Unit 7. Celebrations

Good evening, everybody!
Welcome to class 11 A4.
Crossword Puzzle
These are some festivals and celebrations in Vietnam and in the world. Read the sentences and try to find out the words needed to complete the crossword puzzle.
D
-
A
U
T
U
M
N
M
I
T
E
T
C
H
R
I
S
T
M
A
S
H
A
L
L
O
W
E
E
N
D
Y
A
O
M
E
N
‘
S
W
E
A
S
T
R
E
B
I
R
T
H
D
A
Y
T
H
A
N
K
S
G
I
V
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G
From the words and the pictures, what do you think the topic of this lesson today is about?
Unit 7

Period 1: READING 1
Composed by: Nguyen Song Quang
Match the celebrations with the correct images below:
A
B
C
D
E
Suggested Answer
B
D
A
C
E
1
Vietnamese New Year’s Day
2
3
4
5
King Hung’s Death Anniversary
Mid-Autumn Festival
Vietnamese National Day
Vietnamese Teachers’ Day
Write down the above celebrations under the suitable calendar pages.
Look at these pictures, please.
New Year's Eve in New York
New Year's Eve in London
New Year's Eve in London
New Year's Eve in London
New Year's Eve in London
Muharram in Peshawar, in the Midde East
Muharram in Peshawar, in the Midde East
Muharram in Peshawar, in the Midde East
New Year's Eve in Viet Nam
From the pictures, what do you think you are going to read about?
New Year's Celebrations around the World
and in Viet Nam
New words
celebrate festivals, birthdays, etc.
to observe someone's birthday
observe (v) [ə'bzə:v]  (formal)
observance (n)
[əb'zɜvəns]
the practice of celebrating a festival, a birthday, etc.
procession (n)
[prə'se∫n]
a line of people or vehicle that moves along slowly,
especially as part of a ceremony
fast (v)
eat little or no food for a period of time, especially for
religious reasons.
Muslims fast during Ramadan
repentance (n)
[ri'pentəns]
the fact of showing that you are sorry for st wrong that
you have done
offering (n) ['ɔfəriη]

st that is given to a god as part of religious
making offerings to st
resolution (n)
[,rezə'lu:∫n]
a firm decision to do or not to do st

haunt (v) [hɔ:nt]
If st unpleasant haunts you, it keeps coming to your
mind so that you cannot forget it.
sự tiến hành
đám rước
nhịn ăn
sự sám hối
lễ vật
sự quyết tâm
ám ảnh
tiến hành
Bingo
- Draw 4 squares as shown below on a piece of paper.




- Choose 4 of the words you have just learnt, and write them in the four squares.
- You are going to hear 6 sentences in which there are 7 of the words.
- Listen to my reading and cross out each word as it is contained in the sentence you hear and at the same time call out ''Bingo!''
- The first student to cross out all the four words wins.
1. She made a resolution to visit her relatives more often.
2. The memory of that day still haunts me.
3. The procession made its way down the hill.
4. Do they observe Christmas?
5. The Jewish Rosh Hashanah is a very solemn holiday set aside for fasting and repentance.
6. On New Year's Eve, we make big offerings to our ancesters.
Identify Main Ideas
- Skim the text and match the main ideas below to the paragraphs.
3, 4
1
2
Table completion (Task a), p 94)Look through the table and read the text to know what you need to look for and then complete the table (within 10 minutes).
making New Year's resolutions

January 1th
Shiite
processions gathering
Rosh
Hashanah
(Tishri)
September
or October
Vietnamese
First 3 days of
the first Lunar
month
cooking traditional foods, buying gifts and
ornamental trees and flowers
- visiting family members, neighbors, and
friends
- engaging in games and entertaining
activities
One of the most common New Year preparations is music. Give a list of your favorite songs you would select for your whole family to listen during the new year days.
 Happy New Year
 Khúc giao mùa
 Tết đến rồi
 Mùa xuân nho nhỏ
 Xuân Chiến khu
 Ru em từng ngón xuân hồng
 Lời tỏ tình của mùa xuân ...
....................................................

Please do Task b) at home
Thank you for watching!Good luck!
Some Symbols of Tet
Cay Neu

