December

December marked the tenth month in the Roman calendar; it is the twelfth month of the year nowadays and marks the end of it. As a matter of interest, just see how many of the following important people born in December can you identify?:

1st     WOODY ALLEN 1935

2nd   MARÍA CALLAS 1923

3rd   PAUL NICHOLAS 1945

 4th  THOMAS CARLYLE 1795 RAINER M. RILKE 1875

 5th  CHRISTINA ROSSETTI 1830

 6th  JOSEPH CONRAD  1857

 7th   WILLA CATHER  1873

8th   BJORNSTJERNE BJORNSON 1832

9th   JOHN MILTON  1608

10th  EMILY DICKINSON 1830

 11th ALEKSANDER SOLZHNITSYN 1918

12th  FRANK SINATRA 1915

 13th  HEINRICH HEINE 1797

 14th LEE REMICK 1935

15th  JOHN PAUL GETTY 1892

16th LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN 1770 RAFAEL ALBERTI 1902

 17th JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER 1807 POPE FRANCIS 1936

18th  CHARLES WESLEY  1707

 19th  RALPH RICHARDSON 1902

 20th HARVEY S. FIRESTONE 1868

21st   FRANK ZAPPA  1940

 22nd  JEAN RACINE 1639 

23rd    JOSEPH SMITH 1805

24th    IGNATIUS LOYOLA 1491

25th    ISAAC NEWTON 1648

 26th  THOMAS GRAY  1716

 27th  LOUIS PASTEUR 1822

 28th  MAGGIE SMITH  1934

29th  W.E. GLADSTONE 1809

 30th RUDYARD KIPLING 1865 PATTY SMITH 1946

 31st B.E.MURILLO 1617; JOHN DENVER 1943

 1) Do the same with the remaining eleven months.(11 group projects)Choose your favourite month.

2) Classify the famous people above according to their professions.

3) Try to find at least two"famous"people for each single day.
4) Learn the difference between the Gregorian and the Julian calendars.
5) How many months are there in an arab/muslim/Mohammedan calendar?
6) Find out about the famous people who were born on the same day as you were born.
7) Do the same as above but mentioning the dates of the deaths of famous characters
8) What was the Revolutionary calendar? Mention some new months in that calendar
9) What were the Calends and the Greek calends? and the Ides?
10) Establish the difference between calendar year/ academic year and tax year
11) Etymological origin of the names of each month
12) Which months can also be proper nouns?Ex: April
13) Zodiac signs, horoscopes and chinese year animals. Are you skeptical or do you believe in them?
14) Local festivities and dates. When do they celebrate the fair in     x/ the 3 cultures festival/..?
15) Holidays and Holy days. Name the religious holidays in Spain: Ex: Immaculate Conception
16) Commemorative days From New year January1st to New year´s eve 31st December.List as many       as you can month by month.
17) Which feast days or name days can you remember from the calendar of saints?
18) Which festivities have moving dates? Ex: Thanksgiving, Ash Wednesday,etc..
19) Historical dates. Make up a list of important historical dates such as: 6th December 1978; 20th          November 1975,18th July 1936, 11th September 2001, etc..
20) Time metaphors: Ex: Eight days a week; a grief ago; a month of Sundays/Mondays;until 40th May,etc..
       Make up your own time metaphors.
21) Continue the sequences: ONDJFMA............  
                                               SSMTW...............
                                               FSTFFSS............
                                               ZOTTFF.............
                                               EFFNOSS..........
                                               8 5 4 9 1 7 6.......
                                                QWERTYU.........
                                                 ÑLKJHG............
                                                 CUDTCCSS.......
                                                 CDLM..............
22) Explain TIME OUT; TIME AND AGAIN; TIME AND TIDE; TIME AND ETERNITY;TIMES SQUARE; TIME AFTER TIME; TIMING
23) M_______H. Which words do you know that start with an "m" and end  with an"h"? Aim at 10.
24) Do you keep a diary? Do you have a monthly planner?
25) Establish the relationship between the pagan and the Christmas celebrations: Christmas= Winter solstice; Easter ?  St. John´s night? Autumn? Michaelmas?
26) What  the 12 days of Christmas are supposed to represent:
    1st day a partridge= Jesus
    2nd day two turtle doves= The Old and New Testament
    3rd day  three French hens= Faith, Hope and Charity
    4th day  four caling birds= Four Gospels
    5th day five gold rings= First five books of the O.T.
    6th day six geese a laying=six days of creation
    7th day seven swans= 7 sacraments
    8th day eight maids= eight beatitudes
    9th day nine ladies= nine fruits of the Holy spirit
    10th day ten lords= the ten commandments
    11th day eleven pipers= 11 faithful apostles
     12th day twelve dummers=12 points of doctrine in the Apostle´s creed.

27)Find out about unusual days celebrated in the USA. For instance: Popcorn day;Hugging day; Tell a lie day; Yo Yo day; Blame someone else day; Plan your epitaph day; Kiss and make up day,etc..
28) Which foreign festivities are slowly being celebrated in our culture? Ex: Halloween; Black Friday,etc...
29) Choose a year(any year will do) and write the most relevant events which took place in that particular year.
30) Christmas is.........,......(fun, magic,boring family,etc..) Xmas legends, i.e.:Forest animals can speak in human language on christmas eve!.
31) Define: Yuletide, crackers, mince pies, poinsettia, candy cane, Santa, hamper, mulled wine,
                    fudge, stockings.