An Aussie Christmas: Ages 8-12 by Teacher Superstore

RIC-6462 4.2/355

Additional titles available in this series:

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AN AUSSIE CHRISTMAS (Ages 5–7)

This master may only be reproduced by the original purchaser for use with their class(es). The publisher prohibits the loaning or onselling of this master for the purposes of reproduction.

Name of Purchaser:

Date of Purchase:

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Signature of Purchaser:

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School Order# (if applicable):

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Internet websites

In some cases, websites or speciﬁc URLs may be recommended. While these are checked and rechecked at the time of publication, the publisher has no control over any subsequent changes which may be made to webpages. It is strongly recommended that the class teacher checks all URLs before allowing students to access them.

View all pages online PO Box 332 Greenwood Western Australia 6924

Website: www.ricgroup.com.au Email: mail@ricgroup.com.au

Foreword An Aussie Christmas (Ages 8–11+) is one of a series of two books written with a uniquely Australian focus. This series includes fun and creative hands-on activities across many curriculum areas, all of which relate to and consolidate information about ‘Christmas Down-Under’. Titles in this series are: An Aussie Christmas — Ages 5–7 An Aussie Christmas — Ages 8–11+

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S Teachers notes ........................................................iv – v Curriculum links............................................................. v A dictionary of Aussie slang and colloquialisms ... vi – viii An Aussie Christmas cover page ..................................1

True blue traditions and customs ...............................2–7

Teacher information .................................................2 Christmas Down-Under 1 & 2 .......................... 3–4 A bonzer Christmas ..............................................5 True blue stained glass window ...........................6 The perfect Christmas ..........................................7

Dinkum decorations, symbols and prezzies ............8–41 Teacher information..................................................8 Ancient traditions and Christmas 1 & 2 ......... 9–10 Newspaper Christmas tree ................................ 11 Hanging star ....................................................... 12 Advent wreath.................................................... 13 Teacher information................................................ 14 A Chrissie card in a jiffy ...................................... 15 Cool Christmas cone .......................................... 16 Speccy stained-glass bell ................................... 17 Teacher information................................................ 18 Aussie Chrissie tags ........................................... 19 Aussie advent calendar 1 & 2 ....................... 20–21 Teacher information................................................22 Design an Aussie Santa .....................................23 SMS to Santa .....................................................24 Aussie Chrissie stamp .......................................25 Teacher information................................................26 An Aussie Santa .................................................27 Substitute Santa .................................................28 Outback shopping trek .......................................29 Teacher information................................................30 Fab photo frame .................................................31 Chrissie gift certiﬁcates ......................................32 Sharing the love at Cristmas time ......................33 Teacher information................................................34 Design an Aussie Christmas hat ........................35 Aussie angels .....................................................36 Aussie Chrissie banner.......................................37

Teacher information................................................38 Australian Christmas plants 1 & 2 ................ 39–40 Origami Christmas bells ﬂower ..........................41

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Contents

Aussie Christmas tucker ...........................................42–57 Teacher information................................................42 Aussie Christmas tucker 1 & 2 ..................... 43–44 My Christmas meal ............................................45 Teacher information................................................46 Aussie ice-cream pudding ..................................47 Fruit mince slice .................................................48 Cheesy Christmas twists ...................................49 Teacher information................................................50 White Christmas cups ........................................51 Koala and kangaroo bickies ................................52 Christmas lamingtons ........................................53 Teacher information................................................54 Aussie table centrepiece ....................................55 Christmas crackers .............................................56 Poinsettia Christmas serviettes .........................57

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Aussie carols and Christmas songs ........................58–69

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Teacher information................................................58 Aussie Christmas music 1 & 2 ..................... 59–60 Light a Christingle! .............................................61 Teacher information................................................62 Revamped carols ... ............................................63 Aussie jingle bells...............................................64 12 days of … .....................................................65 Teacher information................................................66 Aussie carols ......................................................67 Aussie Christmas songs.....................................68 My Aussie Christmas song ................................69

Ridgy-didge bits ‘n’ pieces .......................................70–75 Teacher information................................................70 A lesson for Christmas (play) ....................... 71–73 A real Aussie Christmas (story) .....................74–75 An Aussie Christmas

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Teachers notes An Aussie Christmas is a series with a uniquely Australian focus. The fun and creative activities cover many curriculum areas, all of which relate to and consolidate information about Christmas Down-Under. Throughout the book, Australian slang and colloquialisms are used to further enrich the Aussie ﬂavour. (A dictionary to explain these terms may be found on page v – vii.)

The format of the book: The book is divided into ﬁve sections. These ﬁve sections provide information about: • True blue traditions and customs,

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• Dinkum decorations, symbols and prezzies, • Aussie Christmas tucker,

• Aussie carols and Christmas songs,

A cover page on page 1 is provided for a collection of completed student pages.

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• Ridgy-didge bits ‘n’ pieces (a Christmas play, for that very important end of year performance, and a story).

Each section begins with a page of student information followed by an activity. The subsequent student pages are fun and creative activities which relate to the information. The book is predominately divided into a four-page format with one teacher information page followed by three student pages. This format ensures that as many student activities are provided as possible.

(NOTE: Pages 2–7, 8–13 and 70–75 do not follow this format. Instead, these groups of pages include one teacher page of information followed by ﬁve student pages.)

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The title and page number of the corresponding student page is given.

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The indicator(s) is(are) stated.

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completing each student page.

The section of the book is indicated.

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Answers are supplied where necessary.

Relevant background information is given about using the work sheet.

An Aussie Christmas

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Teachers notes Student pages The student pages provide of wide variety of fun and creative activities including craft to complete, puzzles and codes to solve, reading, writing and drawing activities, recipes and procedures for making cards, tags and gifts. All activities are intended to be ‘child-friendly’ and completed with minimal assistance from adults during the very busy last weeks of school.

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The title of each student page is indicated.

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Appropriate Australian artwork complements each page and may be coloured by students.

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Curriculum links

Society and Environment NSW

CCS 3.1

CUS 2.2

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CUS 3.4

ICP 3.2

2.7

C 3.1

2.9

C 4.1

3.7

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SOSE0301

CUS 3.2

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Clear, concise instructions for completing the student activity are supplied.

Qld

CI 4.1

C 4.2

TCC 3.1

PE, Health and Values NSW

Vic.

Qld

COS 3.1

HPSR0302

ISP 3

4.3

EPD 3.2

IRS 2.11

IPS 4

EPD 3.4

IRS 3.11 R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

An Aussie Christmas

Dictionary of Australian slang and colloquialisms A Ace:

excellent

Aggro:

aggravated, upset about something

Ankle biter:

small child

Arvo:

afternoon

Aussie (pronounced Ozzie):

Corker:

something excellent

Cozzie:

swimming costume (see bathers)

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Back of Bourke: the middle of nowhere Barbie or BBQ: barbecue swimming costume (also togs, cozzie or swimmers)

Beating around the bush: not getting to the point

Dag:

a funny person, nerd, goof

Damper:

ﬂour and water bread mix cooked in the coals of a camp ﬁre

Didgeridoo:

Aboriginal wind musical instrument

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call for greeting someone at a distance in the bush

Back of Beyond: as far out bush as you can get, the far Outback of Australia

Bathers:

Cooee:

Dinkum, fair dinkum: true, real, genuine Dinky-di:

the real thing, something good from Australia OR originating from Down-Under

Dob (somebody) in: inform on somebody. Hence, dobber, a telltale/ tattletale

an ox-bow river or watering hole

Billy:

teapot, container for boiling water

Bloke: Bonzer:

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Billabong:

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man, feller

great, ripper

a large male kangaroo

Bush:

the hinterland, the Outback, anywhere that isn’t in town

Bushranger:

highwayman, outlaw

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Chokkie:

chocolate

Chook:

a chicken

Chrissie:

Christmas

Cobber:

friend

Esky™:

large insulated food/drink container for picnics, barbecues etc. (Tradename)

F Fair dinkum:

true, genuine

Fair go:

a chance (‘give a bloke a fair go’)

Free-for-all:

a ﬁght where everyone joins in

Fruit loop:

fool

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Boomer:

Chalkie:

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Beaut, beauty: great, fantastic

An Aussie Christmas

G G’day:

hello, good day

Galah:

loud, rudely behaved person, an insult (a galah is a loud, raucous parrot)

Good sport:

someone who is good about losing R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

Dictionary of Australian slang and colloquialisms Grouse (adjective):

great, terriﬁc, very good

H Hang out:

spend time out, usually with friends

Heaps:

a lot; e.g. ‘thanks heaps’, ‘She earnt heaps of money’

goodbye (also ‘Ooroo)

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Jackaroo:

a male station hand (a station is a big farm/grazing property)

Jillaroo:

a female station hand

Joey:

baby kangaroo

Jug:

electric kettle

Jumbuck:

sheep

Jumper:

K Kindie:

Mozzie:

mosquito

Mug:

friendly insult (‘Have a go, yer mug’); a gullible person

Muster:

round up sheep or cattle

Mystery bag:

a sausage

Nipper:

young surf lifesaver, young child

Noggin:

head or brains

No drama:

same as ‘No worries’

No worries!:

Expression of forgiveness or reassurance (No problem; forget about it; I can do it; Yes, I’ll do it)

No-hoper:

somebody who’ll never do well

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swagman’s bedding, sleeping roll

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Hooley dooley!: an explanation of surprise— ‘Good heavens!’, ‘My goodness!’, ‘Good grief!’ etc. Hooroo:

Matilda:

Oldies:

parents

Knock back:

refusal (noun), to refuse (verb)

Outback:

interior of Australia

Knocker:

somebody who criticises

Oy! or Oi!:

an Aussie call

Oz:

Australia

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Lamingtons:

sponge cakes coated in chocolate and grated coconut

Larrikin:

a bloke who is always enjoying himself; a harmless prankster

Lollies:

sweets; candy

Lucky Country, The:

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Australia, of course!

Paddock:

areas of land where cattle are grazed or animals kept on a farm

Pav:

Pavlova—a rich, creamy Australian dessert

Plate, bring a:

Instruction on party or BBQ invitation to bring your own food. It doesn’t mean ‘short of crockery’!

Pozzy:

position; e.g. get a good pozzy at the football stadium

Prezzy:

present, gift

M Maccas (pronounced ‘Mackers’): McDonald’s® (the hamburger place) Mate:

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an unsophisticated person

to criticise

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Ocker:

Knock:

friend, buddy

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An Aussie Christmas

vii

Dictionary of Australian slang and colloquialisms Q Quid, make a:

earn a living; e.g. ‘Are you making a quid?’

Quid, not the full: of low IQ. [Historical note: ‘quid’ is slang for a pound. £1 became $2 when Australia converted to decimal currency in 1966]

Sunnies:

sunglasses

Surﬁes:

people who go surﬁng

Swag:

rolled-up bedding etc. carried by a swagman; canvas bag or cover that you keep all your belonging and bedroll in, to protect it from the weather when camping out

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S T swagman

Swagman:

tramp, hobo

Right, she’ll be: it’ll be all right

Ta:

thanks

Righto:

Thongs:

cheap rubber sandals, ﬂipﬂops

Togs:

swimsuit

Too right!:

deﬁnitely!

Top End:

far north of Australia

You bet! Absolutely!

Ridgy-didge:

original, genuine

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Reckon!:

okay or that’s right

Ripper/Ripsnorter:

great, fantastic

Ripper, you little!: Exclamation of delight or as a reaction to good news

© R. I . C.Pu bl i cat i osuit ns Trackies: track stout bar ﬁxed to the front of True blue: patriotic, Australian • f o r r e v i e w p u r p o s e sonl y• a vehicle to protect it against Tucker: food big truck with many trailers

Roo:

kangaroo

Roo bar:

hitting kangaroos (also ‘bull bar’)

Trackie daks/dacks:

Tuckerbag:

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a sandwich

Ute:

tracksuit pants

food bag

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Road train:

Sanger:

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Swaggie:

utility vehicle, pick-up truck

She’ll be right: it’ll turn out okay

Shoot through: to leave

Vegies:

vegetables

Vee dub:

Volkswagen (Vee-dubya)

Veg out:

relax in front of the TV (like a vegetable)

Walkabout:

to travel through the Outback (by Aborigines); lasts for an indeﬁnite time

Whinge:

complain

Sleepout:

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house veranda converted to a bedroom

Snag:

a sausage

Snazzy:

smart, good, exciting, interesting

Spiffy, pretty spiffy:

great, excellent

Sprung:

caught doing something wrong

Station:

a big farm/grazing property

Stickybeak:

nosy person

Stoked:

very pleased

Sunbake:

sunbathe

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An Aussie Christmas

Y Yobbo:

an uncouth person

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An Aussie Christmas

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True blue traditions and customs Christmas down-under — pages 3–4 Indicators: • Reads an informational text about Christmas in Australia. • •

Completes a variety of word study activities based on a text. Compares aspects of an Australian Christmas with their own Christmas.

Background information:

Z R E E D N

•

S U N R E B M E C E D D

•

Use the information on page 3 to complete the puzzles and writing activity on page 4. When completed, ask students to volunteer to share their answers to Question 4 with the class.

