Cinco de Mayo is an important Mexican celebration. Explain to your students that the French attempted to take over Mexico on May 5, 1962, after the Mexican- American War had already left the country in ruins. The French were undefeated for almost 50 years. They entered Mexico with 6,000 troops and 2,000 French Loyalists. There were only 4,000 Mexican fighters, many of whom were farmers armed with hunting rifles and machetes. During the final, decisive battle in the city of Puebla, the French lost over 500 men in a day, whereas the Mexicans lost 100. It was a huge boost of morale to the Mexican people and source of pride for the country. Several Mexican states celebrate this special day by holding a "fiesta" or party. They have delicious food, piñatas, and dances. Cinco De Mayo celebrates the victory, but also celebrates the Mexican culture. First-graders can partake in a Mexican cultural activity by making their own piñatas. All you need are balloons, flour, water and scraps of newspaper. Blow up a small round balloon for each student. Provide each table with a sticky mixture of water and flour. They dip the newspaper scraps in the mixture and smooth onto the balloon, leaving the tied end uncovered. After it dries, pop the balloon with a needle using a small pin and pull out the rubber through the bottom. Students can then paint a Mexican flag onto their piñatas.
Explain to your students that the Chinese lunar calendar is very different from ours. Their new year does not begin on January 1 and it can fall on a different day every year. Chinese new year is dependent on the date of the New Moon in Aquarius and every year is marked by a different animal. The Chinese believe that the animal that marks the year of your life influences your life. Ask students to bring in a paper with their birthdates on it. Print out enough animals -- most of the students will have been born in the same year -- for each student. Let them cut it out and color it. Read the animal personality characteristics to your students and see if they fit their personalities.
On the third Tuesday in September, the United Nations General Assembly gathers. In 1981, the Assembly named the day -- September 16 -- as the International Day of Peace. It is a holiday celebrated worldwide which emphasizes peace and goodwill. Break up your class into pairs. Have each pair discuss how they can bring about peace in the world. It could be as simple as being kind to friends, stopping bullying, and picking up trash. Each group can share their ideas and you should write down their ideas on a bulletin board. Post their ideas in the classroom.
Christmas is a major holiday for most American students. Some students might not even know that some of their friends or even relatives celebrate differently in December. You can explain that Jewish students celebrate Hanukkah, which is a religious celebration that lasts for eight days. Allow students to play the dreidel game. Break the class up into groups and give each player 20 play pennies. Each student puts two pennies in the pot. The first player spins the dreidel. When it stops spinning and lands on the letter, students can look at a key to decode the letter and then follow the instructions. For example:
Nun - nothing happens
Gimel - collect all the pennies
Hey - collects half the pennies
Shin - has to put a penny in the pot