Vocabulary

1 Find ten words related to Halloween and write them below.

Upper Secondary
1 G ________
2 W ________
3 V ________
4 We ________
5 D ________
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W A G T Y O F A E D H O S
I E Z F V I P E I C A P K
T T M W E S U N E V K I U
C R I E F A D C S A E R L
H O R R O R F I L M O H L
O M A E P I P U M P K I N
E C D W L R I S P I D E R
F A R O I N T A S R C O B
W N E L J A E G S E A S O
O D A F T U D R N O E L R
L L F O W C A R E P S E G
Y E S R U N D W E A T B M
6 P________
7 S________
8 Sp________
9 C________
10 H ________F________
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Reading
3 Before you read. Do you know the answer to any of these questions?
1 When is Halloween?
2 Where did it originate?
3 What kind of costumes do people wear?
4 Why are pumpkins important at Halloween?
5 What sort of things do people do on Halloween?
Now read the text to see if you were right.
2 Match the words with the dictionary denitions.
1 prank R
2 evil R
3 mask R
4 costume R
5 death R
6 turnip R
R A An outht or a disguise worn on Mardi Gras,
Halloween, or similar occasions.
R B A mischievous trick or practical joke.
R C A widely cultivated Eurasian plant of the
mustard family, having a large feshy edible
yellow or white root.
R D A covering worn on the face to conceal ones
identity.
R E The act of dying; termination of life.
R F Morally bad or wrong; wicked.
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Halloween
Halloween is celebrated in many countries around the world, from Japan
to the USA. It takes place on the 31
st
October and usually involves the wearing
of scary costumes and attending Halloween parties. In the USA, the practice
of "trick or treating is also popular.
Halloween probably originated in Ireland, from the Celtic festival "Samhain.
It was a festival which celebrated the end of summer - the "lighter half of the
year and the beginning of the "darker half. People believed that evil spirits
would come out on this day, and so to protect themselves they would dress
up as evil spirits themselves. They wore costumes and masks and painted
or blackened their faces. There were similar festivals in other countries. The
word "Halloween comes from the Scottish "All-Hallows-Even, which means
"the day before All-Hallows. All Hallows is All Souls Day or the "Day of the
Dead, observed in many cultures around the world.
The massive immigration from Scotland and Ireland to the USA in the nineteenth
century took the tradition of Halloween there. It is more popular in the USA
nowadays than anywhere else in the world.
Costumes
Probably the most important tradition in the celebration of Halloween is dressing
in costumes. Theses costumes refect characters from horror hlms or literature;
Frankenstein, Dracula and The Mummy are favourites. The general themes are
death and evil and costumes include ghosts, witches, vampires, werewolves
and demons.
Jack-o-lanterns
A jack-o-lantern is a carved out pumpkin with a candle inside. A scary face
is carved on one side of the pumpkin. Originally, in Ireland and Britain,
jack-o-lanterns were made from turnips, but in the USA pumpkins were plentiful
and much easier to carve out because of their size.
Trick or treating
This involves going from door to door, usually dressed in a Halloween costume
and asking for "treats, such as sweets, cakes or even small amounts of money.
The question "trick or treat? means "give me a treat or Ill play a trick on you!
This trick would be some kind of prank or joke.
Guising
In Scotland, guising takes the place of "trick or treating. Children go from
house to house and perform tricks; they sing a song, do a dance or tell
a story in return for a treat.
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Games and activities.
Apple bobbing is a popular game at Halloween parties. Apples are put
into a barrel or a tub of water where they foat on the surface. The idea
of the game is to get an apple using your teeth. Its great fun, and everyone
gets wet!
Divination games are also popular at Halloween parties. Divination means
foretelling the future. In Scotland, they peel an apple, then throw the peel
on the ground. The peel is said to form the hrst letter of the name of your
future husband or wife.
Telling ghost stories is another popular activity. The story-tellers usually
wear a scary costume and use props like skulls or spiders. They create
a supernatural atmosphere using candles.
4 Choose the correct option, A B or C.
According to the text
1 Halloween is celebrated...
a in Japan and the USA.
b in lots of countries.
c in every country in the world.
2 Halloween...
a originated in Scotland.
b is called "Samain in Ireland.
c probably came from Ireland.
3 Jack-o-lanterns in the USA...
a are made of turnips or pumpkins.
b are made of pumpkins.
c are made of turnips.
4 "Trick or Treat? Means...
a if you give me a treat, I wont play a trick on you.
b if you dont give me a treat, I wont play a trick on you.
c Ii you give me a treat, Ill play a trick on you.
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5 The aim of the game in "Apple bobbing is...
a putting apples into a barrel of water.
b foating apples in a barrel of water.
c getting apples out of a barrel of water.
6 Halloween...
a is celebrated in the same way in different countries.
b is celebrated in different ways in different countries.
c if only celebrated in the USA nowadays.
5 Find a word in the text that means:
1 Something which has been painted or coloured black. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2 The movement of populations from one country to another. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3 From 1800 to 1900. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4 A narrator of stories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5 A wooden container, usually used to store wine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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6 Write an e-mail to a friend in another country explaining how people usually
celebrate Halloween in your country. (80-100 words)
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Some people in our class dont celebrate Halloween.
Everybody in our class has heard of Halloween.
A few people in our class dressed as vampires last Halloween.
Almost everyone on the class has seen a horror hlm in the last 6 months.
More than half the class has worn a Halloween costume at least once.
Nobody in the class has played "Apple bobbing.
At least three quarters of the class have been to a Halloween party.
Less than half the class has had a Jack-o-lantern in their homes.
One person in this class has celebrated Halloween in an English-speaking country.
Most people in our class would like to go to a Halloween party this year.
Less than a quarter of the class knew that Halloween probably originated in Ireland
Our teacher used to celebrate Halloween as a child.
Project
Teachers Instructions:
Before
Divide students into groups of 3 or 4.
Give each group 2 or 3 of the statements below.
Explain to students that they are going to hnd out whether these statements are true.
Ask students to write the questions they need to ask each of their classmates.
During
Students walk around asking every member of the class their questions. They should
keep a record of their answers.
After
Students work together to present their hndings in the form of a graph or poster.
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ANSWERS
VOCABULARY
1
2
1-b, 2-f, 3-d, 4-a, 5-e, 6-c
READING
3
Students own answers
4
1-b 2-c 3-b 4-a 5-c 6-b
5
1-blackened, 2-immigration, 3-the nineteenth century, 4-story-teller,
5-barrel
6
Students own answers
W A G T Y O F A E D H O S
I E Z F V I P E I C A P K
T T M W E S U N E V K I U
C R I E F A D C S A E R L
H O R R O R F I L M O H L
O M A E P I P U M P K I N
E C D W L R I S P I D E R
F A R O I N T A S R C O B
W N E L J A E G S E A S O
O D A F T U D R N O E L R
L L F O W C A R E P S E G
Y E S R U N D W E A T B M
WW
OO
CC
SS
WWW
F
O
M
AAA
M O MM O HH
U M P K I N P U M U PP
RRR RR