Europe+2015-16

Information saved from our year-long immersion in European Cultures

Countries in Europe:
Countries in the [|European Union]

[|US Government's Link] to information about all European Countries

Websites and Databases
=== [|The Waltham Public Schools Databases], such as Culture Grams, Grolier, and World Book have excellent information and maps for learning about European countries; See Ms. Paradis for passwords ===

Plympton's Destiny Quest Catalog has resource lists with library materials for:


 * European Countries and Cultures
 * European Folk and Fairy Tales

**[|Teacher resources]** from the official European Union Website

**[| National Geographic Kids]**: Kid-friendly website with lots of good information and photography about many countries and cultures of Europe (and the rest of the world)

**[|Sheppard Software]**: European geography games

**Community Agencies:** Boston Irish Heritage Trail: [] Irish Center at Boston College: [] French Library (Alliance Francais Boston): [] Boston Scottish Fiddle Club: [] Scandanavian Living Center: http://www.slcenter.org/

European Arts and Crafts
[|ttp://www.mos.org/leonardo/] Leonardo and the Renaissance etc.

[] Mosaics and other stuff for kids

[] illuminated manuscripts, middle ages

[] paper mache bowls from Italy ('cartapesta')

[] Carnevale masks from Venice

[] How the term"china" for dishes came to be from U.K. [] more examples of British ceramics

[] history of art and architecture of GREECE

European Holidays:
__Autumn__

Rosh Hashanah
__A Sweet Year: A Taste of Jewish Holidays__ by Mark Podwal __Jewish Festivals__ by Angela Wood __Festivals of the World:__ Israel by Don Foy
 * Culture/Country:** Jewish/Throughout Europe
 * Time of Year:** Early Autumn
 * Key Events:** Jewish New Year: people attend services at synagogue; families share a large meal with a special menu (apples dipped in honey is traditional)
 * Books:**

Yom Kippur
__A Sweet Year: A Taste of Jewish Holidays__ by Mark Podwal __Jewish Festivals__ by Angela Wood
 * Culture/Country**: Jewish/throughout Europe
 * Time of Year:** Early autumn
 * Key Events:** The day of "atonement"--people gather in synagogue to think about their lives and determine to correct what they have done wrong; people fast; people wear white clothing
 * Books:**

**Hanukkah:**
__All about Hanukkah__ by Judith Groner and Maeline Wikier
 * Culture/Country:** Jewish/throughout Europe
 * Time of Year:** December; lasts 8 days
 * Key Events:** celebrates defeat of a great army by small group of Israeli soldiers; light special candles or oil lamps each night; play with top called dreidel; special foods are eaten, including potato latkes, doughnuts, and candy coins; small gifts are given
 * Books:**

**Nikolo and Krampus in Austria**
In Austria, //Nikolo// (similar to Santa Claus) visits on 6 December. Children put their shoes out the night before, and Nikolo fills them with treats. But Nikolo also has a counterpart named //Krampus//, a little devil who comes on 5 December. Krampus visits bad children. He carries a bundle of sticks to hit them with and has chains and bells he rattles.

St. Nicholas Day

 * Culture/Country**: Christian/The Netherlands
 * Time of Year**: December 5 and 6
 * Key Events:** St. Nicholas (called Sinterklass) and his companion Black Pete (Zwarte Piet) come to the Netherlands by boat from Spain. Sinterklass rides into town on a white horse and he and Black Pete call on all the children of the country. If children are good, they will find small gifts and chocolate candy from Sinterklass in their shoes. If they are not well behaved, Black Pete leaves them coal or a small bag of salt.

**Lucia Day in Sweden **
On 13 December, Swedes begin the Christmas season with //Lucia Day//. On this day, a girl plays the part of St. Lucia, or the “light queen.” She dresses in a white robe and wears a crown of candles in her hair. Lucia leads a procession. Girls dress in white robes, have tinsel in their hair, and carry a candle in one hand. Boys wear white robes, carry sticks with stars on them, and have tall paper cones on their heads. The procession sings Lucia songs and brings light to people during the darkest time of the year. Every school and every town have their own Lucia processions. On Lucia Day, traditional sweet rolls called //lussekatter// (Lucia cats) are served.