Answers

T O C K

T N E S E R P

L M S

N O

N G A

W C P M S

A P G B A

N R U J

M S

T A R O C E D D E N S E

E C

O H C F R A W B E

L O R A C H S N R R

H O L

D A Y S C Z

T C

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E R Y X Q

Y A O S

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Page 4 2. SANDY CLAWS 3. Teacher check

A Bonzer Christmas — page 5

Indicators: • Views and discusses an illustration showing aspects of Christmas in Australia. •

Chooses a ‘story starter’ to begin a narrative story about an Aussie Christmas.

Background information: •

Look at the picture and have students identify different ways families in Australia celebrate Christmas. Ask students to relate how they spend Christmas. Students colour the worksheet and write a narrative story using one of the story starters on the page. Choose students to read their narrative stories to the class.

Completes a stained glass window picture of an Australian Christmas character.

Background information:

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1. Carefully cut out sections marked with dashed line. 2. Place page on top of black A4 card. Trace the open areas onto the card and carefully cut out each section. Safety: If a craft knife is used, students will require adult supervision and a board to cut on. 3. Place black card on to the sticky side of clear self-adhesive plastic (book cover). Note: Clear plastic can be placed on the table with corners folded back and stuck to table so it does not move. 4. Choose different coloured cellophane and cut each piece slightly larger than the open sections. 5. Attach the cellophane behind the open sections, being careful to not overlap into another section.Display the stained glass picture on a window so the sun’s rays can shine through it.

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The perfect Christmas — page 7 Indicator:

Reads a humorous poem depicting an Australian Christmas.

Background information: Read the poem as a class. • Ask students to practise reading the poem aloud in groups and then perform it for the class, focusing on their volume and intonation. • Discuss with the class who the writer of the poem is. How do they know this? • Ask the students to describe and write about their idea of a ‘perfect Christmas’. 2

An Aussie Christmas

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Christmas down-under — 1 Read the information.

Christmas in Australia occurs in December during the hot summer months. Most children have just started their long summer holidays from school, which last about six weeks. Christmas Day is a special time for families to be together, with many parents organising to have their holidays at the same time as their children.

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Most families start to decorate their homes early in December. These decorations include wreaths for the door, Christmas lights around the house, artiﬁcial Christmas trees with lights, tinsel, bells, angels and, of course, Santa and his reindeer. Some children hang stockings near or under the tree or they leave them at the end of their bed. Many families still put up a real Christmas tree just before Christmas Day. Some children like to leave out food and drink for Santa and his reindeer on Christmas Eve.

celebrations are held outside under the stars. Tens of thousands of people gather in the city of Melbourne to sing their favourite Christmas songs. Many Australian plants and trees ﬂower at Christmas time and are used as decorations. These include the native Christmas bush, a plant with little red ﬂowers, and Christmas bells.

Because of the warm weather, Christmas lunch is often eaten outside in a garden, at the beach or in a park. Christmas cakes and puddings are cooked ready for the big family celebration on Christmas Day, which involves opening presents and enjoying a large meal. Christmas ‘tucker’ varies from the traditional baked turkey, ham and chicken with baked vegetables to cold meats, seafood and salads. Many Australian families cook their meat and seafood on the barbecue. Some have adapted the traditional hot Christmas pudding and have ice-cream pudding with vanilla ice-cream, fruit and nuts.

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In the weeks leading up to Christmas, many people shop in big shopping centres, enjoying the air-conditioning, cool drinks and ice-creams. Children visit Santa at the shopping centres, sitting on his knee and telling him what they hope to receive on Christmas morning. Photographs are taken and purchased by their parents.

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Some families attend church services at midnight on Christmas Eve or on Christmas Day. Traditional Christmas carols can be heard in shopping centres and in churches, but Australian carols are heard as well. Many families attend ‘Carols by Candlelight’ in their community to listen to choirs and to sing carols with other families. These

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Boxing Day is a public holiday where many people eat ‘leftovers’ from Christmas Day and relax, watching the Boxing Day Test cricket match or the beginning of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. Some families, who stayed at home for Christmas, leave to start their summer holidays on Boxing Day.

An Aussie Christmas

Christmas down-under — 2 Find and circle the words below in the word search.

carols

choir

Use the code wheel to ﬁnd the punchline for this Christmas joke. What do you call a cat on the beach at Christmas time?

N S

8 1

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presents

reindeer

Christmas Santa

cricket

stocking

December sun

decoration

tinsel

12 –5

7 6

5 A

3 L

13 –8

15 –7

12 13 – 6 – 10

12 –7

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11 –9

10 –6

10 –9

10 –3

tree

holiday

warm

True

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(a) My longest school holidays are at Christmas time. (b) I help decorate an artiﬁcial Christmas tree.

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Not True

How is your Christmas different?

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family

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(c) I leave a stocking at the end of my bed on Christmas Eve. (d) I attend church on Christmas morning with my family. (e) I sing carols with my family at ‘Carols by Candlelight’. (f)

We eat cold meats and salads for Christmas lunch.

(g) We play cricket on Christmas Day. 4

An Aussie Christmas

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A bonzer christmas Look at the picture. With a partner, discuss the different ways families in Australia celebrate Christmas. Is your Christmas similar to any of the families in the picture?

Colour the picture.

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Use the picture as inspiration for a narrative story set in Australia on Christmas Day. Use one of the story starters below to begin your story, or create your own. Write your draft on a separate sheet of paper.

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...Dad should never have left Lachie in charge of the Christmas barbie. Catastrophe! ...‘Dear Father Christmas, thank you for visiting me on Christmas morning, but I am returning your gift because it melted.’ ...Once Jenna had ﬁnished frantically unwrapping the present, she squealed in horror and dropped the entire contents on the veranda! ...‘Prawns and cold meat for Christmas lunch! Ridiculous! I wish I was back home.’ ...Zac stood at his window, angrily staring at the cackling kookaburra that was going to make this Christmas Eve the longest night in history! 4.

Edit and publish your story.

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An Aussie Christmas

True blue stained glass window

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Follow instructions from your teacher to make this true blue stained glass window.

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An Aussie Christmas

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THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS Read the humorous poem about an Australian Christmas.

We’re having roast again this Christmas With a turkey and a chook

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Mum has baked a Christmas pudding But it gets a dirty look.

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All the kids yell out for ‘ICE-CREAM!’ And ... we eat the lot!

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Dad is fanning his potatoes Gran’s complaining, ‘It’s too HOT!’ The decorations have gone saggy The Christmas tree looks rather sad

Bringing presents for us all

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Hope they brought an air conditioner ‘Cos our cooler’s not real cool.

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Maybe next year we’ll have salad On the beach under a shade

Gran can paddle to her ankles

While the kids drink lemonade.

That would be the perfect Christmas Just as far as I’m concerned But for now we have to put up With our insides getting burned!

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An Aussie Christmas

True blue traditions and customs Ancient traditions and Christmas — pages 9–10 Indicators: • Demonstrates an understanding of the text. •

Completes a wordsearch.

Background information: • •

Read through the text with the students. Discuss other decorations, symbols and traditions which students know of. Determine the most popular with students and their families. Discuss different family traditions for exchanging and opening presents at Christmas.

•

Answers:

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(a) very old (b) plant leaves (c) to have healing powers Teacher check ﬁre hazard (b) Bring peace at Christmas.

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Newspaper Christmas tree — page 11 Indicator:

Background information:

•

When complete, the tree stands at approximately 75 cm. A smaller tree can be made using single sheets of paper. The number of rolls and levels can be altered to increase or decrease the density of the tree. Students can calculate how many rolls would be needed for trees of different heights and densities by multiplying the number of levels by the number of branches at each level.

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Hanging star — page 12

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Indicator:

Follows instructions to make a 3-D star.

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Background information: • •

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•

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1. 2. 3. 4.

To make folding the stiff paper nets more accurate and neat, each fold line may be scored using scissors and a ruler, taking care not to cut through the paper. Students can make larger or smaller stars by altering the size of the equilateral triangles. What difﬁculties would students expect to encounter if making a very large or a very small star?

Advent wreath — page 13 Indicator:

Follows instructions to make an Advent wreath.

Background information: •

•

In the Christian church, Advent is a time of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Discuss ways in which the local community prepares for the Christmas season. Students make lists of important things to do in their families before the big day. This wreath makes a beautiful table decoration for special meals. The cardboard squares give stability to each candle. For added security, the wreath could be placed in a large metal cake tin. Remind students that candles should only be lit in the presence of a responsible adult. An Aussie Christmas

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Ancient traditions and Christmas Australia is populated by people whose families come from many countries around the globe. Christmas as we know it today has evolved from hundreds of years of traditions from around the world.

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The most popular of these decorations is the Christmas tree. The tradition of decorating Christmas trees began in Germany in the 17th century. Christmas markets were set up in many German towns, where decorations and other things required for the Christmas celebrations could be purchased. Originally, trees were decorated with candles which, when lit in the evenings, made the tree look most impressive. Later, handmade glass, paper and cloth ornaments and tinsel were used. In the 1960s, artiﬁcial trees and decorations were mass produced, differing only in size or colour. Many children today make their own Christmas tree decorations.

Kissing under the mistletoe dates back to ancient Scandinavia where it was respected as the plant of peace. If enemies chanced to meet under a tree upon which mistletoe was growing, they laid down their weapons and held a truce until the following day.

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People who celebrate the festival of Christmas, the birthday of Jesus Christ in the stable in Bethlehem, ﬁll their homes with traditional decorations. Many of these have their roots in the ancient cultures before Christianity. Bringing evergreen foliage into the house during the Northern Hemisphere’s winter solstice was a symbol of hope for the forthcoming spring. Some of the plants were believed to have medicinal and supernatural powers.

on the front door to protect the family from witches, evil spirits and lightning strikes. Bringing holly inside brightened up the home and was thought to give shelter from the harsh winter weather to the fairies of the forest.

One of the highlights of Christmas Day is the exchanging of presents, which are traditionally placed beneath the tree in the days leading up to Christmas.

Receiving gifts is very popular at Christmas time, especially for children. Santa Claus is believed to be a descendant of St Nicholas, a 4th century bishop. St Nicholas is the subject of many stories of generosity. By far the most legendary is that of him giving money to a particular poor family. It is said that he threw the money down the chimney where it landed in stockings which had been hung by the ﬁre to dry. To this day, stockings hung out empty on Christmas Eve are full of gifts on Christmas morning!

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People also decorate trees in the garden. Some homeowners spend a lot of time, effort and money adorning their gardens and the outside of their houses with thousands of Christmas lights. When many people in the same street do this, they compete for the honour of being voted the most festive street in the suburb. As the sun goes down and the decorated streets take on a ‘Christmas-time’ glow, families ﬂock to behold the spectacular effect.

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In ancient times, the pointed leaves of the holly bush were believed to have special magical powers. People hung a holly wreath

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An Aussie Christmas

Ancient traditions and Christmas 1.

Write the meaning of each word. (a) ancient

(b) foliage

List three things that might be required for Christmas celebrations in Australia. Explain the purpose of each. Item

Purpose

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What would be the greatest disadvantage in using candles as Christmas tree decorations?

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decoration symbol

ornament ancient

mistletoe holly

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exchange

gift

peace

(b) The unused letters of the word search, when read from left to right and top to bottom, spell out the words of a Christmas message. Write the message.

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Newspaper Christmas tree Follow the procedure to make a Christmas tree.

Materials: 25 double pages of old newspaper sticky tape

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green paint

green crepe paper cut into 10-cm wide strips.

ﬂowerpot sand

pebbles

Method: 1.

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pencil for rolling

© R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons Take• ﬁvef rolls andr arrange with in u ther centre or evi e wonep poand sesonl y• four around it. Ensure rolls are level at one end. This is Using the pencil, roll each sheet of paper into a tight, thin roll. Secure with sticky tape.

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Mark the four outside rolls 10 cm from the top. Secure with sticky tape and bend away from the central roll. Take four more rolls. Make them level with the central roll then mark them 20 cm from the top. Secure and bend as before.

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the top of the tree.

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Repeat at 30 cm, 40 cm, 50 cm and 60 cm

Note: Each time a new level of branches is secured, the width and stability of the trunk is increased. 6.

Place the tree in the ﬂowerpot and ﬁll with sand. Cover the sand with pebbles.

Paint the tree green.

Cut each strip of crepe paper at 1-cm intervals to within 2 cm of the edge, making a long, green ‘fringe’.

Starting at the tip of each branch, cover the tree with the crepe paper. Secure the ends with sticky tape.

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Hanging star Follow the instructions to make a hanging Christmas star.

You will need:

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octahedron net triangular pyramid net stiff paper glue sticky tape 30 cm gold thread yellow paint golden glitter

Method: 1.

Cut out the octahedron and triangular pyramid nets.

Construct them and colour three faces of each with yellow paint. Leave to dry.

Make one copy of the octahedron net on stiff paper.

Knot the ends of the thread to make a loop.

