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Christmas Crackers

Christmas crackers are festive decorations that are part of celebrations in several countries. Students will learn about their origin and design and create a replica to be enjoyed with friends or family.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Paper
  • Recycled Cardboard Roll
  • Ribbon
  • Tissues or Tissue Paper

Steps

  • Step 1

    Christmas crackers are festive table decorations. They are part of Christmas celebrations in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, and elsewhere. The inside is typically filled with a small gift, a short joke or riddle, and a small paper hat. It is pulled apart by two people who each hold one end. The name "cracker" refers to the sound made when it is pulled apart. In traditional models, this sound is produced by a chemical-filled strip similar to one used in a cap gun. Have students investigate the origin of the Christmas cracker. Who invented it? When and why? What was the inspiration for adding the "cracker" noise? Have students look at "The Party Favor," a painting by Norman Rockwell in 1919 that features two children pulling open a cracker.

  • Step 2

    Ask students to make a silent replica of a Christmas cracker (without chemicals that produce the popping sound). They can cut a section (perhaps a third) of a recycled paper towel tube. Next have them take a sheet of tissue paper that is twice as long than the roll and wrap it around the tube. Glue it into place, then decorate it with markers. Have them write notes to put into the tube. They might include short jokes or riddles, mottos of inspiration, or a combination. When the notes are inside, have them tie each end with ribbon or yarn.

  • Step 3

    When the Christmas crackers are complete, students can pair with others and pull them open in class or take them home to use as holiday decorations.

Standards

SS: Culture: Create, learn, share, and adapt to culture.

SS: Individual Development and Identity: Describe factors important to the development of personal identity and the context of identity within families, peer or affinity groups, schools, communities, and nationalities.

Adaptations

Have students explore traditions associated with other winter holidays, such as Diwali, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Asian New Year, etc.

Norman Rockwell (1894-1978) was an American painter whose works often reflected the country's culture. Have students explore some of his paintings, including "Rosie the Riveter" (1943) which received mass distribution as the cover of the "Saturday Evening Post" and became a symbol of women working in war industries during WWII, and "The Problem We All Live With" (1964) which depicts Ruby Bridges being escorted to an all-white elementary school and became an iconic image of the Civil Rights Movement.