice: Conversation Starters

Internet TESL Journal (iteslj.com) has an extensive list of Christmas themed conversation starters that can also be used as journal topics. Conversation starters include:

Do you think we will have a white Christmas?

Do you know the history of Christmas?

Are you planning on going to a Christmas party this year?

Writing Prompt: Christmas Traditions

Use this writing prompt to help your students practice using the Christmas vocabulary that they have learned.

Some families hang stocking for Santa Clause to fill on Christmas Eve. What other Christmas traditions do you know about? If your family celebrates Christmas, what Christmas traditions does your family have?