New Year in Thailand

[Iris Marin]

Iris Marin December 10, 2019

 

Essential Question: How is New Year celebrated in other countries?

Theme: Celebrations

Objective: Students will learn how New Years’ is celebrated in Thailand  (Songkran aka water festival)

Time frame- 3-5 days ; 30 min a day

Age group: K-1

Standard: 

K.6 Students understand that history relates to events, people, and places of other times.

1. Identify the purposes of, and the people and events honored in, commemorative holidays, including the human struggles that were the basis for the events (e.g., Thanksgiving, Independence Day, Washington's and Lincoln's Birthdays, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day).

Day 1 : Intro to Songkran/Thailand and neighboring countries 

 

Vocabulary: Island. Mountainous, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, astrology, water, zodiac, solar calendar, Buddhism, Buddah

 

Materials: Pictures of Vocabulary 

Delivery-

Engagement: Show short  video clip of people celebrating Songkran, Ask students What they notice.  Students will think-pair-share with a partner. Teacher will write some of these thoughts down on KWL chart

 

Exploration : Today we will focus on celebrations, specifically a celebration for New Years in the continent of Asia. Teacher shows vocabulary with pictures: Thailand, Burma, Laos Cambodia. These are all countries that celebrate.  The celebration started with _____. Teacher will have to explain quickly what Buddhism, and astrology are.

But we will focus on this one: Thailand.

The name of new years celebration is Songkran, it is also known as the water festival. Song means ____ and Kran means_______ (shift of the sun). This celebration lasts 4 days, Day 1 :The first day is called Wan Sungkharn Long. On this day, houses are cleaned and swept.

 

Resource From internet : New Year in Thailand is greated with a splash! It is also called the "water festival" as public water fights are enjoyed throughout the country. Water is believed to clean and wash away any sorrows from the previous year. People are encouraged to throw water on each other, and it often becomes a nationwide free-for-all!

The origins of Thai New Year combine Buddhist beliefs, ancient astrology, and the solar calendar. Songkran means the shift of the sun from one side of the zodiac to the other. The holiday is celebrated when the sun moves from Pisces to Aries, beginning a new astrological year.

 

 

Closure : Today we learned the name, meaning ,  and origins of the new year holiday Songkran. This holiday lasts 4 days. We studied the 1st day. We will celebrate the 1st day by cleaning the classroom and sweeping away the old year. 

Students then proceed to clean class. Thank you for participating

 

Day 2: 

 

Vocabulary to add: monk, Wan Nao

 

Today we will go over the second day of the holiday. What is it called again? ______

The second day is called Wan Nao. On this day, food is prepared to be offered to monks the next day. Today we will be preparing the types of food people would take to the monks. This is a picture of a monk. A monk is _____. A monk is similar to  a _____ in catholic religion, etc.

For activity, teacher can have numerous pictures of food cut out and students can glue them on a paper plate or a basket.

 

 

Day 3 :

Vocab: temple, Buddah, jasmine, rituals, good luck

Materials :picture of vocab 

 

 The third day is New Year's Day, or Wan Payawan. This day is celebrated by visiting the temple, presenting food and clothing to the monks, bathing the Buddha image with jasmine-scented water, and taking part in one of the many rituals believed to bring good luck.

 

Teacher can have little statue of Buddah and have students bring the food they put together and ask for volunteers that would like to bath the Buddah.

 

DAY 4:

Vocab: Wan Parg-bpee

Materials: Vocab pictures

 The fourth and last day is called Wan Parg-bpee. On this day, respect is paid to ancestors and elders. Water is gently poured over the hands or shoulders of an elder while they recite blessings and good wishes for the new year.

 

Teacher will have pictures of an elder  and have students pretend to be one and we will act out the ritual. Teacher will show students a small blessing recital  and good wishes for new year. 

Closure : We have come to the end of our New year celebration, remember all of these countries practice them as well.

 

 

 

Extension Fieldtrip  : Take to a Buddhist temple

 

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