The December Dilemma

Every December, public schools face the difficult task of recognizing the myriad of religious and secular holiday traditions celebrated during throughout this month. The trick is to promote a greater understanding among students of different traditions by taking care to adhere to the requirements of the First Amendment.

There are great educational benefits to teaching about the diverse religious traditions and cultures of our country, but we must do so in a way that does not give students the impression that one set of holidays or beliefs is more important or more acceptable than others.

That's where these resources come in. Use them to successfully deal with the December Dilemma. The outcome will be student who are more culturally aware and who better understand the differences that make use a unique melting pot.

Morning Work for 5th Grade - December - No Prep - Or 6th Review

NO Prep Morning Work for Fifth Grade – 6th Review - DECEMBER THEMED Each daily ELA and Math
activity is aligned to standards. Powerpoint digital slides provide your students with repetitive and engaging morning work that reinforces standards and skills. Students can illustrate and write their responses in a composition or spiral notebook.

OR PRINTABLE: ALSO INCLUDES A PDF Black and White Printable Version if you don't want to project and have students use their own notebooks.

20 High Interest: Low Level Readings: December Holiday-Themed: For Older Readers

SET 9: 20 - High interest, low level reading passage for grades 5-12. These passages are perfect for older struggling readers.

December Holiday-Themed. These passages are diverse and inclusive to deal with the December

Dilemma.

Passages are at reading level grade 1 - without sounding OR LOOKING like it.

20 High Interest, Low Level reading passage for grades 5-12. These passages are perfect for older struggling readers and are aligned with the middle school and high school English Language Arts CCSS.

This resource contains:

A printable PDF for packets or classroom work – with lines for students to complete their work
2- font embedded PowerPoint – in case you want to edit.
Form fillable PDF for distance learning assignment or classroom digital learning assignment
Easel version

These are 20 HIGH INTEREST-LOW LEVEL READABILITY PASSAGES – perfect for Distance, Digital, Hybrid and Classroom learning. The passages are designed for students to read on their own and complete quick assessments. The assessments contain four to five multiple-choice questions and one or two short constructed-response questions or are otherwise standards-based.

20 reading passages, with comprehension assessments, that are high interest but at accessible reading levels. This resource is perfect for reluctant older readers who need reading practice but are put off by text that looks “young” or “babyish.”

The reading techniques used in this resource are research-based and appeal to students in grades 5 through 12. Readability scores were determined using the Renaissance ATOS calculator.

Passages:

Zuni Winter Solstice page 8

Dong Zhi page 9

Hopi Soyal page 10

Hanukkah page 11

Hanukkah Fun - The Dreidel – Fact and Opinion page 12

Ramadan page 13

A Day During Ramadan – Fact or Opinion page 14

When is Ramadan page 15

Kwanzaa page 16

Christmas page 17

Christmas Tree Facts page 18

Christmas Around the World page 19

Yule page 20

Bodhi Day page 21

Boxing Day page 22

Krampusnacht page 23

Fact and Opinion – Human Rights Day page 24

Three Kings Day page 25

December at School page 26

History of Christmas Carols page 27

The Hanukkah Song page 28

Answers page 29

Daily Reading & Writing Warm-Ups/Bell Ringers that Deal w/ the December Dilemma

Each of the 21 Daily Warm-Up/Bell Ringer passages is aligned with the Common Core State Standards for ELA and are written for grades 5 to 12. They are themed to be inclusive and deal with the December Dilemma. The passages also make great lesson starters. Topics are listed below.

NOTE: If you are looking for differentiation I have a resource with very similar passages that are written at 1-3 grade level - if you have struggling readers in your class. 20 High Interest: Low Level Readings: December Holiday-Themed: For Older Readers.

The Passages:

The questions are both constructed response and multiple choice and help you incorporate the –

communication, critical thinking, collaboration and creativity your students need in order to be successful in school and in life. They are designed to help students think critically and to prepare them for STAAR, PARCC and Smarter Balanced assessments.

The topics are non-fiction and perfect for use as warm-ups, bell ringers, early finishers, unit reinforcers, partner or group work and/or lesson starters.

Have students work alone, in pairs or in small groups. Encourage dialogue around the questions. If a passage seems particularly difficult for your students – pair up struggling readers with patient proficient readers and writers. Some of the best thinking happens this way.

These passages work for digital learning as well. They can be emailed or uploaded to any platform and assigned as warm-ups, lesson starters or reading assignments.

Table of Contents

Instructions page 3

Informational Text Reader Response Reading Extender page 4

Reading Levels page 5