Construct the octahedron. Before sealing the ﬁnal join, secure the knotted end of the thread loop inside with sticky tape, close to a vertex. Glue the ﬁnal join with the loop hanging outside.

Glue the unpainted face of each triangular pyramid on to the eight faces of the octahedron. Leave to dry.

Dab patterns of glue all over the star and cover with glitter. Shake off the excess.

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stiff paper.

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Advent wreath In the Christian tradition, advent wreaths are lit for church services in the four weeks leading up to Christmas. This period is called Advent. The wreaths have five candles on them: around the outside, four white candles are placed: a purple candle sits in the centre of the wreath. On the first Sunday of Advent, the first white candle is lit, on the second Sunday, the first and second candles are lit and so on until the fourth week, when all four white candles are lit. At the Christmas Eve service, the central, purple candle is also lit. This candle represents the birth of Jesus Christ.

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three wire coathangers 60-cm strips of soft, leaf-covered branches four white candles (1.5 cm x 15 cm) one purple candle (1.5 cm x 15 cm) ﬁve cardboard squares (6 cm x 6 cm) purple ribbon (1.5 cm x 1 m)

Method: 1.

Thread the branches around the frame, hiding as much of the wire as possible.

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Thread the ribbon around the edge of the wreath and tie in a bow.

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horizontally across the circle. Loop the third vertically down the circle.

Draw two pencil lines diagonally across each cardboard square. Cut each line 0.75 cm from the central point.

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Place four squares underneath the wreath at the north, south, east and west positions. Insert each white candle from the top of the wreath into the gap in the centre of each cardboard square. Repeat with the purple candle in the centre of the wreath.

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Dinkum decorations, symbols and prezzies A Chrissie card in a jiffy — page 15 Completes a Christmas card by colouring, cutting, folding, gluing and writing.

Indicator:

Background information: •

Students need to follow the instructions carefully in order to make the card correctly. Some students may need to be directed to one instruction at a time to make the task simpler, or may need help to match the fold lines when gluing the pieces together. The Santa face should fold out when the card is opened.

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Cool Christmas cone — page 16

Completes a Christmas cone by colouring, cutting and gluing.

Indicator:

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Background information:

•

Enlarge the Christmas cone to A3 size if desired and if possible photocopy onto light card. Students need to follow the instructions carefully in order to make the Christmas cone correctly. Some students may need to be directed to one instruction at a time to make the task simpler. Talk about some Christmas treats that could be used to ﬁll the cone.

Speccy stained-glass bell — page 17 Indicator:

Completes a Christmas bell using Christmas designs, cutting and gluing.

Background information:

Enlarge the Christmas bell to A3 size if desired and if possible photocopy onto light card. Display the bells on the classroom window to allow the light to shine through and create a spectacular display.

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A Chrissie card in a jiffy Colour Santa’s head, then carefully cut it out.

Fold Santa’s head in half vertically, with the blank sides together.

Colour the card. Cut along the dotted lines.

Fold the card in half with the blank sides together.

Put glue on the back of the hat sides to attach Santa’s face to the inside of the card. Be sure to match up the fold lines.

Write your own personal message inside.

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Made with love by:

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An Aussie Christmas

Cool Christmas cone Colour the design. Cut along the dotted lines. Space has been left at the top of the design for you to add your name in your own style. Glue or staple the edges to make a cone shape. Punch holes on the grey circles. Thread a 50-cm length of ribbon through each hole, tying both ends carefully. 5. Fill your cone with your favourite Christmas treats and hang on a doorknob.

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1. 2. 3. 4.

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Speccy stained-glass bell Use oil-based crayons to draw Christmas patterns on the bell.

Use Edicol dye or water-based paint to paint over the top of the crayon design.

When dry, cut out the bell and the greyed-out pieces that need to be removed from the interior of the design.

Glue different-coloured cellophane neatly behind the design.

Display on a window for a spectacular effect!

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An Aussie Christmas

Dinkum decorations, symbols and pressies Aussie Chrissie tags — page 19 Indicator:

Follows written instructions to make Christmas gift tags.

Background information: •

•

Paints, marker pens, coloured pencils, glitter, cellophane, tinsel etc. can be used to colour and decorate the gift tags. Students then follow the instructions on the worksheet to make their gift tags. The class could give suggestions for Aussie greetings to write inside such as ‘Bonza Chrissie!’ or ‘Have a Ho! Ho! Ho! Aussie Christmas’.

r o e t s B r e oo Aussie adventp calendar u k S — pages 20–21

•

Follows verbal instructions to make an advent calendar.

Background information: •

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Indicators: • Understands the origins of advent calendars.

The word ‘advent’ comes from the Latin word ‘adventus’ and means ‘coming toward’ or ‘arrival’. It is used at Christmas time to refer to the coming of Jesus on Christmas Day. The advent calendar has been around for about 150 years. Christians ﬁrst marked off the 24 days preceding Christmas Day from December 1 with chalk on their doors. Then in Germany in the late 19th century, a mother attached 24 small sweets to a piece of cardboard. Her child, Gerhard Lang, would take one off each day. As an adult, Gerhard produced the ﬁrst printed advent calendar. They have since spread throughout the world. The calendars vary greatly in design (many have little windows that open with a picture, number or verse behind) but all work on the same principal of counting down the 24 days before Christmas. The advent pictures and background template on pages 20 and 21 can be copied onto card for durability and enlarged to A3 if desired.

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1. Cut out the numerals on page 20 and colour the pictures in the template on page 21. 2. The ‘windows’ on page 20 should each be carefully cut out along the dotted lines using sharp pointed scissors or a craft knife (lay template on cardboard if using the latter). 3. The numbers on page 20 should be glued over each picture. Remind students to only glue the very top of each number. They may like to fold back each window until the glue dries. A heavy book can then be placed over the template so the windows lie ﬂat once more. 4. Holes can be punched where indicated to thread tinsel or wool through so the calendar can be hung up. 5. The windows are opened in order, one per day, from December 1 to December 24.

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Aussie Chrissie tags Make your own Aussie gift tags using the templates below. Colour and decorate each picture, adding Aussie details such as gum leaf or gum nut designs or choosing green and gold as the focus colours.

Cut around each shape and fold in half along the centreline to form a gift tag.

Write a message such as ‘Happy Chrissie!’ and who the gift is from inside.

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Punch a hole in the top of each folded card to thread tinsel through to form a tie.

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie advent calendar – 1

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Aussie advent calendar – 2

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An Aussie Christmas

Dinkum decorations, symbols and pressies Design an Aussie Santa — page 23 Indicators: • Completes a cloze about a description of a traditional Santa. •

Designs an Aussie Santa using Australian articles as substitutes.

Background information: Students complete the cloze about the traditional Santa in pairs or individually. A discussion about possible Australian substitutes for items of clothing and the reasons why could precede the activity about designing their own Aussie Santa. Some Aussie clothing items are explained below. – Claimed to be an Aboriginal Australian word for ‘headcovering’. An Akubra® is a Akubra® hat with a broad brim, usually made from rabbit fur felt that is quite waterproof. The corks are meant to keep the ﬂies away. Stubbies® – work shorts made of strong cotton material, usually blue in colour singlet – a popular item of clothing in hot weather thongs – popular footwear in hot weather – travellers used a ‘swag’ (a roll or bundle carried on the shoulders) to transport swag personal belongings

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Answers:

1. traditional 6. black 11. sack/bag

2. white 7. sleigh 12. chimney

3. beard 4. fur 8. nine/some/several 9. Rudolph 13. pies 14. favourite

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5. belt 10. gifts/presents

SMS to Santa — page 24

Demonstrates an understanding of why people use shortcuts in mobile phone messages. • Uses a key to help solve an SMS. • Creates his or her own SMS.

Background information:

People use shortcuts when sending messages on mobile phones as there is only a certain amount of space available (usually about 160 characters), plus it saves time! Many students will be aware of SMS shortcuts and discuss any they may know of or have used on their own or parents phones etc.

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1. Dear Santa, Long time no see! I hope you and your reindeer are okay. In my opinion I have been excellent all year. For your information I’d like a new skateboard and Xbox game. Thank you very much. Hope to see you soon. Merry Christmas. Jake (friendly smile added) 2. Teacher check

Aussie Chrissie stamp — page 25 Indicator:

Creates two designs for a Christmas stamp with an Australian theme.

Background information: • •

Show and discuss the designs and shapes of various stamps, particularly Christmas stamps. Identify where the cost of the stamp is printed and the country it is from. Students can work in pairs or individually to create two designs for an Aussie Chrissie stamp. They should make sketches on scrap paper before drawing and colouring their ﬁnal designs. An Aussie Christmas

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Design an Aussie Santa 1.

Everyone is familiar with what the traditional Santa wears, how he travels and things he says. Complete the cloze below to read a summarised description. The

Santa wears a red hat with white

fur trim and a white bushy

2 3

pompom. He has a

and a white moustache.

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He wears a red coat with white

trim on the

cuffs and along the bottom. A thick black

with a buckle is around

He travels by

which is pulled by

boots.

reindeer

, Dasher, Dancer, Donder, Prancer, Dasher, Comet, Cupid

called

and Vixen. Santa carries his

in a red woollen

and enters people’s houses usually via the

. People leave food

and drink for Santa and his reindeer such as mince

for Santa and carrots and water for the reindeer. Santa’s

and sherry 14

saying

quite uncomfortable. Some Aussie animals may be better suited to pull his vehicle, which does not have to be a sleigh. Write keywords and phrases under the headings below to design your own Aussie Santa. Don’t forget to include colours and material. Then draw and label a picture of your Aussie Santa creation!

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his waist. Last but not least, he wears red trousers and

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Type of vehicle and how it is powered

House entry point

Object for carrying gifts

Food and drink to leave out

Favourite saying

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An Aussie Christmas

SMS to Santa When people send a message (SMS) on a mobile phone they often use shortcuts for some words; for example, great = GR8. It saves time and also costs less as only a certain number of characters can be used before it becomes expensive. 1.

The SMS below was sent to Santa. Look at the table to help you work out the message. Write the full message on the lines. Dear Santa

are

XLNT

excellent

Merry Christmas

LTNS

long time no see

H2SYS

hope to see you soon

TYVM

thank you very much

you

:-)

a friendly smile

IMO

in my opinion

FYI

for your information

new

SK8board

skateboard

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LTNS! I hope U + UR reindeer R OK. IMO I have been XLNT all year. FYI I’d like a NU SK8board and Xbox game. TYVM. H2SYS. MC Jake :-)

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Write your own SMS to Santa in the space below. Use some of the shortcuts above and add your own in the blank boxes. Then give it to a classmate to decipher and write on the lines below.

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Aussie Chrissie stamp Every Christmas, Australia Post brings out special Christmas stamps for people to use on the Christmas cards they send by mail.

50 c

Imagine you are in a competition to design an Aussie Chrissie stamp. Some things you will need to think about are: •

• •

AUSTRALIA r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S

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What kind of Aussie picture will you draw? – an Aussie Santa? – an Aussie scene? (beach, outback, barbie) – an Aussie animal with a Chrissie decoration? How much will your stamp cost? (Australia Post reduces the cost of Christmas stamps.) Where will you write the cost? Where will you write ‘Australia’ to show where it was made? What shape will your stamp be? (square? rectangular?)

Make sketches on a separate sheet of paper, then draw two designs below.

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An Aussie Christmas

Dinkum decorations, symbols and pressies An Aussie Santa — page 26 Indicators: • Enlarges and colours a Christmas picture. • •

Draws own picture for a friend to enlarge. Creates punchlines for Christmas jokes.

Background information: •

Ensure students understand how to enlarge picture by copying art from each grid to corresponding empty grid. Brainstorm ideas for another ‘Aussie Christmas’ picture such as an Australian animal wearing a Santa hat etc.

•

Answers:

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Merry Christmas to ewe The elfabet Santa walking backwards Santa paws

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1–3. Teacher check 4. • How do sheep greet each other at Christmas? • What do elves learn at elf school? • Who says ‘Oh, Oh, Oh’? • What do you call Santa’s dog?

Substitute Santa! — page 27 Indicator:

Completes an application form that tests Australian geography knowledge.

Background information:

•

Read the information at the top of the page with the students. Explain that the questions below must be answered from the students’ own general knowledge. When all students have completed the sheet, call out the answers and ﬁnd who scored the highest mark out of ﬁfteen. If more than one student receives the highest mark, allow each person to give a three-minute presentation explaining why he or she should be awarded the substitute Santa position. The class can vote and choose the winner. Alternatively, students can use maps, an atlas or the Internet to complete the questions.

•

Hobart Western Australia East Bass Strait False

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1. 4. 7. 10. 13.

2. 5. 8. 11. 14.

Sydney Melbourne Adelaide Queensland New South Wales

3. 6. 9. 12. 15.

True Western Australia Alice Springs New South Wales Canberra

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. te o c Outback shopping trek . che e r o t r s super — page 28

Indicators: • Follows a maze. •

Designs own maze.

Background information: •

• •

Discuss the size of Australia (approximately 32 times larger than the United Kingdom). Consider how people who live in rural communities must travel to major cities to do their Christmas shopping and the different modes of transport they take. Students follow the maze and write the present under the matching mode of transport. On the back of the sheet, students create their own maze for a friend to solve.