=**Christmas Around Europe**=

=
__Portugal__- In the early hours of Christmas day, there is a special feast called //consoada//. In some rural areas, extra places are set at the table for “the souls of the dead,” called the //alminhas a penar//, in hopes that they will bring good fortune in the year to come.======

=
__France-__ For Christmas (//Noël//), children leave their shoes by the fireplace for //Le Père Noël// (like Santa Claus) to fill with candy and gifts.======

=
__Ireland__- Candles are lit and placed in the windowsill, a symbolic welcome to Mary and Joseph since there was no room for them at the inn in Bethlehem. It’s also a time when families return home to share a traditional meal of turkey and ham.======

__Austria__- Christmas Eve (//Heiliger Abend//, or “Holy Evening”) on 24 December is perhaps the most important part of celebrating Christmas. Families gather to share a meal and sing Christmas carols. Children receive their presents, which are thought to be put under the tree by the Christ child when the children are out of the room. Christmas Day is a day for visiting family.

__Germany__- Christmas Eve is called //Heiliger Abend// (meaning “holy evening”), which is the night children receive their Christmas presents. Christmas Day is a day for family, and the day after is for visiting others.

__Norway__-On Christmas Eve (//Julaften//), bells ring and families gather to share a big meal, sing around the Christmas tree, and give gifts. Unlike Americans, Norwegians exchange gifts on Christmas Eve. Christmas parties continue until the New Year.

__Poland__- Christmas Eve is when most of the celebrating occurs. When the first star appears in the night sky, the family gathers to exchange presents and to eat a 12-course meal that doesn’t include meat. This meal usually includes fresh fish, dishes featuring poppy seeds or mushrooms, a special dessert of fruit cooked in syrup, and other traditional foods. Many people also attend midnight mass on that night to celebrate the birth of Christ. Christmas Day is a quiet day for people to spend time with immediate family. On 26 December, Poles visit friends and relax. Nativity scenes and caroling are popular throughout the season.

__Ukraine__- During the Christmas season, children go door-to-door to receive candies and cookies in exchange for performing //koliadki// (Christmas carols) and jokes.

__Finland__- Christmas is a special family time in Finland. Some traditions include giving gifts, leaving candles on the graves of family members, and having a //sauna// (steam bath). Usually, a nice ham dinner is served with pickled herring (which many kids hate) and //joululimppu// (Christmas bread).

__Italy__- Christmas is an important family time in Italy. It’s also a holiday with lots of eating, including a two-day feast that begins on Christmas Eve. You may not know that Christmas carols originated in Italy with St. Francis of Assisi. He and other //friars// (similar to monks) composed songs in Italian about the birth of Jesus. At Christmastime, many churches display beautiful //presepi// (nativity scenes), which show the birth of Christ. People also participate in live //presepi//, in which actors play the characters in the nativity.

Russian New Year:
New Year’s holiday is one of the most important holidays in Russia and other countries of the former USSR. Christmas celebration was banned in Russia after the 1917 Revolution along with other religious rituals. Russians, however, did not want to give up their traditions, instead reinventing the New Year’s holiday tradition to include what had previously been associated with Christmas: a decorated tree, a Santalike character called Father Frost, known as Ded Moroz in Russian and his granddaughter Snowgirl, known as Snegurochka in Russian. Today, even though religious observance has experienced resurgence in post-Soviet Russia, New Year’s remains the bigger event.

Many Russians believe that the way you meet the New Year sets the tone for the whole year ahead. The most common dishes on the holiday table include //olivye// salad (similar to American potato salad that in addition contains meat, pickles, and peas); a fish salad known as //selyodka pod shuboy// (literally, “herring in a coat” — that is, under a crust of spices mixed with boiled vegetables and beets). The celebration is impossible without champagne. The next couple of days are spent partying, visiting family members, and exchanging gifts. Grandfather Frost travels around the country on New Years Eve and leaves gifts for the kids. Children usually find their gifts under the New Year’s tree on the morning of January 1st. Holiday celebrations continue up until January 13th, called “Old New Year” in Russia, Ukraine, and some other Orthodox countries. New Years’s holiday is one of the most fun and favorite holidays for Russian children. Most kindergarten classes and schools have children dress up as snowflakes and other characters from traditional Russian fairy tales and have them dance around the pine tree and get presents. They sing a traditional Russian New Year’s song along with Grandfather Frost and his granddaughter Snowgirl. It is a folk song in which the lyrics tell a story about a small pine tree that was born in the forest and has now come to the children and brought them lots of joy. Many theaters have New Year concerts for kids where Grandfather Frost is a guest of honor. Children who come to the concert receive gifts from the Grandfather Frost that usually include many different candy and chocolates.

