Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Clinton and I'm so pleased that you've joined me for our lesson today.

I'm here to help us with all the new things we are going to be learning.

Today's lesson is called Different Ways of Celebrating Christmas in the UK, and it's from the unit Jesus: why is he so important to Christians? We are going to be thinking about how we can explain how different Christians celebrate Christmas in the UK.

Now, sometimes learning can be a little bit hard and sometimes a bit challenging, but don't worry, that's why I'm here.

I'm here to help us in our learning and we are going to do that really well and have a great time.

For our lesson today, we've got some keywords and these keywords come up throughout our lesson, so it's really important that we know them.

Now, I'd like to do, I say, you say, and I'd like you to use your voices to practise saying these words.

Some of these words may be really familiar to you and others might be new to you.

So let's sit up and get our voices ready to be able to speak out these words.

I say, Christmas, you say.

I say Christmas, you say.

And Christmas is a festival when people celebrate Jesus' birthday.

They often give gifts and spend time with their family.

I say celebrate, you say.

I say celebrate, you say.

And to celebrate is to do something special for a happy event, like having a party or maybe singing some songs.

I say Advent, you say.

I say Advent, you say.

Advent means the coming or arrival, and it's a time of reflection and prayer and preparation for the celebration of Jesus' birth.

I say humble, you say.

I say humble, you say.

And humble is about not showing off or thinking you are better than others.

So those are our four keywords that we're going to be using today in our lesson.

I hope you remember their meaning.

So our lesson today has two learning cycles.

One: How do Christians get ready for Christmas? And two: What do different churches do for Christmas? So let's start with number one: How do Christians get ready for Christmas? And here's Aisha.

And Aisha explains why stories are used in religious education.

"Stories can help us understand different worldviews.

In religious education, we listen to important stories and think about the deeper meanings of these stories to different people.

We can also look at the difference these stories make to people today." So in this lesson, we're going to be finding out about what Christians do to celebrate Christmas here in the UK.

Now this is Sofia.

And Sofia goes to an Anglican church with her family, and she tells us, "Christmas is a very special time for my family.

We start to get ready for Christmas four weeks before.

This is called Advent.

I have an Advent calendar to open and a candle to light each day in December.

Would you like to see them?" Well, I would.

Would you like to see them? Show me your thumbs if you'd like to see Sofia's Advent calendar and candle.

Great.

Come on then.

Let's go and have a look at what Sofia has at her house.

Here's Sofia's Advent calendar.

Hmm.

Can you see some numbers going round the edge? I can definitely see a star.

Bright lights, angels, and then I think I can see a number of people and animals.

Can you see the same as me? So Sofia tells us, "My mum made my Advent calendar.

Each day, I take another character from a pocket and put it on the picture to tell the story of Christmas.

It helps me get ready for our Christmas celebrations.

Ah, I can see these little characters look like finger puppets that Sofia and maybe her sister put on their finger and can use to retell the story.

Well, well done to Sofia's mum.

That's a very special Advent calendar.

I think a lot of work went into making that.

Ooh, and here is her Advent candle.

"In my family we also have an Advent candle to light each day in Advent.

It reminds that Jesus is the light of the world and he came to bring God's life and light into the world.

Christmas is a very important festival for Christians." So I think an Advent candle will have numbers all the way to 25.

And so Sofia will light it and let it burn that number away and then the next day, burn away number two, the next day, burn away number three.

It takes her all the way to day 25, which is Christmas Day, and that's how the candle is used.

That's interesting.

She's got two ways of getting ready for that festival, that whole four weeks before it.

Now, what does Sofia do with her family to get ready for Christmas? Can you choose two answers please? A: buy lots of presents, B: light an Advent candle each day in December, and C: use an Advent calendar.

You might like to pause this video to give you time to think about your answer and maybe to talk about it with a partner.

Welcome back.

Let's see, what were the correct answers? What does Sofia do with her family to get ready for Christmas? It was B and C.

Really well done if those are the answers you chose.

Well done, you! Now this is Father Jason and he has a Christian worldview.

He's a priest in the Roman Catholic Church.

He tells us, "Christmas is a very busy time of the year for me and everyone in our church.

We have lots of different services and events helping us all to get ready for the birth of Jesus.

I'm really tired at the end of Christmas Day, but I love the wonder of this time." Thank you, Father Jason.

Now what can you see in this image? Take a moment and have a look.

What questions might you have about where it is and what's going on? You might like to pause the video and have a moment to look at this picture with some other people, on your own, or with a partner and talk about what you can see and maybe what questions you have.

Welcome back.

