Lesson video

Hi everyone, and welcome back to our lessons on Christian practises.

My name is Mrs. Day, and I will be teaching you RE in today's lesson.

And today we're going to look at the topic of festivals and particularly Christmas and Easter.

So what do you need for this lesson? Could you please make sure that you have a pen or a pencil, a piece of paper and a book and a different coloured pen.

This is just so you can mark your own work.

If you don't have any of these things, please feel free to pause the video here and run to get it before we start and you can just press resume when you come back.

So what will we be learning in today's lesson? Firstly, we need to think of the definition of a festival, so what actually is a festival? Secondly, we will think about Christmas so what is it and how is celebrated? And then thirdly, we will think about Easter, so what is it and how is it celebrated? I'm aware that you probably have some knowledge of Christmas and Easter as you come to this lesson, but hopefully today you will learn what is religious about it and what is not what is just cultural.

So stay alert, even though you've heard these words before stay alert because you will learn some new things in today's lesson.

So firstly, what is a festival? You might want to pause the screen here and have a think about what you would answer here so how would you define a festival? When some people think about festivals they might think of the images like this.

So music festivals with lots of people, celebrations and there is a reason that a music festival is called a festival because it's this idea of celebration and being with lots of other people.

But today we are going to focus on a religious festival and the definition of that.

So here's some images of some religious festivals from around the world and you can see that they have some things in common to music festivals.

We have crowds of people, we have lots of lights we have celebrations there's normally music, there's dancing there's celebrating.

So we know that generally these are happy times where lots of people from a community meet together.

So the definition that we are going to use today is a festival is a day or a period of celebration usually for religious reasons.

So a day or a period of celebration.

So firstly, we're thinking these are happy times.

So these are happy times, lots of celebration and for religious reasons.

Today we are just looking at Christian festivals so we're looking at these two times of celebration in the Christian calendar.

So the two main festivals that we're going to look at are Christmas and Easter.

I'm sure most of you have heard of both of these Christmas is still a really big festival in the United Kingdom and tends to be really popular festival among people who are Christians and people who are not Christians.

Easter is slightly different, it tends to be more of a Christian festival but we will talk about both of these why they are celebrated and how you they're celebrated today.

So firstly, let's start with Christmas.

So what is it and why is it celebrated? So I don't know what you think of when you think of Christmas.

For some of you it might be this image that you see on the screen.

Christmas tree presents, wood on the fire every one's cosy this idea of this Christmas movie that we see.

I'm sorry to break the bad news, but the Christmas tree actually has nothing to do with the Christian story of Christmas.

We're going to look at more things about Christmas night, but this image might be what pops into your head.

These are two other images that you might think of.

So you have some presents that are nicely wrapped and you have this nativity scene.

I'm sure that lots of you have been in nativity plays when you were in primary school and I wonder who you played, I know in my classes some people have told me they played Joseph or Mary some are the donkey that's great as well.

So I wonder if you've ever played any of these characters.

So this is the first ideas that we think of when we think of Christmas.

So what I would like you to do now is to spend two minutes making a mind map of everything you think of when you think of Christmas.

So I've given you some ideas with those images but what else can you think of? It might be Christian and it might not be it might just be something you see around in shops, et cetera, et cetera.

So when you're finished please press resume and we will go through your ideas together.

Really well done, let's go through some of these ideas.

So on the screen, I've put up lots of things that people think of when they think of Christmas let's go through them together.

So presents am sure that has a favour among a lot of you.

Holiday so you're off school time with family.

Church? And there's a question mark there, because that is not what everyone thinks of for some people they will go to church for some people they won't.

Father Christmas I'm sure you think about Father Christmas or some time.

Family time lights you might, I don't know about you but I love when they turn the Christmas lights on you walk down the street and you see these lovely lights everywhere.

Food another great one I'm sure you agree.

Nativity plays, carols so you might have heard Carol singers, Christmas trees.

So hopefully you got some of this.

So these are lots of things which our culture thinks of when we think of Christmas.

I don't know about you but this has put me in quite a Christmas mood.

because this is a time of year that lots of people love because it's joyful people come together there's Christmas parties there's good foods.

Okay, so this is what our culture thinks when it thinks of Christmas.

But let's have a think about where Christmas actually came from.

So the image that you can see on the screen night is an image of the Christmas Nativity Scene.

And if you look closely, you will see the image of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus.

And you can also say the shepherds visiting and the magi bringing gifts.

