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I asked a friend of mine, who was born in Ireland and still lives in Ireland, to tell me about Saint Patrick's day. This is what she told me.
Paddy's Day as we call it is the day we celebrate our patron saint. He introduced Christianity to Ireland, he used a shamrock to demonstrate the Blessed Trinity, and we learn in school that he banished all the snakes. Nowadays the religious aspect is not so important, now it is the day we celebrate being Irish, and maintaining our culture after 800 years of occupation. So it is a fun day, where any foreigner who wants to be, is Irish for the day too, 'our honorary Irish'. Because of the shift from religious to patriotic, the most popular songs on Saint Patrick's Day are songs about our past struggles or about our freedom. Two examples are The fields of Athenry, which you will hear people sing at every Irish soccer game and The Foggy Dew. The story of Saint Patrick we learn in school is nice, but the day is now a celebration of Irish independence. |
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Vocabulary
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shamrock
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rainbow
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leprechaun
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hat
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Irish flag
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pipe
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pot of gold
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Ireland
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parade
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beer
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Writing and Speaking Prompts
- What do you know about Saint Patrick's Day?
- Do you celebrate Saint Patrick's Day? Why? Why not?
- You haven't tidied your room, so your mother and father give you a punishment. For two months you will be a leprechaun. Talk about those two months.
- You have caught a leprechaun, and he wants to give you a pot of gold in exchange for his freedom. What do you do and why?
- You and your best friend want to celebrate Saint Patrick's day, so you color the river in your hometown green. The next day the local newspaper writes about it. What happens next?
- How would life be different if everyone had light green skin and dark green hair?
- If you had to go to a Saint Patrick's Day celebration, what would you wear?
- What is your favorite thing about Saint Patrick's Day?
- Have you ever been to a Saint Patrick's Day parade? If yes, how was it? If no, would you like to go to one?
- What do you know about Ireland?
- Pretend you are the script writer for your favorite TV show. You have been assigned to write a Saint Patrick’s Day episode. Talk about it!
- Your new best friend is a leprechaun. Talk about your adventures.
- What is a shamrock?
- You want to start a Saint Patrick's Day parade in your school. How will you make that happen?
- Your goal is to catch a leprechaun. How will you succeed?
- Saint Patrick’s Day is not a gift-giving holiday like Christmas. Try to convince people to give gifts on Saint Patrick’s Day.
- Pretend that you can only eat green food on Saint Patrick’s Day. Create a menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
- Write as many things as you can that are green. Write a story about three of the things.
- What do you know about Saint Patrick's Day?
- Do you celebrate Saint Patrick's Day? Why? Why not?
- You haven't tidied your room, so your mother and father give you a punishment. For two months you will be a leprechaun. Talk about those two months.
- You have caught a leprechaun, and he wants to give you a pot of gold in exchange for his freedom. What do you do and why?
- You and your best friend want to celebrate Saint Patrick's day, so you color the river in your hometown green. The next day the local newspaper writes about it. What happens next?
- How would life be different if everyone had light green skin and dark green hair?
- If you had to go to a Saint Patrick's Day celebration, what would you wear?
- What is your favorite thing about Saint Patrick's Day?
- Have you ever been to a Saint Patrick's Day parade? If yes, how was it? If no, would you like to go to one?
- What do you know about Ireland?
- Pretend you are the script writer for your favorite TV show. You have been assigned to write a Saint Patrick’s Day episode. Talk about it!
- Your new best friend is a leprechaun. Talk about your adventures.
- What is a shamrock?
- You want to start a Saint Patrick's Day parade in your school. How will you make that happen?
- Your goal is to catch a leprechaun. How will you succeed?
- Saint Patrick’s Day is not a gift-giving holiday like Christmas. Try to convince people to give gifts on Saint Patrick’s Day.
- Pretend that you can only eat green food on Saint Patrick’s Day. Create a menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
- Write as many things as you can that are green. Write a story about three of the things.
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