What do people do to celebrate St
Patrick’s Day?
Match each sentence with the right picture.
1. St Patrick’s Day is on the 17th of March.
2. People celebrate St Patrick, the patron saint
of Ireland.
3. People wear green clothes.
4. People dance and sing in Irish pubs.
5. People drink green beer.
6. People watch parades on St Patrick’s Day.
7. Children in Ireland have a tradition of
pinching their friends who don’t wear green
on this day!
8. People eat corned beef and cabbage.
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Who was St Patrick?
Go to:
http://www.theholidayspot.com/patrick/historyofpatrick.htm
A - ___
B - ___
Read the text and answer the following questions:
1. Where was St. Patrick born?
Iceland.
Ireland.
Britain.
D - ___
C - ___
E - ___
F - ___
G - ___
H - ___
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2. What do people celebrate on St. Patrick's Day?
the day St Patrick was born.
the day St Patrick drove snakes out of Ireland.
the day St Patrick died.
3. What happened to St Patrick when he was a boy?
Nothing in particular.
He was kidnapped by pirates and sold as a slave in
Ireland.
He went all around the world.
4. What did St. Patrick decide to do during his
captivity?
He decided to become a great explorer.
He decided to become a missionary.
He decided to become a war hero.
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5. How long did St Patrick's mission in Ireland last?
3 months.
3 years.
over 20 years.
6. What did his mission consist in?
He fought against the English.
He helped build houses.
He converted the Gaelic to Christianity.
7. What did St Patrick use to explain the concept of
Trinity?
He drew a picture on the ground.
He used a shamrock.
He painted a sign on a wall.
Legend and Folklore
Go to:
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish-central-magazinest-patrick.htm
Shamrocks, leprechauns and the Blarney Stone
are associated with St. Patrick’s Day. Take notes
to explain what they are.
The Shamrock
Power of a particular
shamrock?
_______________________
8. Who did not like St Patrick?
Celtic druids.
The King of England.
the Irish.
9. Why are there no snakes in Ireland?
St Patrick drove all the snakes into the sea
where they drowned.
What?
_______________________
_______________________
The Leprechaun
What?
_______________________
Job?
_______________________
It is too cold.
it rains a lot.
10. What do Irish people say about Saint Patrick?
He watches over them.
He decides if they will get into heaven one day.
Both of the above.
What does a leprechaun
have?
_______________________
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6
The Blarney Stone
More about
Leprechauns
Why do people kiss the
Blarney Stone?
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
Go to:
http://www.theholidayspot.com/patrick/shamrock.htm
Are these statements true or false? Correct
them if necessary.
1.
Leprechauns like being with people.
True.
False.
_________________________________________
2.
To find a leprechaun, listen to his song!
True.
False.
_________________________________________
3. If you stop looking at a leprechaun, he
disappears.
True.
False.
_________________________________________
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St Patrick’s Day in the United
States
Go to:
http://www.language-lab.org/lessons/lesson48/media.html
Listen to the recording and pay attention to
figures!
The color today is definitely green - it's Saint
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The greatest number of Irish immigrants arrived in
the
U.S.
in
the
of
the
______________________ century, when the home
country was reeling from the potato famine. Now,
some ____________________ Americans consider
themselves to be of Irish ancestry - about
__________ times the population of Ireland itself.
Patrick's Day, said to be the only national holiday
honored outside its native land. The day will be
marked across the U.S. by parades and festive
gatherings at pubs, many of them serving green
beer. In New York City, the day has been celebrated
with an annual parade since ___________.
About ___________________ people are expected
to line the route along Fifth Avenue to watch
__________________________ marchers, many in
costume.
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middle
10
Why Are So Many Americans
of Irish Origin?
5. What did some Irish people decide to do?
____________________________________
See the last page
Read the introductory lines (= the green
paragraph) and learn more about Irish history.
Then, answer the following questions.
1. What happened in Ireland in the 1840s?
_______________________________________
2. What was the cause?
_______________________________________
3. What was the population in Ireland in 1841?
_______________________________________
4. What was the population in Ireland in 1850?
_______________________________________
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12
Unscramble the Words!
1.
genre
6. yuckl
__ __ __ __ __
7. rebe
__ __ __ __ __
2.
sihir
__ __ __ __ __
3.
hacrm
__ __ __ __ __
4.
corkhams
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
5. foltopdog
__ __ __
__ __
13
__ __ __ __
8. neskas
__ __ __ __ __ __
9. hunalcrepe
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
10.
kripcat
__ __ __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __
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St Patrick’s Day Wordsearch
Blarney
cabbage
Celtic
clover
corned beef
hammer
harp
hat
Ireland
parades
15
patron saint
pinch
shoemaker
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The Great Irish Potato Famine of the 1840’s is now recognized as the worst human
disaster of 19th century Europe.
In 1841 the population of Ireland was 8.5 million people. By 1850, at least one million
died in terrible conditions. Another million emigrated as refugees.
Ireland’s 1845 Potato Blight is often credited with launching a wave of Irish
immigration to America. The fungus which decimated potato crops created a
devastating famine. Starvation plagued Ireland, and within five years, a million Irish
were dead while half a million had arrived in America to start a new life.