So remember Jesus was born in Bethlehem because Mary and Joseph had to leave their home because the census had been called.

So they had to go to Bethlehem because that was Joseph's home at time.

So they went to Bethlehem, Mary was very heavily pregnant and when they got there they couldn't find a room anywhere.

There was no room in any of the hotels and they went in and there wasn't even any room there.

So they spent the night in a stable and that is where Jesus was born.

So he was born in the stable with the animals and the hay.

And now you can see a picture of the shepherds.

So after Jesus was born his first visitors were the shepherds this is what the Bible says.

And it says that, as the shepherds were on the hill with their sheep an angel appeared to them and told them not to be afraid, but that a saviour had been born to them.

So I don't know about you, but the shepherds did what I would expect most people to do and they went as quickly as they could to see this saviour.

And then finally there was the visit of the magi, the magi is another word for wise men and the wise man saw the star in the sky and they followed the star in order to get to Jesus.

And they brought Jesus presence of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

And that is where presents come from today.

So presents were actually featured in the original Christmas story.

So this was the original Christmas story, we have Jesus born in a stable in Bethlehem, we have Shepherd's visiting and the magi visiting and bringing gifts.

So what I would love you to do now is to have a go at this task.

So pause the video here and complete the task.

So tell the nativity story, including the key words below.

So what I would love you to do now is to have a go at this task.

So tell the nativity story, including the key words below.

So please try to include the words that are on the screen, you can pause the video here and you should be imaged right about a paragraph.

So tell the story in your own words, what happened and see if you can use these key terms and press resume when you are finished.

Really well done let's go through what you could have came up with together.

So Mary was a young virgin who God was pleased with, she was visited by the angel Gabriel who told her she was blessed and that she would become pregnant by the Holy spirit and that she was to name her baby Jesus.

Her fiance Joseph plan to divorce her quietly, but how to dream in which God told him not to be a afraid to marry Mary.

There was a census and they had to travel to Bethlehem.

A census just means that the government wanted to count how many people lived there, so everyone had to travel back to their town of birth.

While they were there the time came for Mary to have the baby, but there was no room in any ends.

They stayed in the stable and Jesus was laid in a manger.

In fields nearby a host of angels appeared to shepherds telling them that the King had been a born later wise man, magi followed the star, which rested above the place where Mary, Joseph, and the baby were staying.

They gave Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

So that is what is celebrated at Christmas, but let's think about how Christians still celebrate Christmas today.

Because we knew a lot happens at Christmas some of it is due to the Christian belief and some of it is not really, so let's look at this in more detail.

So let's go through some of these ideas together, so firstly we have church and carol singing, lots of Christians will go to church around Christmas and they will go sing carols, a lot of these carols talk about the Christmas story and Jesus being born.

Secondly, we have presents.

And I know that is a lot of people's favourite part of Christmas, but as we have seen it this is not a random thing that has just happened this comes from the idea of the wise man bringing presents for Jesus.

Then we have nativity plays.

So lots of skills and churches will put on plays to show what happened in the Christmas story.

And finally we have Midnight Mass and this is where Christians will gather together on Christmas Eve, they will light candles and they will prepare for Christmas day.

Here are two verses that you can use when we are talking about Christmas.

So let me read them to you.

The shepherds went back singing praises to God for all they had heard and seen, it had been just as the angel had told them Luke 2:20.

And then our second verse is about the wise men.

They brought out their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and presented them to Him, and that is from Matthew 2:11.

So the shepherds went back singing praises to God for all they had heard in seen, it'd been just as the angel had told them.

Luke 2:20, and they brought their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and presented them to Him Matthew 2:11.

So we are going to use those two verses to complete a short task.

So for each verse explain which form of celebration it links to and how.

So which way they celebrate Christmas it links to and how.

So first one is the shepherds went back singing praises to God for all they had heard and seen it had been just as the angel told them, Luke 2:20.

So your thinking is this to do with going to church, singing carols, giving presents, what is this to do with.

Nativity plays, Christmas trees what has this got to do with? So this first links to and it links to this because, so pause the video here and write out those two sentences.

in your own words and press resume when you're finished and we will go over the answer together.

So the first was the shepherds went back singing praises to God for all they had heard and seen it had been just as the angel had told them, Luke 2:20.

You could have said something like this, this first links to people attending church and singing carols.

It links to this because we see here that the shepherds were singing and praising God, which is what Christians do today.

So when your other coloured pen, you can take down any of that that you would like and press resume when you are finished.

And now we are going to move on to our second verse.