**Hogmanay in Scotland**
New Year’s Eve is Scotland’s biggest holiday. It is called //Hogmanay// and is a night for long parties. Scots also honor the Scottish poet Robert Burns each January with special dinner parties where they eat //haggis//, the Scottish national dish (made of sheep intestines and oats, which are cooked in the sheep’s stomach).

**Ukranian New Year**
The main winter holiday for most Ukrainians is New Year’s Eve, not Christmas. This is when kids expect Grandpa Frost (the Ukrainian Santa) to bring gifts and leave them under the Christmas tree (not in stockings). New Year’s Eve is a big family holiday that starts with a huge feast around 10 p.m., after which young children are put to bed. Then adults ring in the New Year with champagne. The celebration continues until dawn. All the presents under the Christmas tree are opened on the morning of 1 January.

**Greek Holidays (St. Basil's Day and Ochi Day)**
On 1 January, Greeks celebrate St. Basil’s Day to mark the New Year. At midnight on New Year’s Eve, a special cake (//vasilopitta//) with a coin in it is cut into pieces. Whoever gets the coin is supposed to have good luck during the coming year. Other holidays include Independence Day (25 Mar.) and //Ochi Day// (28 Oct.). //Ochi Day// commemorates the day in 1940 that the country’s leader said //Ochi// (No) to Mussolini, the Italian dictator, when he wanted to put Italian soldiers in Greece. It is considered a brave decision because the German and Italian armies greatly outnumbered the Greek army.

**Carnaval in Portugal**
//Carnaval// (which means “goodbye to meat”) is celebrated right before //Lent//, a time when many Catholics give up meat on Fridays and //Ash Wednesday// (the first day of Lent) to prepare themselves for Easter. Each town celebrates Carnaval a little bit differently, but they all have colorful parades, costumes, dances, and street parties called //arraiais//. Carnaval is a noisy time with fireworks going off throughout the day. Each year a Carnaval Queen is chosen, and she gets to start the festival the next year. After Carnaval, Portuguese celebrate Easter.

**Shrovetide in Russia**
A favorite holiday is //Shrovetide//, when Russians celebrate the beginning of spring. //Shrovetide// comes a little before Easter and lasts an entire week. People eat //blini// (stuffed, thin pancakes), make a lot of noise, dress in costumes, and play tricks on each other.

May Day in England
The first of May was an ancient Celtic holiday celebrating the start of summer. Later on, the May festival became a time for farmers to celebrate the coming season. Today, people in England celebrate May Day with traditional dancing by the Morris Dancers. They wear bright clothing, flower hats, and bells on their legs. Maypole dancing is also an especially popular tradition on May Day

**St. Patrick's Day in Ireland**
St. Patrick’s Day (17 Mar.) is Ireland’s national holiday. St. Patrick is the nation’s patron saint. He is credited with introducing Christianity to the Irish. St. Patrick’s Day features street parades in every city. The largest is in Dublin. In honor of St. Patrick, the Irish wear shamrocks (St. Patrick used the shamrock to remind people of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit) and organize big feasts. Of course, people outside Ireland celebrate St. Patrick’s Day as well.

**Constitution Day in Norway**
Constitution Day (17 May), which commemorates Norway’s independence, is celebrated a lot like the Fourth of July in the United States, with parades, flags, and family gatherings.

**Bastille Day In France**
The biggest national holiday is Bastille Day (14 July), which celebrates the French Revolution and French //democracy// (government by the people).