Answers: 1. horse — music player, motorbike — ﬁshing equipment, plane — books, Ute — footy ball, train — pool, helicopter — kite 2. Teacher check 26

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An Aussie Santa Enlarge the image of the Aussie Santa by carefully copying the art from each small grid box to the corresponding box in the empty grid.

Colour your Santa.

Draw your own Aussie Christmas picture in the grid below. Give it to a friend to enlarge on a separate sheet of paper. (He/She will need to construct a grid ﬁrst!)

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Can you think of a punchline for these Christmas jokes?

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• How do sheep greet each other at Christmas?

• What do elves learn at elf school?

• Who says ‘Oh, Oh, Oh’?

• What do you call Santa’s dog?

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An Aussie Christmas

Substitute Santa It’s a few days before Christmas and Santa has the chickenpox! He must choose a number of substitute Santas to deliver the presents. Could you be a substitute Santa for the Australian leg of Santa’s journey without becoming lost? Complete the application form below and ﬁnd out!

Substitute Santa application form Country:

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Australia

Name:

24 to 25 December

Working dates:

Age:

3. 4. 5.

If you can see the Opera House, you are in which city? ...... Australia is completely surrounded by water. ..................... If you are passing over the Gibson Desert, which state are you in? ...........................................................................

True

False

© R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons In which state is the city of Perth? ....................................... Is the Sunshine Coast found ini the east or west •f o rr ev ew p ur posesonl y• of Australia? ........................................................................ Name the capital city of Victoria. ..........................................

6. 7. 8. 9.

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Name the capital city of South Australia. ............................. If you are passing over Uluru, are you closer to Darwin or Alice Springs? .................................................................

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Name the capital city of Tasmania. .......................................

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Answer the questions below about Australia.

10. Name the body of water between Victoria and Tasmania .....

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11. Brisbane is the capital city of which state? .......................... 12. Which state is located between Queensland and Victoria?... 13. The Great Dividing Range is a mountain range in South Australia. ...............................................................

14. Sydney is the capital city of which state? ............................. 15. Name Australia’s capital city. ................................................

Shade your score below (out of 15) and see if you will be Santa’s substitute. 1

Don’t quit your day job!

You wouldn’t make it in time.

An Aussie Christmas

Only if the sleigh had GPS!

You’ve got the job!

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Outback shopping trek For people who live in rural communities in Australia, Christmas shopping can mean leaving the farm or station for a long trek to the city. Help the people travel to the city and ﬁnd the present they wish to purchase. Write the present in the box below the mode of transport.

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On the back of this sheet, design a maze with you on the outside and a Christmas present you are hoping for in the centre. Ask a friend to complete your maze.

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An Aussie Christmas

Dinkum decorations, symbols and pressies Fab photo frame — page 31 Indicator:

Reads and follows step-by-step instructions for making a photo frame.

Background information: • • •

Students really must take their time to read the instructions step-by-step in order to successfully make the origami photo frame. Double-sided foil origami paper is recommended for this project to add that extra special touch. Use a digital camera to quickly and easily take a head and shoulders shot of each child which can then be cut to size and inserted into the completed frame.

r o e t s Bo r e p ok Chrissie gift certificates u S

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— page 32

Indicators: • Reads information about gift certiﬁcates. Creates gift certiﬁcates of his/her own.

Background information: •

• •

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•

Discuss things which students could do for Mum, Dad, brothers, sisters, grandparents and friends to help them. Students may like to discuss ideas with partners before completing their gift certiﬁcates. As an extension to the activity, students could design and make appropriately-sized envelopes to house the gift certiﬁcates.

• Reads the information about Operation Christmas Child. • Follows the step-by-step procedure to make a thoughtful Christmas shoe box for a child.

Operation Christmas Child has local representatives around the country to assist you with this project. To ﬁnd a local representative near you, please phone 1800 684 300. Collections generally take place between 1 and 25 October. It is important that students consider the age of the child they would like to make the shoe box for in order to ensure gifts are appropriate. Go to <http://www.samaritanspurse.org/OCC_PackAShoeBox.asp> for information on how to best pack a shoe box. Discuss these ideas with the students, then allow them to make their own decisions.

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Fab photo frame Follow the procedure to make a fabulous photo frame for Mum and Dad. You will need: 1 x origami paper 2 x clear self-adhesive hole reinforcements 1 x 15-cm length gold or silver string or ribbon

1 x small photograph hole punch glue

Method: 1. Follow the folding instructions below.  Fold creases as

 Cupboard fold to centre.

 Cupboard fold to centre again.

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shown.

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S  Fold more creases.



 Pull ﬂaps from underneath all points.

fold up

fold down

Open and squash each point.

 Fold to top point and unfold.

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 Fold to centrefold on other side.

 Fold to centrefold.

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 Fold inside points to outside edges on all corners.



Photo here

Repeat on all points.

After folding the photo frame, punch a hole at the top. Stick on the hole reinforcements on the front and back for added strength.

Put string or ribbon through the hole and tie securely.

Cut your photo just a little bit larger than the photo area of the frame. Apply a small amount of glue to the back of the photo and slip into the ‘frame’.

Allow to dry.

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An Aussie Christmas

Chrissie gift certificates Gifts don’t always have to cost a lot money. Sometimes giving a loved one some of your precious time has more meaning. Colour the designs.

Cut along the dotted lines. Fold back toward the artwork along the solid line.

Glue everything except the opening ﬂap to a sheet of card.

Cut around the design.

Inside the ﬂap, write your gift certiﬁcate details. Remember to include: Who it is for and from. What it is you will be doing for that person as a gift.

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An Aussie Christmas

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Sharing the love at Christmas time Operation Christmas Child was established by the Samaritan’s Purse. The project is designed to bring joy and hope to children in desperate situations around the world. The program provides an opportunity for people of all ages to be involved in a simple, hands-on project. The idea is to collect and decorate a simple shoe box, then ﬁll it with loving, special gifts for a child. Step one

r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S Step two

What could you use to do this?

Collect and/or make gifts to put in your shoe box for another child. Decide whether your shoe box is for a boy or a girl. Choose an age group: 2–4 years; 5–9 years; or 10–14 years. Make sure you include this information on the outside of your box.

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Collect an empty shoe box and decorate it with Christmas designs.

What types of things could you put in your shoe box?

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Design and make a Christmas card to put in your shoe box. Think about what you might write inside the card. Write your ideas below.

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An Aussie Christmas

Dinkum decorations, symbols and pressies Design an Aussie Christmas hat — page 35 Indicators: • Follows a format to plan, design and create an Aussie Christmas hat. •

Evaluates a design and the ﬁnished product.

Background information: • •

If possible, have the students bring in, display and discuss different types of hats. Students will need to think about and collect any materials not readily available at school. Allow students time to collect their materials before actually making their Aussie Christmas hat. Students may use the back of the worksheet to draw and label their design.

r o e t s B r e oo Aussie angelsp u k S •

— page 36

Follows steps to create an Aussie angel.

Background information: • • • •

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Indicator:

Read through the list of materials and instructions to ensure that students know what to do before allowing them to work independently to create the angel. Other natural materials may to substituted for native grass, dried ﬂowers, gumnuts and gum leaves if easily accessible. NOTE: Both dresses must be exactly the same size. If preferred, students may draw half of an angel and fold cut to make a symmetrical pattern before cutting out their angel from white felt. Students may wish to use yellow and green felt and materials to make their Aussie angel.

Aussie Chrissie banner — page 37

Creates an Aussie Chrissie banner by colouring, cutting and hanging letters of the alphabet.

Background information

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Enlarge and photocopy as many sheets of paper as the students will need. Discuss and get the students to write the phrase or sentence for their sign before commencing colouring and cutting out the letters. Encourage students to write signs with an Aussie ﬂavour rather than simply ‘Merry Christmas’. Examples include ‘G’day mate! Have a ripper Chrissie!’ and so on. Students may wish to vote for those which they like the best in different categories such as best Aussie colours, best Aussie phrase or sentence, most creative sign etc. NOTE: The signs will be more durable if the students are able to glue the letters onto cardboard before hanging.

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An Aussie Christmas

R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

Design an Aussie Christmas hat 1.

Use the format below to plan, design and create an Aussie Christmas hat. (a) Select a base for your hat from the list or choose and write one of your own. baseball cap

cone

ice-cream container

paper plate

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cardboard strip

straw hat

drawn template

Akubra®

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other

Select and write decorations or a design for your base. (Ensure that it has an Aussie flavour!) State specific flora, fauna, icons and bands if applicable. You may choose one or more. gumnuts

gum leaves

bottlebrush

Australian sports

native fauna (e.g. kangaroos)

Aussie colours

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(c)

(b) List any materials you may need to make the base (if necessary).

wattle

sporting teams

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well-known Australian personalities

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(d) Select and write how you are going to make your design ‘Christmassy’. trimming with tinsel adding glitter

using sparkly pens

using Christmas colours

Evaluate your design and the ﬁnished product by using the scale below.

Crook!

Okey dokey!

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Beaut!

Bonzer! An Aussie Christmas

Ripsnorter! 35

Aussie angels Make an angel for your Christmas tree or use as a gift for Mum or Grandma. Tick each step as you complete it. 1. Collect your materials. • white felt • gold cord • native grass/dried ﬂowers • 2 small gumnuts • corrugated cardboard

• yellow felt • yellow wool • scissors • 2 small buttons • small gum leaf • strong glue • ﬁne, black marker • large craftstick or tongue depressor

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2. Follow the instructions.

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(a) Draw a template and cut two dresses exactly the same size from white felt. Put one aside. (b) Glue the craft stick to one dress so that a small amount of the stick hangs below the dress (forming the feet) and a larger amount shows at the top (forming the head). (c) Cut and glue two discs of yellow felt to form the hands.

(d) Glue these to the back of the dress which has been put aside. (Half of the disc should hang below the sleeve of the dress.)

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(g) Draw, cut and glue corrugated cardboard wings to the back so that they come level with the top of the craft stick.

(h) Make a loop from gold cord, knot and glue it to the top of the craft stick.

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(i) Turn the angel to the front.

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(j) Cut and glue some yarn to the head for hair.

(k) Tie a small bundle of native grass or dried ﬂowers together and glue to the neck. (l) Glue on the small gumnuts, gum leaf and buttons.

(m) Use the ﬁne, black marker to add eyes, nose, mouth, feet divisions and fake stitching. (n) Allow to dry completely. 3. Hang on the tree or wrap nicely ready for giving. 4.

Use the back of the worksheet to design other Aussie decorations using craft sticks. 36

An Aussie Christmas

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Aussie Chrissie banner 1.

Enlarge, colour and cut out the letters. Use them to create an Aussie Christmas banner. Don’t forget to make extra copies of letters which you will use more than once

or e A BperC DBooE F st

G H I

J K L

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Y Z S E 2.

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Create the words for your Aussie Christmas banner using the letters. Hang them in order around the room by folding at the top and stapling over string or ﬁshing line.

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An Aussie Christmas

Dinkum decorations, symbols and pressies Australian Christmas plants – 1 — page 39 Indicator:

Reads and comprehends information about Australian native plants.

Background information •

The botanical name for each plant described is: – Christmas bells Blandfordia grandiﬂora/Blandfordia nobilis – Christmas bush 1 Ceratopetalum gummiferum – Christmas bush 2 Prostanthera lasianthos – Christmas bush 3 Bursaria spinosa – Christmas orchid Calanthe triplicata – Western Australian Christmas tree Nuytsia ﬂoribunda

Teac he r Indicator:

— page 40

Uses read information to complete a table.

Background information •

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r o e t s Bo r e p ok u SChristmas plants – 2 Australian

Students can use the information found on page 39 to complete the table. They could also use additional resources such as the Internet or encyclopedias.

Origami Christmas bells flower — page 41 Indicator:

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Large plastic coated paper clips of appropriate colours (yellow, red or green) are suggested for this activity. If these are not available, then plain paper clips or thread could be substituted. As Christmas bells grow in bunches (see page 39) it is suggested that multiple bells are made to hang together. Students may like to glue down the ﬂaps on the outside of their paper bells before they colour them.

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Follows instructions to create an origami ﬂower.

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An Aussie Christmas

R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

Australian Christmas plants – 1 Some native Australian plants that flower around summertime are known as Christmas plants. Christmas bells is a lily-like plant found in New South Wales and Queensland. The plant has long leaves that look like blades of grass and bell-shaped flowers. These can be completely yellow or red with yellow tips. Unfortunately, this plant is classified as rare due to habitat loss, excess harvesting and weed infestation.

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Christmas bells

Christmas bush is the common name given to a few different types of native shrub:

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Another type of plant known as Christmas bush is also called ‘mint bush’ because its white or pink ﬂowers smell minty when they are crushed. This plant is found in Queensland, New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria and Tasmania. It can grow to 10 metres in height. Aboriginal people used the stems of this bush as ‘drills’ to help them make ﬁre.