So this verse says they brought all their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh and presented them to Him.

So you're doing exactly the same thing again so this verse links to what, so is it carols singing, go to church, Christmas trees, presents, eating nice food.

what does it link to? And then it links to this because, so you should have two full sentences so you can pause the video here and press resume when you're ready to go through that answers.

Really well done, let's go through these together.

So the first was they brought their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh and presented them to Him, Matthew 2:11.

So you could have said something like this, this first links to Christians giving presents today, it links to this because it can be seen here that the tradition of giving presents was started by the wise man who visited Jesus.

So the verse links to giving presents and it links because it started by the wise man who was visiting Jesus, who were visiting Jesus sorry.

So you can pause the video here and copy down any extra points you want and then press resume when you are finished.

Great, now we're going to move on to thinking about Easter.

So what is it and why is it celebrated? And Easter might not be just as well known as Christmas, but I'm sure there will be things that you will recognise when you see it.

So I wonder what you think of when you think of Easter.

I wonder if it's chocolate, there are lots of Easter eggs that I am sure a lot of you eat around the time of Easter I wonder if it's hot cross buns, that's another thing that people like to buy at Easter.

So I wonder what comes into your mind when you think of Easter.

So what I would like you to do now is to spend two minutes, making a mind map of everything that you think of when you think of Easter.

So what comes into your head when you think of Easter? So pause the video here and you can press resume when you are ready to continue.

Really well done, let's look through some of these things that you came up with together.

So let's look through this together.

So did you have spring? So this idea of new life, did you have Easter eggs I'm sure most of you had Easter eggs.

Holiday, so normally you're off school it's time with the family, bunnies, chicks, new life or church.

Again, some of you probably wrote down church and some of you probably didn't because a lot of people today in the UK still will meet together with family they will have a nice Easter weekend, even if they don't go to church.

So I wonder how many of those you got down or if you got down any extras.

So let's think about this story of Easter.

So why is Easter celebrated? So there was a week before Easter called Holy Week.

And we're going to think about the events of Holy Week and the run up to Easter weekend.

So a week before Easter we have Palm Sunday and this is when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey.

And at the time He was so popular, people were putting Palm branches down in front of Him, they were shouting hosanna, hosanna in the highest to Him.

So at this point, people loved Jesus.

And this was when he entered Jerusalem a week before He was to rise again.

And then we move on to Monday and Thursday, and this was the night before Jesus's crucifixion when He took the last supper with his disciples.

So we had them all in the upper room you might remember the story and He broke bread and wine and said, "This is my body broken for you.

"And this is my blood poured for you." So this was the first time that we see communion taken, and this is where Jesus makes it quite obvious that He is going to die.

He also says that one of His disciples is going to betray Him and that is Judas.

And later that evening Judas betrays Him and hand Him over to the Romans.

And then we get to Good Friday.

And this is one of the biggest events in Christianity, and this is where Jesus dies on the cross, this is the crucifixion.

And you might remember some of the things that happened on this day.

The whole sky turned black, there was an earthquake and the curtain temple ripped in two from top to bottom.

Remember before this point it was only the high priest that could go behind the curtain but after this happened it symbolise, that anyone could go and speak to God.

Remember after He died, it was declared surely this man is the son of God.

So a lot of people knew how powerful He was, but this was also a really sad day for Jesus's followers this was a really tough day.

This was a crucifixion a terrible painful death.

But then we have Easter Sunday and Easter Sunday is believed is when Jesus resurrect or rose from the dead, you will remember we looked at the story where we said that Mary went to the tomb and it was empty and she was really fearful and scared.

And then two men appeared and said, "Why are you looking for Jesus here He's raised, "He's not here He's been raised to life." And she run back and told the disciples and they didn't really believe her because it does sound a bit unusual but Peter ran down and saw the empty tomb and was completely amazed at what he saw.

So this day was a day of hope and joy for the first Christians.

Now we are going to have a little true and false quiz to see what you remember.

So you can either write down on paper or point at the screen, and I will give you five seconds to figure out your answer to each question.

So, number one Jesus was very popular on Palm Sunday is that true or false? Five, four, three, two and one, that is true.

Number two, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a horse, is that true or false? Five, four, three, two, and one, that is of course false.

Remember He wrote in on a donkey.

Number three, the last supper took place on the Wednesday true or false? Five, four, three, two, and one, that is false it was on the Thursday, which is known as Monday-Thursday.

That should be number four sorry.