Cay neu is a bamboo pole (New Year's Tree) stripped of its leaves except for a tuft on top. Red paper is used to decorate the tree, which is planted outside the house during the Tet holiday. The cay neu has Taoist origins and holds talismanic objects that clang in the breeze to attract good spirits and repel evil ones. On the very top, they frequently place a paper symbol of yin and yang, the two principal forces of the universe. Sometimes a colorful paper carp flag will fly from the top. The carp (or sometimes a horse) is the vehicle on which the Kitchen God travels to make his report. This tree is more common in the countryside now than in the city. It is ceremonially removed after the seventh day of Tet. 
Vietnamese Peach Blossoms (Hoa Dao)
According to Vietnamese legend, once upon a time, in the East of the Soc Son Mountain, North Vietnam, existed a gigantic peach tree. The tree was so huge that its shadow extended through out a large area of land. Up on the tree, lived two powerful deities, Tra and Uat Luy. They protected the people of the land in the surrounding areas from the devils. The devils were so afraid of these two deities that even the sight of the peach tree haunted them. However, at the end of every lunar year, these two deities had to fly back to heaven for an annual meeting with the Jade Emperor. During this time, the devils took advantage of this opportunity to harass the peaceful inhabitants. To fight the battle against these devils, people came up with the ideas of display a branch of the Peach tree in the house to scare away the devils. Since then it becomes a custom of the North Vietnamese to have a branch of a Peach tree during Tet season to protect themselves against the Satan soldiers. Those who don't have Peach tree can draw the figures of the two deities, Tra and Uat Luy, on red paper, and display them in front of the house. 
Hoa Mai (apricot blossom)
While Peach tree is preferred in the North, Hoa Mai is more commonly used for this ceremony in the South because of the warm weather. Hoa Mai is a small, yellow flowering plant that is used for decoration during Tet with the meanings of prosperity and well-being for the family. The value of these flowers is determined by the number of petals - the more petals, the more expensive the flower. 
Kumquat Trees
Kumquat trees about two or three feet tall are carefully selected and prominently displayed during Tet. To carefully choose a kumquat bush, the buyer must pay attention to the symmetrical shape, to the leaves and to the color and shape of the fruit. The bushes have been precisely pruned to display ripe deep orange fruits with smooth clear thin skin shining like little suns or gold coins on the first day of the lunar new year. Other fruits must still be green to ripen later. This represents the wish that wealth will come to you now and in the future. The leaves must be thick and dark green with some light green sprouts. The fruits represent the grandparents, the flowers represent parents, the buds represent children and the light green leaves represent grandchildren. The tree thus symbolizes many generations. Guests will caress the light green leaves about to sprout and compliment the discerning host who chose so carefully.
The "Mam Ngu Qua"
The "five-fruit tray" on the ancestral altar during the Tet holiday symbolizes the admiration and gratitude of the Vietnamese to Heaven and Earth and their ancestors, and demonstrates their aspiration for a life of plenty. As one theory goes, the five fruits are symbolic of the five basic elements of oriental philosophy: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Some people believe that the five fruits are symbols of the five fingers of a man's hand that is used to produce physical wealth for his own use and to make offerings to his ancestors. However, in a simpler way, the five fruits represent the quintessence that Heaven and Earth bless humans. This is one of the general perceptions of life of the Vietnamese, which is "When taking fruit, you should think of the grower". Today, the tray may contain five or more fruits, in the form of a pyramid like before or in an different shape. Regardless, it is still called the Mam Ngu Qua, the five-fruit tray.
Fire Crackers
The most exciting element in the celebration of Tet is the lighting of trang phao (fire crackers). These explosions are believed to drive off ghosts and evil spirits and leave good luck in their place. As thousands of households simultaneously partake in this fantastic part of Tet, the level of volume and excitement rises to a fury. This level of emotion is the most memorable part of Tet and also the part which makes it such a marvelous experience. However, firecrackers are no longer used as the government banned them in 1995. 
Banh Chung
It is a square cake, wrapped in banana leaves and tied with laces of flexible bamboo slivers. It is a very rich food for the interior contains a filling of bean paste to which may be added small bits of pork meat, both fat and lean. This filling, which is amply seasoned, is pressed between layers of glutinous rice. Its square shape is considered a symbol of the thankfulness of the Vietnamese people for the great abundance of the Earth, which has supplied them with nutritious food throughout the four seasons of the year. 
Cau Doi (Parallels)
Composing, challenging and displaying parallels represents an elegant cultural activity of the Vietnamese. On the occasion of Tet, parallels are written on red paper and hung on both sides of the gate, the pillars or the ancestral altar. Each pair of parallels has an equal number of words with contrasting or corresponding meanings and lines of verses. They show a keen intelligence, perception of nature and social life, uphold morality and a yearning for the well-being of all people. The red is symbolic of auspicious and powerful vitality, according to popular belief. Mingling with the green of the banh chung, the pink of the peach blooms, the yellow of the hoa mai, and the red of the parallels is sure to make the Spring warmer and cozier. 
Xin Xam
After Giao Thua, the last day of the lunar calendar year, many Buddhists go to their favorite pagoda to pray for a good year and to get a fortune reading for the whole year. Each person will get a chance to shake the tube that contains reading sticks, until one stick falls out of the tube. In the case that many sticks drop out of the tube, that person will have to repeat the process. Afterwards, usually the monks will translate the meanings of the reading.
Islamic Festivals for the Gregorian Year 2007
Islamic New Year Sat, Jan 20 Ashura Mon, Jan 29
Mawlid an-Nabi Sat, Mar 31 Lailat-al-Mi'raj Sat, Aug 11
Lailat-al-Bara'a Wed, Aug 29 Start of Ramadan Thu, Sep 13
Nuzulul Qur'an Sat, Sep 29 Lailat-al-Qadr Tue, Oct 9
Quds Day Fri, Oct 12 Id-al-Fitr Sat, Oct 13
Waqf-el-Arafat Wed, Dec 19 Id-al-'Adha Thu, Dec 20


(Islamic days run from sunset to sunset. As a result, each Islamic festival listed above actually begins at sunset on the previous Gregorian day.)