NSW Christmas bush

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has dark green leaves, white ﬂowers and brown fruit. This Christmas bush is found all over Australia, with the exception of Western Australia. The thorny branches of this plant provide safe places for small native birds to nest in.

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One of these grows in New South Wales. The bright red outer coating of the plant’s seed capsules (the ‘sepals’) appear around Christmas time and are often mistaken as its ﬂowers. The real, star-shaped ﬂowers are actually white and appear in spring.

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Christmas bush

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The Christmas orchid is found in Queensland and New South Wales. It grows well in rich, damp soil and is often found in rainforest areas. It has spectacular white ﬂowers which grow on a spike. This plant commonly grows in groups of many hundreds.

The Western Australian Christmas tree belongs to the mistletoe family of plants. It is a parasitic tree—it absorbs nutrients from the roots of plants growing nearby to help it survive. It produces bright yellow or orange ﬂowers. The trunks of this tree were used by Aboriginal people for making shields. They also ate parts of the roots as a sweet treat.

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An Aussie Christmas

Christmas orchid

WA Christmas tree

Australian Christmas plants – 2 Complete the table to make a display chart about Australian Christmas plants. Name of plant/ Sketch

Flower colour(s)

States/ territories found

Interesting fact(s)

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Christmas bells

Christmas bush

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WA Christmas tree

An Aussie Christmas

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Origami Christmas bells flower Make an origami Christmas bells ﬂower to hang from a Christmas tree. You will need: • a square piece of white paper • scissors • a large paperclip 1

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Fold the right corner to meet the edge of the triangle at the crease you made. Then fold the left corner to meet the corner you just created.

Fold the top ﬂap down. Turn the paper over and do the same with the other ﬂap. Now you have a bell!

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Fold the top corner down to make the edges meet. This will create a crease. Unfold the paper after you have made the crease.

Fold the paper in half to make a triangle.

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Use your scissors to cut a wavy pattern along the bottom edge of the bell. Take care not to cut the corners.

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Unfold the paperclip to create a long piece of wire. Use this to pierce a hole in the top of your Christmas bells ﬂower. You can now attach your bell on its own to a Christmas tree or link it to other Christmas bells ﬁrst to make a bunch.

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie Christmas tucker Aussie Christmas tucker — pages 43–44 Indicators: • Reads and comprehends text about how Australian families enjoy their

Christmas meal. • Completes a variety of word study and comprehension activities based on a text.

Background information: •

Pages 43 and 44 are to be used in conjunction with each other.

Answers:

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1. Teacher check 2. prawns rockmelon punch shortbread custard Christmas cake pretzels trifle apricots lobster peas turkey salad plum pudding cherries pavlova ham nuts candy canes portable icebox 3. esky™: rockmelon: fruit with ribbed rind and orange coloured flesh (also known as a cantaloupe) pavlova: a circular meringue desert topped with cream and fruit scorcher: a very hot day yabby: freshwater Australian crayfish (often found in freshwater dams) 4. Teacher check

My Christmas meal — page 45 Indicators: • Completes a report about how their family celebrates their Christmas meal.\ Draws a picture to represent one aspect of the meal celebration.

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Read and discuss the text on page 43 before students compete the report on page 45. Share and display completed reports. In the section, ‘What other things make your Christmas meal special’, students could explain what they wear, rituals such as saying ‘grace’, cracking bonbons or table decorations used etc.

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An Aussie Christmas

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Aussie Christmas tucker – 1 Whether you live in the south of Australia in Hobart, Tasmania, in the middle in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, or in the north in Broome, Western Australia, Christmas Day is often hot—and some years, it’s a scorcher! Even when the weather is 35 degrees Celsius or more, many families prepare a traditional English/European feast of roast turkey, ham, roast potatoes and carrot, cauliﬂower cheese and green peas. Dessert is warm plum pudding with custard or brandy sauce. Cooking such foods in the oven can make the house even hotter, so fans and air conditioners are turned up!

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Other families prefer a cold Christmas meal eaten outside. This may include meats such as cold turkey, chicken and ham; seafood such as lobster, prawns and yabbies; and many different types of salads. Dessert is often ice-cream pudding, pavlova and cheesecake. Fruits such as rockmelon (cantaloupe), plums, apricots and cherries are in season and eaten in abundance over the Christmas period. Because Australia is very multicultural, many families celebrate Christmas according to their heritage, so there is a great variety of Christmas delicacies shared by Greek, Italian, Vietnamese and Chinese families, as well as families from many other nationalities.

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In Australia, the main meal on Christmas Day is often eaten at lunchtime rather than at night, although some families share one meal with relatives at lunchtime and have dinner or supper with other relations or friends at night.

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Some families have a barbecue meal with family or friends at home, in the park or on the beach. Popular spots such as a shady park with a pretty lake will be overﬂowing with families sitting on rugs or at wooden tables, enjoying their lunch on a sunny Christmas Day afternoon.

Eskies™ are used to keep the delicious foods and drinks cool. Everyone is thirsty, especially when it’s very hot! Some families make a drink in a large glass bowl called ‘punch’, which is made from soft drinks, fruit juice, ice blocks and chopped fruit.

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Other Christmas foods people enjoy are fruit mince pies, shortbread, pretzels, nuts that you need to open with a nutcracker, Christmas cake, a slice called ‘white Christmas’, chocolates, Christmas lollies, candy canes, triﬂe and all kinds of gourmet dips.

Whether the meal is eaten inside or outside, many people set the table with a Christmas tablecloth, Christmas serviettes and bonbons which contain a joke, plastic toy and paper hat. Everyone enjoys reading out their joke and wearing their colourful paper hats, because on Christmas Day in Australia, it doesn’t matter how funny you look!

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie Christmas tucker – 2 1.

Read the text on page 43 and highlight all the foods and drinks mentioned.

Find the foods and drinks that match the spaces below. A

T R A

S T

M A

3. Choose two Australian terms from the list and write a deﬁnition for each. esky™

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pavlova

rockmelon

scorcher

yabby

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Use the foods and drinks listed in the text to create your perfect Australian Christmas lunch. Draw one of the foods from each section

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Lunch

Dessert

Extras

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An Aussie Christmas

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My Christmas meal Do you have a special meal on Christmas day? 1.

Write about it below. What time do you have it?

Where do you have it?

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Who do you have it with?

What do you eat?

What other things make your Christmas meal special?

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2. Draw a picture of a scene from your family’s Christmas Day meal.

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie Christmas tucker Aussie ice-cream pudding — page 47 Indicator:

Follows written instructions to make a frozen Christmas pudding.

Background information:

•

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Fruit mince slice — page 48 Indicator:

Follows written instructions to make and present fruit mince slice.

Background information: • •

The fruit mince slice is a popular Australian variation of the more traditional British fruit mince pie. Some interesting folklore concerning fruit mince pies includes: – Fruit mince pies are Father Christmas’s favourite food and two pies should be left out for him. – The fruit mince should only be stirred clockwise. – You should make a wish when eating your ﬁrst fruit mince pie of the season. – Fruit mince pies should be eaten in silence.

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Cheesy Christmas twists — page 49 Indicator:

Follows written instructions to prepare and cook cheesy savoury twists.

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In Australia, many families eat the traditional plum pudding while others prefer one made from ice-cream. Encourage students to describe and compare their families’ traditions and their pudding recipes. These could be displayed or compiled and published. The tradition of the Christmas pudding originated in the Middle Ages. Puddings were ﬁrst made with meats but when spirits, dried fruit, eggs and breadcrumbs were added in 1595, it became known as ‘plum’ pudding. (The word ‘plum’ meant dried fruit, plums were never an ingredient of ‘plum’ puddings.) They were so rich and expensive that they were even banned by the puritans in 1664 as unﬁt for people who followed the ways of God. Traditions still practised today include all members of a household stirring the pudding with a wooden spoon and making a wish and the inclusion of silver symbols and coins. Care will be needed when chopping nuts. Adult assistance or close supervision is recommended.

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Some students will prefer the savoury taste of these cheesy twists to some of the sweeter Christmas treats. More paprika may be added to increase colour and ﬂavour. Baking paper is recommended, but not essential, for ease of cleaning because quite a lot of cheese will be baked onto the trays.

An Aussie Christmas

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Aussie ice-cream pudding This delicious pudding is cool and refreshing on a hot Christmas Day. It can be served by itself or even with traditional hot plum pudding. You will need: 2 litres vanilla ice-cream /2 cup raisins

large mixing bowl smaller mixing bowl

/2 cup sultanas

/2 cup nuts

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chopping board

1 cup glace cherries, red and green /2 teaspoon cinnamon

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knife

spoon

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gumnuts and leaves for decoration Follow these steps:

Remove ice-cream from refrigerator and leave to soften but not melt.

Chop nuts.

Cut cherries into quarters.

Cut raisins into halves.

Mix thoroughly and put mixture into pudding bowl.

Cover and refreeze overnight or until needed.

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Wrap warm towel around bowl or dip the base in hot water.

Invert on plate.

Decorate with some Aussie gumnuts and leaves. (You may like to paint them gold.)

Variation

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You can make two ‘special’ puddings using a tub of chocolate ice-cream and one of vanilla and extra cherries and fruit if you like. 1.

Add the cherries only to the vanilla ice-cream and put it into two pudding bowls, spreading it up the sides of the bowls, leaving the middle empty. Freeze overnight.

Add the fruit, nuts and cinnamon to the chocolate ice-cream and put it into the bowls on top of the chocolate, ﬁlling the middle. Re-freeze the puddings.

When you cut these puddings they will have a darker centre. R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

An Aussie Christmas

Fruit mince slice Eating sweet fruit mince pies at Christmas is a British tradition that was adopted in Australia many years ago. Lots of people still make their own today, while others prefer to buy them from supermarkets and bakeries. This Aussie Christmas slice is a popular alternative and is easy to make. You may like to make some to give to others

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Equipment needed:

lamington tray (greased and lined with baking paper) ﬂour sifter

beater

Base

knife

Topping

Ingredients:

1 cup ﬂour

/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

/3 cup brown sugar

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mixing bowl

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

90 g butter

1 tablespoon plain ﬂour © R. I . C.Pub l i cat i o ns / teaspoon baking powder Method: •f orr evi ew pur os esgrated onl y• / cups dried, coconut 1p 1. Beat butter and sugar until light and 1

creamy.

Add sifted ﬂour and mix well.

Press mixture into lined, greased lamington tray.

4. 6.

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Method:

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1 cup fruit mince

Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla.

Bake in moderate oven 10 minutes.

When thick, add other ingredients.

Remove from oven.

Mix well.

Spread topping on base.

Bake 30 minutes in moderate oven and cool.

Dust with sifted icing sugar and cut into slices.

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Serving suggestions •

Cover a serving plate with Christmas paper and arrange slices on the plate. You could add an Aussie touch with gum leaves or ﬂowers.

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Wrap one or two slices in cellophane paper tied at the ends with green and gold ribbon to make small Christmas ‘bonbons’.

An Aussie Christmas

R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

Cheesy Christmas twists These tasty twists are perfect as nibbles before a great Aussie Christmas barbecue. They are easy to make and healthier than many of the other snacks we eat. The red paprika gives them a Christmas look and a spicy ﬂavour. Ingredients:

Equipment:

750 g puff pastry sheets

oven trays

baking paper

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2 small bowls

190 g cheddar cheese, grated

pastry brush

egg beater or fork

90 g Parmesan cheese, grated

cutting board

1 tablespoon paprika

small sifter and teaspoon

Follow these steps: 1.

Cut pastry sheets into 2-cm wide strips but do not separate.

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1 egg

Separate egg white from yolk.

Brush pastry sheets with beaten egg white.

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Criss-cross two strips of pastry to make one stick.

Place sticks on oven trays which have been covered with baking paper.

Combine the cheeses and sprinkle over the sticks

Sift paprika over the sticks.

Cook for 7 minutes in hot oven.

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This recipe should make about 35 cheesy Christmas sticks for you to enjoy.

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie Christmas tucker White Christmas cups — page 51 Indicator:

Follows written instructions to make White Christmas in patty paper cups.

Background information: • •

White Christmas is easy to make and requires no cooking, although care needs to be taken when melting and pouring copha™ and chocolate. A double saucepan with simmering water in the bottom part is needed to melt the block of chocolate very slowly. It should be broken into smaller pieces ﬁrst. Students may choose other fruit to add to their White Christmas; for example, glace pineapple, ginger, apricots.

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— page 52

Follows written instructions to make biscuit dough and shape and decorate it in Australian animal shapes.

Background information: •

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r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S Koala and kangaroo bickies

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Encourage students to think about other Australian animals and their shapes and how they could be represented in outline. Consideration needs to be given to their distinguishing features and ensuring that they do not have thin parts that could be easily broken off during cooking and handling. Students should make their animal bickies distinctive and individual by imaginative selection of materials and methods for representing their facial features and adding other Christmas touches.