Number four, Jesus had a meal with his disciples on the night before He died.

Is that true or false? Five, four, three, two and one, that is of course true.

He had the last supper with his disciples on the night before His crucifixion.

Number five, one of the disciples betrayed Jesus, is that true or false? Five, four, three, two, and one, that is true.

Remember Judas betrayed Jesus.

Number six, the last supper is still taken by Christians today.

Five, four, three, two, and one, that is of course true.

The last supper still taken by Christians today and that's known as communion or the Eucharist.

Number seven, Jesus was crucified on the Friday.

Five, four, three, two, and one, that is true.

He was crucified on what's is known as Good Friday.

And number eight, Jesus ascended to heaven on the Sunday is that true or false? Five, four, three, two, and one, that is false.

Jesus was resurrected so risen to life on the Sunday, but he did not ascend until 40 days later.

Really good work everyone I'm very impressed.

Oh, we have another one, Jesus was the first disciple to go to the tomb.

John was the first disciple to go to the tomb of Jesus.

Is that true or false? Five, four, three, two, and one, that is false.

Remember it was Peter who run there first and the others weren't really sure that they believed the woman.

And then number 10, the women were the first people at tomb.

Is that true or false? Five, four, three, two and one, that is true really well done.

Okay, so now you know why they celebrate Easter We have reminded ourselves of the Easter story but how do Christians today celebrate Easter? So what do they do today to remember this event? What you could say is one of the core events in Christianity, the crucifixion and the resurrection they are the core beliefs in Christianity.

So how do Christians celebrate Easter? So here are a list of things that they do.

So the first one that you can see is communion and you know what that is because we've done a lesson on that.

And that is where Christians take the bread and the wine either to remember Jesus's sacrifice or because they believe in transubstantiation which means is the change of substance into the body and the blood of Jesus.

Secondly, we have the Stations of the Cross and this happens in lots of churches and there are 14 different Stations of the Cross and they each talk about different things that happened at the crucifixion.

So Christians will go and look at each one of these stations spend some time praying, and meditating and thinking about the crucifixion.

We then have a special liturgy that takes place on Easter Sunday.

He is risen, so this is all about the resurrection of Jesus.

Remember liturgy might take place in a liturgical church where there are set structures and readings and prayers.

Then we have the Pascal candle which is also lit on Easter Sunday to celebrate this idea of joy and life.

And then finally we have Easter eggs.

You might wonder what the Easter eggs have to do with the story.

So remember that the women and the disciples saw that the stone in front of the tomb had been rolled away, so this Easter egg represents the tombstone being rolled away.

So now I want you to have a go at figuring out which two are missing on every single screen.

So which two are missing here? I will give you five seconds.

You can write them down or call them out, Five, four, three, two, and one.

It is communion and the Pascal candle well done.

So which two are missing here? Five, four, three, two, and one, well done is the Stations of the Cross and Easter eggs.

So now please pause the video and list as many ways that Christians celebrate Easter as you can remember.

So we have been through them, so pause the video here there are five remember write all five down and press resume when you have finished Really well done, let's see how many you got right.

So here they are communion, Stations of the Cross the special liturgy, Pascal candle and Easter eggs.

You can give yourself a mark out of five and see how many you got right.

So let's finish today's lesson with some more quick fire questions to see what you can remember.

Which of the following do Christians do to celebrate Christmas? Is it like the Pascal candle, paint eggs, Use the words He is risen or sing carols? Five, four, three, two, and one, it is of course saying carols well done if you got that.

Which of the following do Christians do to celebrate Easter? Is it have nativity scenes, paint eggs, celebrate Advent or sing carols? Five, four, three, two, and one, it is paint eggs well done so eggs so represent this idea of new life and things being born, so new life happening on Easter Sunday.

Which story is not part of the Christmas story? Jesus was laid in a manger, shepherds visited Jesus, Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem, or Father Christmas gave Jesus gifts.

Five, four, three, two and one, the answer is of course Father Christmas.

Father Christmas is not in the Christmas story from the Bible.

If you would like to share any of the great work that you've done today without Oak National, please do ask a parent or a care to share your work on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter and tag @OakNational or #LearnwithOak.

Thank you so much for joining in with today's lesson.

You should all might be experts on Christmas and Easter, why they are celebrated and how they are celebrated.

You should remember those two key things why and how.

If you would like to test your knowledge, please do the summary quiz to see what you have learned.

Thank you and I look forward to seeing you soon for our next lesson.

Have a lovely day.