So, there are lots of people and people seem to be holding candles.

Can you see all those lights? The church has got Christmas decorations up.

I can see at least three Christmas trees and I think I can see some Christmas lights as well.

People are all facing the same way.

They're all facing towards the front of the church.

So it's actually a photo of a Midnight Mass service in a church.

So actually, this photo is showing us a Midnight Mass service in Father Jason's church.

And so I can see, right at the front there's an altar, the place where Father Jason would stand and lead the service and everybody's there very late at night on Christmas Eve.

Father Jason continues, "One of my favourite services at Christmas is Midnight Mass.

It takes place on Christmas Eve just before midnight and goes into the start of Christmas Day.

The church is full of candles that symbolise Jesus being born as the light of the world." Oh, that's the same reason for the Advent candle.

Do you remember Sofia told us that, about Jesus being the light of the world? So I have a question for you.

Is this true or false? Many churches in the UK have a Midnight Mass service on Christmas Eve.

You might like to pause this video to give you time to think about your answer and maybe even to talk with the person next to you.

Welcome back.

So is it true or false? Many churches in the UK have a Midnight Mass service on Christmas Eve.

It's true.

Why? Because, yes, lots of different churches will hold a Midnight Mass to welcome in Jesus' birth.

Now, this is Fiona and she has a Christian worldview.

She attends an Anglican church.

She tells us, "I love getting ready for our church Christmas celebrations.

One of the things I do is set up our nativity set for the carol service.

This is a special service and we sing songs about Jesus' birth and God's love for the world.

Would you like to see our nativity set?" Oh, I would, would you? Great.

Let's have a look.

"Here it is.

It's a tradition in my church for this nativity set to be placed near the entrance of the church where people can see it as they come in for our carol service." Now, in that nativity set, I think I can see the three clever people or wise men because I can see three people holding gifts.

I can see Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus in the manger.

I can see a shepherd with two sheep and also an angel.

So actually all those figures help to tell the Christmas story.

Can you find: baby Jesus in the manger, the clever people or wise men with their gifts, Mary and Joseph, the angel and a shepherd? You might like to pause this video where you can talk with a partner or find those four different things.

Welcome back.

So, did you find baby Jesus? Great if you did.

And the clever people or wise men? Yes, they're over there holding presents.

Mary and Joseph are right in the middle there.

And yes, there's the angel.

So there's also a shepherd and two sheep, and you may have mentioned him as well.

Well done.

Fiona tells us, "The Carol service tells the nativity story through readings from the Bible as well as singing carols, special songs written for Christmas time.

Our priest reminds us that Jesus was born in a very humble way.

Even though we believe he is our king, he had a very poor birth.

For a bed he only had a manger, an animal feeding trough." Hmm.

I think Jesus did have a very humble birth then.

I have a question for you.

Which image is not used by Christians at Christmas? Is it A, B, or C? You might like to pause this video to give you time to think about your answer or talk with a partner.

Welcome back.

Shall we see which is the correct answer? Was it A, B or C? It was C.

Yes, Christians use an Advent calendar and also a nativity set often at Christmas.

Well done if you got that right.

I'm really pleased and happy with that.

Now, can you use these pictures to explain two different ways that Christians celebrate Christmas in the UK? So there are four options.

I'd like you to choose two and explain how Christians use that thing or go to that thing at Christmas.

You might like to pause this video to give you time to do your answer, to do your work and then come back to me when you are finished.

Welcome back.

So your answer may have included the following: Some Christians have an Advent calendar to help them get ready to celebrate Christmas.

Others might have an Advent candle to light each day in December to get ready for the birth of Jesus.

Or some Christians go to carol services before Christmas and others go to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve.

Both of these services tell the story of Jesus' birth and God's love for the world.

Well done if you had that in your answer.

I'm really proud of your learning in this lesson.

If you've been able to recall and remember some of these things that we've learned.

Did you have anything else? Well done if your answer also included some other ideas.

Now we're going to go onto learning cycle two.

What do different churches do for Christmas? Sofia explains what happens in her family on Christmas Day.

She says, "I wake up very early in the morning as I'm excited that Christmas Day is finally here.

My family gather together and we take baby Jesus from his pocket on the Advent calendar and put him in the manger.

And then we light the Advent candle and exchange gifts." It's quite a lot that she's doing before they go to church.

(chuckles) Sofia continues, "When Jesus was born, he was given presents by the wise men, and we give presents to remember this.

I always get very excited about what I might get and have made for my family." I like giving presents and I also quite like opening presents.

I wonder if you do too.

"After breakfast, we get ready to go to church.