Christmas lamingtons — page 53 Indicator:

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The origin of the name ‘lamington’ has not been accurately established, but it is believed they are named after Charles Baillie, Baron Lamington, who was the governor of Queensland from April 1896 to December 1901. One theory suggests that ‘lamington’ was the slang term for the homburg hat he often wore. Another theory is that they were named after his wife. In the dry Australian climate, cakes dry out very quickly. Coating a cake with chocolate makes it moist again and prolongs the time it can be enjoyed. Lamingtons are much easier to make if the cake is not too fresh. Discuss why lamingtons are such a popular fundraising item in Australia.

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An Aussie Christmas

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White Christmas cups White Christmas slice is very popular in Australia at this time of year, perhaps because it doesn’t need cooking and, being white, it looks cool on hot days. This recipe is a little different because instead of a slice it is made in little cups. Three or four of these wrapped in cellophane paper and tied with Christmas ribbon make an excellent Christmas present.

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s: Ingredient bles™ 1 cup rice bub m milk 1 cup full crea powder rated 1 cup dried, g coconut ing sugar 1 cup sifted ic ™ 250 g copha cherries 60 g red glace ce cherries 60 g green gla s 1 /4 cup sultana ocolate 100 g white ch

Chop cherries into quarters.

Melt copha™ slowly in a saucepan.

Combine rice bubbles™, powdered milk, sifted icing sugar, coconut and fruit in a bowl.

Mix well.

Pour in copha™ gradually and mix well, using a fork.

Spoon mixture into patty paper cups. (It should make about 18.)

Drizzle chocolate carefully over top of each cup and allow to set again.

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Follow these steps to make your Christmas cups.

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10. Wrap three or four cups in cellophane when ﬁnished and decorate them—or enjoy eating them with your family and friends.

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Equipment needed: chopping boa rd knife double sauce pan mixing bowl fork tablespoon tray 18 patty pape r cups cellophane an d ribbon, if required

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An Aussie Christmas

Koala and kangaroo bickies You can use this recipe to make biscuits in the shape of a koala, kangaroo or both. You may also like to make different Australian animal shape bickies. Use your imagination for the animals’ facial features; e.g. cherries, currants, sultanas and almonds. They could be added before you cook your bickies, or ‘painted’ on with icing sugar after they have cooled.

Bickie recipe Ingredients:

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Instructions:

Mix butter and sugar. Add other ingredients to make dough. 3. Form dough into a ball. 4. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. 5. Roll on board to a thickness of 1 /2 cm. 6. Trace and cut out shapes. 7. Add eyes and noses. (See decoration ideas.) 8. Place on a greased tray. 9. Cook at 375 ºC for 15–20 minutes. 10. Allow to cool. Decorating ideas:

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You could paint features on your animals after they have cooled, using icing sugar mixed with hot water and food colouring. Try to give them a Christmas look by your choice of colour or by adding ornaments, tinsel or ribbons.

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You may like to wrap some of your Aussie Christmas bickies in cellophane, tie with Christmas ribbon and give them as a present to a special person.

Place each template on a piece of cardboard. Trace around it and cut it out. Place it on the rolled out dough and trace around it with a knife.

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1 cup plain ﬂour 1 /2 cup brown sugar 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons golden syrup 1 teaspoon ginger Raisins, cherries etc. for eyes and noses or icing sugar and food colouring 1. 2.

Templates

An Aussie Christmas

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Christmas lamingtons Lamingtons are one of the most popular cakes in Australia all year round. Did you know that they were named after Baron Lamington, a popular governor of Queensland in late 1800s, or perhaps his wife? These Christmas lamingtons are made with green and yellow (gold) coconut. You may prefer to buy the sponge cake, use a packet cake mix or the recipe below. What ever one you choose, remember you should not make lamingtons with very fresh cake.

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Sponge cake (Should be made the day before.)

15 g butter

3 cups desiccated coconut 500 g icing sugar

/2 cup caster sugar

3 eggs

3 1

/3 cup cocoa

15 g butter

/4 cup self-raising ﬂour

/4 cup cornﬂour

/2 cup milk

green and yellow food colouring

3 tablespoons water

Method: © R. I . C.Publ i cat i ons 1. Warm butter and milk. Warm• butter and water. f orr evi ew pur p s es on l y •into 2. o Sift icing sugar and cocoa

Method: 1. 2. 3.

Fold in sifted ﬂour and cornﬂour, then butter and water.

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Beat eggs until creamy. Gradually add sugar until dissolved.

Pour into greased 18 cm x 28 cm tin.

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heatproof bowl.

Stir in butter and milk.

Stir over pan of hot water until smooth and glossy.

Bake in moderate oven about 30 minutes.

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Ingredients:

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Ingredients:

Chocolate icing

o c . che e r o t r s super Making lamingtons

Divide coconut into two shallow bowls and add different food colouring to each. Mix.

Trim the brown top and sides from cake. Cut cake into 16 even pieces. Hold each piece with a fork and dip into icing, making sure all sides are covered. Let excess drip off. Toss in either green or yellow coloured coconut or both. Place on oven tray to set.

Lamingtons will stay fresh for days because the chocolate stops the cake from drying out.

Enjoy this Aussie tucker and share it with friends over Christmas.

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie Christmas tucker Aussie table centrepiece — page 55 Indicator:

Follows written instructions to choose materials for and make a table centrepiece.

Background information: •

•

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Christmas crackers — page 56 Indicator:

Follows written instructions to make a Christmas cracker.

Background information:

•

Christmas crackers or bonbons are traditionally placed on the Christmas table in many Australian homes. Some families buy commercially produced crackers but many others prefer to make their own. They usually contain a hat and a joke as well as a small trinket or lolly. There is usually a cracker, inserted with its ends protruding, which when pulled makes a noise and adds excitement to the festivities. Crackers are optional and can be purchased from craft shops. The history of Christmas bonbons is interesting. They were developed by an English confectionery manufacturer, Tom Smith, who copied the French idea of wrapping sweets in coloured paper but added jokes and hats to make them more interesting. They sold very well. Then one day, while he was sitting by a crackling ﬁre, he got the idea of adding a tiny explosive device. They became very popular and his company prospered. They continued to manufacture bonbons until the end of the 20th century. Students should be encouraged to be creative and to add any decorations they think are appropriate. Students may know a joke they would like to put in their crackers or they could research some on the Internet or in the library.

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•

It is important that suitable shallow dishes are selected for these candle centrepieces. They need to be wide enough to hold the decorations but not so deep that the decorations cannot be seen. They must be sufﬁciently stable to support the candle and strong enough to support the weight of the decorations without bending. Some students may choose to make their own dishes. There are many different recipes for doing so available on the internet; for example, Victorian salt clay. Encourage students to be creative and to choose interesting materials to ensure that their centrepieces are unique. They could walk through the local bush or park looking for suitable materials.

. te o Poinsettia Christmas serviettes c . che e r o t r s super — page 57

Indicator:

Follows written instructions to fold a serviette.

Background information: •

•

Poinsettias are native to Brazil. The coloured parts that we think of as flowers are actually ‘bracts’, modified leaves. The small flowers are in the centre of the bracts. Poinsettias have been known as ‘lobster flowers’ and ‘flame leaf flowers’. They were given their name by a German botanist. Dazzled by its colour he gave it the botanical name, Euphorbia pulcherrima, meaning ‘very beautiful’. The Aztecs used Poinsettia sap to control fevers and the ‘bracts’ for a reddish dye. Poinsettias can grow to a height of three metres. This activity will be more difficult if the serviettes are too small.

An Aussie Christmas

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Aussie table centrepiece Add an Australian touch to your Christmas table by making a beautiful centrepiece for everyone to enjoy. Consider how you can make it look and smell Australian. Perhaps you would like to add some more traditional Christmas symbols too. Suggestions for getting started: 2.

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Collect suitable materials.

Teac he r 4.

Choose or make a shallow bowl or dish as a base.

It needs to be at least 20 cm in diameter. You could make your bowl a particular colour by adding food colouring to the dough or by painting it after it has dried.

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You may like to go outside and look for leaves, nuts, berries, cones or even stones that look or smell good. Select a candle or candles, any other material you would like to include and some ribbons and tinsel for decoration. Think about a colour theme.

When you decide on the colours you want, you may like to paint some of your materials, perhaps gold and green or white and silver or gold.

securely.

It is essential that your candle(s) will be safe and will not fall over and become a ﬁre hazard.

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Prepare your material.

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Some modelling clay would be suitable for this. Make sure you have sufﬁcient for this purpose.

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Arrange other materials around the candle(s). Try to ensure that your centrepiece looks attractive from the side because people will probably be sitting down to eat and will see it from all sides. Secure all material after you have decided on where it should be placed.

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Add any other decoration.

Tinsel and ribbon and perhaps some little bows or ornaments could make your centrepiece look really festive.

An Aussie Christmas

Christmas crackers Make some Christmas crackers to put on your table on Christmas Day. Before you start, think about and collect any extra things you would like to put inside your crackers. Suggestions include: lollies, trinkets, party hats, crackers Materials needed: 1 cracker (optional) 1 toilet tissue roll crepe paper glue

ribbon and tinsel

coloured pencils and glitter transparent sticky tape Instructions: 1.

Colour and decorate the wrapper and Christmas symbol.

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scissors

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2. 3.

Cover the roll with crepe paper and insert the cracker (if used) with the ends extending. Tie one end with ribbon and/or tinsel.

Add the joke and any other material you have chosen.

Tie the other end.

Glue the wrapper, then the symbol in place.

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An Aussie Christmas

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Poinsettia Christmas serviettes 1.

Open out the serviette then fold the four corners to the middle.

Repeat step 1 twice more.

Turn the serviette over and fold the four corners into the middle. There is no more folding to be done.

Reach under the corner P and pull up the flap you find there. This first ‘petal’ must be pulled fairly upright. (Push down on the corner P as you pull up the ‘petal’.) Pull up the flaps from under the other three corners.

Form the next ‘petals’ by reaching under Q, which is on the side and pulling up the flap you find there. Pull up the other three flaps.

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There are still four more small ‘petals’ to find. You’ll need to search for them. They are flaps that you need to pull up from under the first ‘petals’. They are located at R.

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Your serviette is now folded.

You should be able to fold these serviettes quite quickly and easily if you practise and you could make one for each person sitting at your table for Christmas dinner. There is a little space in the middle of each ﬂower. Try to think what would look good there. Perhaps a chocolate to eat after dinner, a biscuit or a tiny wrapped gift. Even a real ﬂower could look and smell beautiful. R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

An Aussie Christmas

Aussie carols and Christmas songs Aussie Christmas music — pages 59–60 • Reads information about Australian Christmas music. • Finds words from a text in a wordsearch. • Solves coded sentences to write information about Australian Christmas music.

Indicators:

Background information: • •

Students read the information on page 59 independently. Discuss the songs mentioned in the text and, if possible, listen to some in case students have not heard them before. Students ﬁnd the words in the wordsearch and solve the sentences.

Answers Y

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2. Australians sing and listen to a mixture of traditional and Australian carols. Many songs have been written to suit a hot Christmas in Australia.

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Indicators:

• Follows steps to create a Christingle. • Draws and labels a design for an Australian Christingle.

Background information: •

•

Christingle means ‘Christ light’. No-one is sure when this custom originated or who started it. It is believed that Christingle church services have been held for over 200 years. The aim of these services was to raise funds to help poorer people. People attending the Christingle service would donate money at the beginning of the service and receive a Christingle in return. When everyone had received one, carols were sung by candlelight. While the traditional materials and colours of the original Christingle are symbolic, students may adapt this for a more ‘Aussie’ Christingle.

1. – 2.

Teacher check

An Aussie Christmas

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Aussie Christmas music — 1 Read the information. Many different songs are heard and sung in Australia at Christmas time, just as they are in many countries around the world. Traditional carols such as ‘Away in a manger’, ‘Silent night’, ‘O little town of Bethlehem’ and ‘Hark the herald angels sing’ are still sung in churches and heard in large shopping centres.

Often, new words are written for more traditional songs to make them ‘more Australian’. These include ‘Deck the shed with bits of wattle’ (Sung to the tune of ‘Deck the Hall’...), ‘Aussie jingle bells’, ‘Australian twelve days of Christmas’ and ‘Australians let us barbecue’ (Sung to the tune of ‘Advance Australia Fair’).

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Other carols written in Australia are also sung. Some of these include ‘Christmas Day’ (The north wind is tossing the leaves ...), ‘The carol of the birds’, ‘The three drovers’, ‘The silver stars are in the sky’ and ‘Christmas bush for His adorning’.

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Alexandra Gardens in 1938 and attracted 10 000 people who sang carols accompanied by a choir and a ﬁre brigades band. The idea became so popular that many ‘Carols by Candlelight’ events are now held all over Australia in the week before Christmas. Largescale productions are held in Melbourne at the Myer Music Bowl and in the Domain in Sydney, but many other towns, cities and communities hold their own events in parks. The larger events attract between 30 000 and 100 000 people each Christmas and are usually televised. Many well-known singers and entertainers donate their time to perform at this event. Sometimes food and drink stalls are organised by service clubs such as Rotary or Lions and, of course, Santa usually makes an appearance for the children. Often, these events raise lots of money for charities, while families enjoy singing carols together from printed sheets, sitting on blankets, picnic mats or fold-up chairs, holding candles in protective containers.