At the service, we listen again to the story of Jesus' birth and we sing some more carols about his birth being very special.

I love this service as everyone is so happy to celebrate the birth of Jesus." Thank you, Sofia for sharing that.

Now, is this true or false? Many Christians give presents at Christmas.

Is that true or false? You might like to pause this video to have a moment to think about your answer or even talk about it with a partner.

Welcome back.

Let's see, is the answer true or false? Many Christians give presents at Christmas.

It's true.

Why? Many Christians will often give presents because they're remembering how Jesus was given presents at his birth.

Now here's Fiona and she explains what happens at her church.

"On Christmas Day after our service, we have a lunch for anyone who can't be with family or friends." Oh, and I can see an image of what people get at Fiona's church.

So I can see that there's roast potatoes and vegetables and Yorkshire puddings and some meat.

Wow, that looks super tasty.

Fiona tells us, "We have the lunch every year because we want to make sure people in our local community can have a special time on Christmas Day.

After the meal, we watch a Christmas film and play board games.

It's a great day to serve others.

I believe Jesus came to Earth to show God's love to all people.

Therefore to volunteer and to help cook this lunch is an important part of my Christian service.

Not every church does this, but I'm glad that we do.

It's an exhausting day, but full of joy because I know we are caring for people." Well, I think that sounds a lovely idea, doesn't it, that Fiona's church does each year? Now, Father Jason explains what happens at his church.

"On Christmas Day, as part of the service, we collect money that goes to a local homeless shelter.

In my role as a priest, I encourage all the people in my church to be humble and to think of others at Christmas." He tells us, "Jesus was not born into a rich family, but one that was ordinary.

Mary had to give birth in a stable.

His family had to leave their home after he was born.

So on Christmas Day in my church, we remember especially people with no home.

We believe our job as Christians is to help those who are most left out and alone." So that's a bit similar, isn't it, to what Fiona's doing at her church with the lunch? But here they're raising money.

So I have a question for you.

Is it true or false? All Christians do exactly the same thing at Christmas.

Is that true or false? You might like to pause this video to give you a chance to think about your answer and maybe talk with a partner.

Welcome back.

So let's find out, was it true or false? All Christians do exactly the same thing at Christmas.

It's false.

Well done if you chose that option.

Why? Different Christian churches often do different things at Christmas.

As we found out, some churches might have a lunch for anyone to come to and others might raise money for charity at Christmas.

Well done if you got that right.

So here's a summary of what some different Christians do at Christmas in the UK.

So Sofia tells us she does that Advent candle and calendar, and then on Christmas Day, they open presents and go to church.

Father Jason talks about the fact that at his church, they collect money for those who are homeless at Christmas.

And Fiona tells us that her church puts on a Christmas lunch so people don't have to be on their own if they don't want to be at Christmas.

So lots of things happening in churches in the UK, but they're all different.

Now, on Christmas Day, Christians just open presents with their families.

Do you think this is correct? I would like you to use one of the examples of what Christians do on Christmas Day to answer that statement.

So think about what Sofia, Father Jason, and Fiona do.

Choose one of them and use that to answer the question.

Do you think it's correct that Christians only just open presents with their families? Let's pause the video to give you time to work on your answer and come back to me when you've finished.

Welcome back.

So on Christmas Day, Christians just open presents with their families.

Is this correct? No.

You might have said Christians do more than just open presents with their families at Christmas.

Sofia and her family go to church on Christmas Day for a special service where they celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Or you might have used Jason and his church raised money for charity to help homeless people.

He encourages all the people in his church to be humble and to think of others at Christmas.

But you might have used Fiona as well as an example of what happens at Christmas.

So really well done if your answer uses Sofia, Father Jason or Fiona, and that you managed to remember what they do at Christmas.

So we are learning that in the UK, different churches, different Christians do different things, but they're all celebrating the same thing, the birth of Jesus, who they believe is the Son of God.

So what have we learned today? We've learned that Christmas is a festival where Christians celebrate and remember the birth of Jesus, that Christians celebrate Advent for the four Sundays, the four weeks before Christmas.

It helps them to get ready for Christmas.

Churches in the UK often hold special events over Christmas such as a Midnight Mass or a carol service.

Many Christians will remember that Jesus was born in humble circumstances by giving to a charity or volunteering at Christmas.

And Christians will also celebrate at home with their families.

Well, haven't we learned a lot about what happens in the UK at Christmas today? I hope you've enjoyed that learning and for you, some of it was new learning.

That's great if that was the case.

I'm going to say goodbye now and hopefully I'll see you again for another one of our lessons.

Bye.