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Other songs which have signiﬁcance for Australians at Christmas time are ‘Six white boomers’ by Rolf Harris and ‘Santa never made it into Darwin’ written by Bill and Boyd (about Cyclone Tracy which struck Darwin at dawn on Christmas Day in 1974). ‘Messiah’ is a well-known musical production for singers, choirs and orchestra written by George Handel which is often performed at Christmas. The most wellknown song from this oratorio is the ‘Hallelujah’ chorus.

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One Australian tradition which started in Melbourne in 1937 is ‘Carols by Candlelight’. Radio announcer, Norman Banks, saw a woman alone listening to carols by the light of a single candle. He thought how lonely she looked, so he organised community carol singing outdoors for everyone who wanted to join in. The ﬁrst ofﬁcial ‘Carols by Candlelight’ was held in R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

An Aussie Christmas

Aussie Christmas music — 2 Find the words listed from page 59 in the wordsearch. Y

carols

churches

wattle

barbecue

boomers

Darwin

Messiah

candlelight

community

choir

entertainers

donate

charities

songs

musical

perform

Melbourne

outdoors

shopping centres

Use the keys to complete information about Australian Christmas carols and songs then write it below.

b c d

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An Aussie Christmas

R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

Light a Christingle! A Christingle is a symbolic object used in church services of different Christian denominations in the weeks leading up to Christmas. It is thought to have been ﬁrst used in Germany in 1747.

•

an orange symbolising the world

•

a red ribbon tied around it symbolising the blood of Jesus

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fruits and sweets on four skewers or cocktail sticks symbolising the fruits of the earth and the four seasons

•

a lighted candle pushed into the centre of the orange representing Christ, the light of the world

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It consists of :

Follow the steps to make an Australian Christingle. Tick each step as you complete it. (a) Select and write the name of a round Australian fruit in season.

(b) Use pins or thumb tacks to secure a length of red ribbon around the middle of the fruit.

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Insert into the round fruit.

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Now you have a candle to sing by (and a snack to go with it!). 2.

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(e) Collect four cocktail sticks and thread with a variety of dried or glace fruits, soft lollies or squares of cheese and deli meats. (If possible, select Australian products.)

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In the space, draw and label a design for a version of the Christingle which is as Australian as possible. (You may change the ribbon and candle for different objects!)

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie carols and Christmas songs Revamped carols — page 63 Indicator:

Reads and writes new words for a traditional carol.

Background information: • •

Revise the tune and traditional words for ‘Away in a manger’ if necessary. Lyrics for the carols and songs mentioned may be found on http://home.att.net/~quotesexchange/christmascarols/index.html 2. ‘Away in a manger’ 4. Teacher check 6. Teacher check

Teac he r Indicator:

— page 64

Works in a group to produce a rap using lyrics from a carol.

Background information:

•

• •

Australian versions of ‘Jingle bells’ may be found by typing ‘Aussie jingle bells’ into an Internet search engine. Teachers may like to provide the lyrics for the students instead of having the groups search for them. A class discussion could be held before the students begin the activity about how the raps could best be presented. Ensure that all students understand what is meant by a rap (a rhythmic chant rather than singing). Some of the lines of ‘Jingle bells’ could be ‘rapped’ together as a class as an example. It is suggested that the students work in groups of three to ﬁve for this activity. If teachers wish the students to use sound effects, props and costumes, this activity could take place over more than one lesson, allowing the students to collect appropriate materials. Alternatively, teachers could provide some basic materials for the students to use.

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12 days of … — page 65 Indicators: • Creates original lyrics for a traditional Christmas carol.

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Writes an imaginative letter.

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Background information: •

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r o e t s Bo r e p ok u S Aussie jingle bells

Australian versions of ‘The 12 days of Christmas’ may be found by typing ‘Aussie twelve days of christmas’ into an Internet search engine. The students may like to read these to give them further ideas to complete Question 1. Alternatively, teachers could write on the board the names of some Australian animals, plants, people, foods and traditions for the students to refer to.

An Aussie Christmas

R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

Revamped carols 1.

Read the ﬁrst verse of this Australian version of a well-known Christmas carol. Out front in the sleepout, no swag to sleep in, One very small nipper laid down his noggin. The stars way out yonder kept their eagle eye On the little nipper who snoozed there nearby.

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Write the original name for this traditional children’s Christmas carol.

Read the original second verse of this carol.

‘The cattle are lowing, the poor baby wakes, But little Lord Jesus, no crying He makes,

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I love Thee Lord Jesus, look down from the sky, And stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.’

Rewrite the second verse in your own ‘Australian’ language.

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Select a well-known Christmas song from the list below and ﬁnd lyrics on the Internet.

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Rewrite part of your chosen Christmas song below, making it more ‘Australian’.

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‘It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’ ‘The ﬁrst Noel’ ‘ Silver bells’ ‘O Christmas tree’

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‘ White Christmas’ ‘Do you hear what I hear?’

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie jingle bells Form a small group to work with to complete this activity. 1.

Use the Internet or other resources to ﬁnd an Australian version of the Christmas carol ‘Jingle bells’. Print it out or write it on a separate sheet of paper. Each member of your group must have one copy.

Plan a rap performance of the carol’s lyrics by discussing and writing notes about each point below.

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Practise saying the lyrics in a rap style with your group until you are happy with the rhythm and speed. Decide who will say which lines. Some can be said by more than one person.

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•

Decide on what movements you will use for particular words or lines.

Decide on any sound effects you will use and how you will make them.

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Decide on any props or costumes you would like to use.

Collect any materials you need for your performance and write any notes or reminders you need to help you during the performance on your copy of the carol.

Practise your rap. When you are ready, perform it for the class. 64

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12 days of … ‘The 12 days of Christmas’ is a traditional Christmas carol. Some writers have created Australian versions of it. One of these begins ‘On the ﬁrst day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, an emu up a gum tree’. Create your own Australian version of ‘The 12 days of Christmas’ by writing what the ‘true love’ might send on each of the 12 days. You may like to refer to the original carol to help you. Day 1

A/An

Day 2

Two

Day 3

Three

Day 4

Four

Day 5

Five

Day 6

Six

Day 7

Seven

Day 8

Eight

Day 9

Nine

Day 10

Ten

Day 11

Eleven

Imagine you were actually sent all these gifts over 12 days. Write a letter back to the sender, explaining your feelings, what you most liked and disliked, how you have coped and what you plan to do!

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Dear ‘true love’

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie carols and Christmas songs Aussie carols — page 67 • Reads information about carols. • Listens to and answers questions about Australian Christmas carols.

Indicators:

Background information:

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NOTE: If possible, teachers should have copies of a CD with the Australian carols mentioned below and copies of the lyrics (see websites below). • The lyrics for ‘Carol of the birds’ may be found on: http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/carol_of_the_birds.htm Lyrics for ‘Christmas Day’ (The north wind ...) and ‘The three drovers’ may be found on: http://ozguru.mu.nu/archives/2005/12/. Dance movements to accompany ‘Carol of the birds’ may be found on: http://www.earthlydelights.com.au/xmas6.htm • Students may need to listen to each carol more than once before completing the questions, and have a copy of the lyrics.

Answers

(f) writer (c) occasions (d) Christmas (e) winter (b) singing 1. (a) dance (h) lyrics (g) carols 2. (a) Answers will vary but may include: drovers, Milky Way, summer heat, black swans, wild dog, plain etc. (b) (i) brolgas, woodlarks, bell-birds, friar-birds, currawongs, lorikeets (ii) orana (iv) tree ferns, joy bells (iii) sparrows (ii) brown (c) (i) red dust

• Finds URLs for Australian Christmas songs. • Writes own Australian Christmas words to suit a traditional Australian song.

Indicators:

Background information: ‘Australians let us barbecue’ is sung to the tune ‘Advance Australia Fair’ and may be found on: http://www.gregchampion.com.au/lyrics/LetUsBBQ.html http://ozguru.mu.nu/archives/2005/12/aussie_carols_p.html http://users.tpg.com.au/sharenet/c/bbq.html. ‘Deck the shed with bits of wattle’ may be found on: http://ozguru.mu.nu/archives/2005/12/aussie_carols_p_3.html http://users.tpg.com.au/sharenet/c/deck-sheds.html

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o c . che e r o song My Aussie Christmas t r s super — page 69

Indicators:

• Selects a familiar song to write new words for. • Writes and practises new words for a song.

Background information: •

Lyrics and music for ‘Happy Christmas (War is over)’ may be found at http://home.att.net/~scorh5/SoThis.html http://www.the-north-pole.com/carols/happy_xmass.html.

An Aussie Christmas

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Aussie carols 1.

Write words to complete the cloze. A carol was originally a Greek

performed in a circle and

accompanied by ﬂute music. Later, the French replaced the ﬂute music with b

and carols were born. (The old French word ‘caroller’

means ‘dancing around in a circle’.) Carols were originally performed on many

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during the year. By the 1600s, carols were sung only at

time.

Christmas is in the middle of

, so words about snow,

sleighs and hot meals are often included. John Wheeler, a

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Most of the traditional carols were written in the Northern Hemisphere, where

for the Australian Broadcasting

Commission in Sydney, felt that Australia, as a relatively new country, should have g

of its own which truly reﬂected Christmas in Australia.

three drovers, © R. I . C.PuforbThe l i c at i onCarol s of the birds and Christmas Day (The north wind is tossing the leaves). •f orr evi ew pur posesonl y• He wrote the

Listen to the carols or read the lyrics to complete the information.

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(a) Write words from The three drovers which tell about Australia.

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Write the names of four birds in ‘Carol of the birds’.

outback soil

(ii) paddock grass (iii) fauna (iv) ﬂora (ii) Write the Aboriginal word which means ‘welcome’.

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An Aussie Christmas

Aussie Christmas songs Well-known Australian artist and singer, Rolf Harris, composed Six white boomers in Perth, Western Australia in 1960. The story set to music has become a favourite for young Australian children at Christmas time. Other songs written speciﬁcally for Australians at Christmas time include Santa never made it into Darwin by Bill and Boyd—a song about the devastation caused by Cyclone Tracy when it struck at dawn on Christmas Day in 1974.

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Often, Australians change the traditional words of a song to ones which suit Christmas in Australia. Use Internet sources to write a URL and titles for Australian Christmas songs to replace those listed. (a) ‘Deck the halls with boughs of holly ... ’ • URL: http://

• title

(b) ‘Advance Australia fair ... ’ • URL: http:// • title

Write new, Australian Christmas words of your own for the song below. The beginning has been given.

Verse 1

Once a jolly

And he

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Waltzing Matilda

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Sing the words to the traditional music as a class or small group.

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Chorus

An Aussie Christmas

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My Aussie Christmas song 1.

Select a familiar song from the list (or one of your own) to write new lyrics for an Australian carol or song. We wish you a merry Christmas

Silent night

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

Santa Claus is coming to town

Jingle bell rock

Do you hear what I hear?

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Nuttin’ for Christmas Other

Listen to your chosen song a number of times and make notes about possible lyrics below.

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All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth

Publish a ﬁnal copy of your lyrics for display in a class carol book.

Practise your song with a partner or small group and perform for the class or at the school assembly.

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Make a draft of your lyrics and sing them over until you are satisﬁed.

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John Lennon (former Beatles member) wrote a song called Happy Christmas (War is over). The lyrics ask people to be more tolerant of each other and express the wish that countries around the world not engage in wars.

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6. Imagine that you could write lyrics for a song which could change something bad which is happening in Australia. Write a list of things you would change.

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An Aussie Christmas

Ridgy-didge bits ‘n’ pieces A lesson for Christmas — pages 71–73 Indicators: • Demonstrates clear, expressive speech. • •

Learns lines. Follows script to speak on cue.

Background information: •

• •

• • •

• •

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•

Before reading through the play script with the students, discuss their understanding of the Christmas message, peace and goodwill to all. Explain that it is not exclusively a Christian belief; many world religions teach the same message. Discuss the ways in which students practise or disregard this message with their families and friends and within the community. Discuss the effect each approach has on others. Read through the text, discussing the examples of thinking and not thinking about others. Do they recognise themselves in any of the characters? Discuss ways in which they could alter their habits to become more caring of others and less concerned about themselves. Explain the layout of the script with stage directions and character responses and actions. The responses indicate the mood in which the character speaks. Ensure students are always positioned so they speak out to the audience and not in to the stage. Initially, students read their lines as they practise walking on and off stage and following their cues. As they become more familiar with their lines, the speech will become more natural and less stilted. Give students a deadline for learning their lines. The play can be performed with the minimum of props. Carols could be played in the background during the carol singers scene. The number of characters could be increased by sharing the script among more students. This would ease the burden of learning lines and the preparation time could be reduced.

A real Aussie Christmas — pages 74–75

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Reads and comprehends the text. Learns that ﬁrst impressions are not always correct.

Background information: •

•

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Indicators: • Identiﬁes the genre of the text.

The text may be used for a number of language activities, such as: – initiating discussion about preconceived ideas and forming opinions about people before getting to know them – a reading assessment – a comprehension exercise – use of punctuation, grammar and vocabulary – analysing the writing style. Students could make a collage of ‘A real Aussie Christmas’—Emma-style—and include imaginative ideas of their own.

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An Aussie Christmas

R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

A lesson for Christmas Scene I Kylie and Drew are spending the Christmas holidays with their cousins, Scott and Leah. They are all walking home from the beach. Children enter from stage right. Kylie: Nearly home guys. Oh, I’m so hungry! Drew: Fantastic! Smell those snags! Dad and Uncle Pete are at the barbie. The four children run back to the house. As they arrive at the gate, they are stopped by a young man collecting money. Young man: Good afternoon. Would any of you be interested in donating to the local children’s home Christmas present appeal? Scott: Sorry, mate, I’m hoping someone will donate to mine! (exits stage left) Leah: Can’t help I’m afraid. I need all the money I’ve got. (exits stage left) Kylie: Try next door. I’m sure they’ll help. (exits stage left) Drew: Hang on there, mate, I’ll be back in a minute. (exits stage left) Drew reappears from stage left. Drew: (handing over some money) Here you go. It’s not much, but it’s all I can give. Young man: (writing and handing over a receipt) Thank you so much. You may think it’s only a small amount but it all adds up. A merry Christmas to you. Drew: (pondering) Thanks, and to you too.

Scene II

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Narrator:

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Later that afternoon, the children are at the shops. A group of people are singing carols outside the supermarket. Six children mime behind music stands with an open box on the ground in front of them, each one holding an instrument. One child stands in front of the group, conducting. The four children enter from stage left. Kylie: (holding her ears) What a racket! Do you think I should tell them they’re out of tune? Leah: (laughing) Maybe we should pay them to stop singing! Scott: (embarrassed) Steady on, girls! They can hear you. They’re not that bad! Drew: I wonder which charity they’re collecting for. Kylie: Oh, who cares! Let’s go shopping. Come on, Leah. (exits stage right with Leah) At the end of the carol, Drew approaches the conductor. Drew: Excuse me, please. Which charity are you collecting for? Conductor: Oh, hello. It’s for the local children’s home Christmas present appeal. Drew: They must be popular. Someone came collecting for them earlier today. Conductor: Yes, it’s very sad. The home was burgled two days ago and all the presents were stolen and the decorations ripped down. The only thing they have now is a naked Christmas tree. Scott: Ah, man, that’s terrible! Who would do such a thing? (puts his hand in his pocket) Here, it’s not much, but it’s all I can give. (handing over some money) Conductor: Thank you so much. You may think it’s only a small amount but it all adds up. A merry Christmas to you both. Drew: (waving to the singers) Merry Christmas to all of you. (exit stage right with Scott) Carol singers exit stage right. Narrator:

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An Aussie Christmas

A lesson for Christmas Scene III

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Woman sitting at a table, displaying a number of rafﬂe prizes and a large wrapped box with ‘Children’s Home Christmas Present Appeal’‚ written on the front in large letters. Kylie and Leah enter stage left. Leah: Where have those boys got to? They’re supposed to be shouting us a milkshake! Kylie: Typical! Ask them to put their hands in their pockets and whoosh ... you can’t see them for dust! Leah: (pulling Kylie by the arm) Watch out! Don’t make eye contact. Just walk past and pretend we haven’t seen her. Kylie: What? Seen who? (bumps into table) Ouch! Oh! Hello! Leah: (whispering) Oh, no! Woman: Hello, girls, can I interest you in some rafﬂe tickets for the children’s home Christmas appeal? Leah: (rubbing her leg) What are the prizes? Woman: Take a look. There are plenty to choose from. The draw takes place this evening, just before the carols by candlelight service in the park. Leah: No, thanks. There’s nothing there that I’d want. Kylie: We’re not going to the carols anyway. We’re having a party at home. See ya! Girls exit stage right. Drew and Scott enter stage left. Scott: (looking around) I knew they’d be late. Probably still doing their retail therapy stuff. What is it with girls and shopping? Drew: (walking towards the table) Hello there! (looks at the label on the box) It’s great to see so many people helping the children. We’d love to help out again but I’m afraid we’re all out of cash. Scott: (to lady) Do you think there’s something else we could do to help? We don’t have any money but we’ve got plenty of time and energy. Woman: (happily) That sounds wonderful! We’re organising a party for the children at the park this evening, straight after the carols by candlelight. We’d love it if you could help out with the games. D’you know, I’ve never been to a carol service. But I get the feeling that this one Drew: will be full of community spirit. What d’you reckon, Scott. Are you up for it? Scott: Sure. Then we can stay to help out at the party afterwards. Woman: Well, I’ll be there with my table. I look forward to seeing you. My name’s Anna, by the way. Drew: I’m Drew and this is my cousin, Scott. We’ll see you tonight then. Bye! Boys exit stage right.

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Scene IV Narrator: Back at the house, the girls are getting ready for the party. Boys enter stage right. Leah: Where have you two been? We’ve got so much to do for this party! Kylie: We’ve bought loads of stuff … party poppers, balloons, bubbles, lollies. You name it, we’ve got it! 72

An Aussie Christmas

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A lesson for Christmas Scott: Drew:

Leah: Kylie: Drew:

What do we want all that stuff for? It’s only for us! Anyway, we’re going out. We’re going to the carols by candlelight concert in the park and then we’re helping out at the party for the children’s home. The olds are coming too. They think it’s a great idea. (angrily) You have got to be joking, right? But it’s Christmas Eve. I want to have some fun. (giving her a hug) And so you will, my little sister. So you will! (all children exit stage left)

Scene V

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Four children enter stage left. Kylie: D’you know, guys, I think that was the best party I’ve ever been to. It was such fun and everyone was so friendly and happy. (hugging Drew) You were right, brother dearest, as always! Leah: Yeah. I think it was because everyone was pulling together for the same cause. I felt a real bond with people and we didn’t even know them! Scott: Wasn’t it great seeing those kids having such a good time? It’s so easy to forget how lucky we are. Drew: Did you see their faces when Santa turned up in the horse and cart, all laden down with presents? I don’t mind telling you that my eyes began to water. Scott: (ruffling Drew’s hair) Ah, you big softie, Drew … so did mine!! Leah: Mum and Auntie Michelle had a good time, gossiping with the other ladies at the coffee and tea stand. They raised nearly a hundred bucks, you know. What is it with women and tea? Kylie: Well, I think Dad and Uncle Pete really enjoyed their night, too. You can take the man out of the barbie, but you can’t take the barbie out of the man! Everyone: (laughing) What is it with men and barbies? Kylie: Hey, you did really well in the raffle, didn’t you, Leah? Leah: Oh sure! A Spiderman costume, a doll’s pram and a pair of fairy wings! I’ve never been so lucky! Still, I’m happy that I could give them to a good home! Drew: Your party poppers and stuff came in really useful, Kylie. You didn’t mind using them all up, did you? Kylie: Not at all. I feel like I’ve really done something tonight, like I’ve really made a difference. It’s such a good feeling and I realise how selfish I’ve become lately. Let me tell you, guys, this girl’s gonna change! Scott: I think we all need to think a little more of others and a little less of ourselves. We have so much and I think we often take it for granted. Leah: I never thought I’d hear myself say this, but Scott, I think you’re right! (clock chimes and begins to strike) Drew: Hey guys! It’s midnight! Happy Christmas! Everyone: (hugging each other) Happy Christmas! (turning to audience) Happy Christmas to you all!

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An Aussie Christmas

A real Aussie Christmas ‘Emma! We’re home. Come and meet Aunty Prue.’ I groaned. She’d arrived. Christmas was usually my favourite time of year but this time it was going to be dreadful. I didn’t want to spend it with some wrinkly old great-aunty from England. I’d read enough of her letters to Dad to know that she wasn’t going to be the sort of little old lady who sat quietly in the corner and knitted scarves. Aunty Prue seemed to have an opinion on everything.

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Eventually, I trudged down the stairs. Mum and Dad were bustling around the kitchen.

Mum poked me in the side. ‘Go and introduce yourself, Em. And be polite.’ I walked into the family room and blinked. A white-haired ﬁgure in a shocking pink dress was standing in the middle of the room, leaning on her walking stick. I just knew she’d have a stick. It was probably for jabbing people with.

off for bed, I raced upstairs and knocked on her door. Time to put my plan into action.

When she opened the door, I took a deep breath. ‘Are you looking forward to tomorrow, Aunty Prue?’

© R. I . C.Pu bofl i cat i ons ‘Yes, course, Emma.’ ‘That’s good … because Australian beaches • f o r r e v i e w p ur posesonl y• can be scary at Christmastime. Most people ‘Emma. Come over here.’ It sounded like a

‘Hi, Aunty Prue’, I mumbled, hoping she wouldn’t hear me.

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‘It’s nice to meet you’, she said. She looked me up and down with bright eyes. ‘I’m looking forward to celebrating a real Aussie Christmas Day with you tomorrow.’

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Mum and Dad came back in the room then. Aunty Prue started telling them exactly what she thought of the house in a booming voice. I escaped as soon as I could. I’d see enough of Aunty Prue at the beach tomorrow. Unless … I stood very still as an idea formed in my mind. A real Aussie Christmas …

Her face crinkled into a frown. ‘What do you mean, Emma?’ ‘Well, there’s goannas … you know, ﬂying snakes. They come out in December.’

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That night, Aunty Prue talked almost nonstop during dinner, asking me about what I did after school and what I liked. Mum made me tell her about my doll collection from around the world. Then Aunty Prue breezed on about how she’d also collected dolls when she was my age. I reckoned that was about 500 years ago. Just after she headed

are afraid of the animals, but I guess Mum and Dad told you about them.’

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command. I shufﬂed over.

An Aussie Christmas

‘Flying snakes?’

‘Yep. And boxing kangaroos, they come out when they smell all the picnic food. They usually try to ﬁght you for it. And there’s also … um … swimming koalas. They crawl up the beach and try to climb up your legs.’ ‘Oh my!’ Aunty Prue clutched at the door. ‘I thought I only had to worry about the hot weather.’ ‘Oh yeah, well, there’s that too,’ I said. ‘It can get so hot that your skin fries within a few seconds. But us Aussies are used to that. We’re tough. Anyway …’ I tried to keep a

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A real Aussie Christmas straight face, ‘I hope I haven’t put you off going now, Aunty Prue?’ ‘Well … we’ll see.’ Her eyes were like saucers. I managed to hold back my giggles until I was safely back in my bedroom. I didn’t think I’d have to bother about Aunty Prue spoiling Christmas Day now.

‘Anyway, before you decide, I have a gift for you.’ She held out a small parcel. ‘I brought a few family heirlooms over with me. As you’re my only great-niece, I wanted you to have something special. That’s why I was asking you last night what you liked.’ She beamed. ‘I was so pleased when I found out you collected dolls.’

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I opened the parcel quickly. Inside was a tiny doll, dressed in a blouse and kilt. I had nothing else like it in my collection. ‘Thanks Aunty Prue’, I said. I looked up at her. Her eyes were twinkling. I had to admit that the trick she’d just pulled was pretty cool. She was almost as sneaky as I was.

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In the morning, I woke up early. I raced downstairs and dived onto the pile of presents under the Christmas tree. Mum and Dad staggered in a few minutes later. Then I heard a clattering sound in the doorway. I turned around to see what it was. My jaw dropped. There was Aunty Prue. She was carrying an open umbrella above her head and wearing a pair of rubber gloves. She also appeared to have attached knives and forks to the hem of her dress and her ankles. Her face and arms were completely coated in pink zinc.

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I swallowed. ‘Well, I …’

Mum and Dad came back into the room. Mum held out a mug to Aunty Prue. ‘Can we get you anything else?’ ‘No, thank you. I’m just hoping that I’ll be well enough to go to the beach today …’ She glanced at me.

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‘Merry Christmas, Aunty Prue.’

‘Merry Christmas, Emma.’ She jabbed me with her walking stick and grinned.

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‘I hope I’m dressed appropriately for the beach’, she said, smoothing out her dress. ‘The umbrella should protect me from the goannas and the cutlery should stop any climbing koalas. I hear zinc is very good for keeping off the sun. The only thing I’m a bit disappointed about is the gloves for fending off kangaroos. They may not be stout enough. I don’t suppose you have an old pair of boxing gloves somewhere?’ ‘Um … Aunty Prue, who told you these things? None of them is true.’ Dad got to his feet, looking alarmed.

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I shut my eyes and waited.

‘Oh, I read it somewhere, dear. You mean I don’t have to wear all this gear? That’s a relief. Maybe you could get me a cloth to help me wipe off the zinc. And I’d love a cup of tea.’ ‘Oh … sure, Aunty Prue.’ Mum and Dad glanced at each other, then left the room. Aunty Prue sank into an armchair. ‘Good trick, Emma’, she said softly. ‘But you’ll ﬁnd I’m hard to beat.’ She leaned in. ‘If you don’t want me to go today, I won’t. I’m not here to spoil your Christmas.’ R.I.C. Publications® www.ricgroup.com.au

An Aussie Christmas