=**European Drama**= Commedia del Arte Ancient Greek Drama Shakespeare Moliere

__Curricular ideas__ St. Patrick's Day story/play Constitution Day (17 May)- Norway's July 4th December 13th- St. Lucia day in Sweeden Puppet Theater Stories of different Santas from around the world Madeline series Spanish play about ogre (name?) Stone Soup play Tommie dePaola stories Strega Nona series

Ms. DePaoli has sheet music for these songs
 * __Folk Songs__**

AUSTRIA Silent Night Joyful Sing Ye, Christian People Christmas Lullaby

BELGIUM Shepherds Bring Candy/Milk

CZECHOSLOVAKIA We All Go To Bethlehem Come All Ye Shepherds

ENGLAND Christmas Is Coming Friendly Beasts We Wish You a Merry Christmas Hark the Herald Angels Sing Greensleeves (See Recordings section too) Joy To The World Emmanuel Once in Royal David's City Here We Come A-Wassailing Masters In This Hall Gather Around The Christmas Tree I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day I Saw Three SHips O Come All Ye Faithful A Child This Day Is Born God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen Good King Wenceslas Twelve Days of Christmas

FRANCE Ding Dong, Merrily On High O Holy Night It Took Place on Christmas Eve The First Noel Nouvelles agreables Saw You Never In The Twilight Melchoir/Balthazar One Elephant Alouette Come, Let's Dance Au Claire de la Lune Juliette

GERMANY O Tannenbaum Christmas Lullaby Come Little Children A Child Now is Born in Bethlehem Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming Good Christian Men Rejoice O Come Little Children Echo Carol

HOLLAND Sinter Claus

IRELAND Christmas Day is Come Paddy Works on the Railway (Irish immigrants in America) Cockles and Mussels Einini (Little Bird) Molly Malone O Danny Boy

ITALY Funiculi Funicula On The Sea Volare Isle of Capri hymns of various saints

NORWAY I Am So Glad On Christmas Eve

POLAND In A Manger

RUSSIA Christmas Song Troika: Sleigh Bells (folk dance) Sleigh Song The Birch Tree Kalinka (Little Snowball Bush) Wonderful Rich Dark Brown Land The Ringing Bell Dancing Song Korobushka: The Peddler Three Girlfriends Kozachok (folk dance)

SCOTLAND Auld Lang Syne Away In A Manger

SPAIN Zumba Zumba Tonight A Child Is Born Joyfully Dance

SWEDEN Christmas Greetings

SWITZERLAND Sheperd, Shake Off Your Drowsy Sleep

WALES Deck The Halls

FYI: Op. = Opus, a term used by the composer for cataloging purposes as his repertoire grew. These numbers may help you if you are getting resources on your own. //Italicized// means the piece is very familiar to the average person.
 * __Recordings__** of this music are available to Plympton teachers from Ms. DePaoli. Please give her at least one week's advance notice.

//Eine Kliene Nachtmusik by Mozart// Piano Concerto in A major by Mozart Symphony #40 by Mozart
 * __AUSTRIA__**

New World Symphony by Dvorak (connection between Czechoslovakia and coming to America)
 * __CZECHOSLOVAKIA__**

//Pomp and Circumstance by Elgar (graduation procession music)// Salut d'amour. Op. 12 by Elgar Voluntary in G, Op. 7 No. 9 by Stanley Trumpet Tune and Air by Purcell Sonata in D by Purcell Concerto Grosso, Op. 6 No. 1 by Handel Arrival of the Queen of Sheba (Sinfonia from "Solomon") by Handel The Earle of Oxford's March by Byrd //Music for Roya/ Fireworks by Handel// //Fantasia on "Greensleeves" by Vaughan Williams//
 * __ENGLAND__**

__**FRANCE**__ La Vie Parisienne: Overture by Offenbach Fra Diavolo: Overture by Auber Zampa: Overture by Herold Lady in White: Overture by Boieldieu Coronation March by Meyerbeer //Coppelia: Festive Dance and Waltz of the Hours by Delibes// Thais: Meditation by Massenet Joyeuse Marche by Chabrier Danse Macabre by Saint Saens Carnival of the Animals by Saint Saens

__**GERMANY**__ Rhenish Symphony: first movement by Schumann Kinderscenen: Von fremden Landern und Menchen by Schumann Violin Concerto #1: Adagio by Bruch Waltz in A flat by Brahms Spring Song Op. 62 #6 by Mendellsohn Martha: Overture by Flotow //Minuet by Beethoven// //Fur Elise by Beethoven// //Symphony #5 by Beethoven// //Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven// Orchestral Suite No. 3: Air by Bach Der Freischutz: Overture by Weber Die Miestersinger: Overture by Wagner (opera, stories)

__**HUNGARY**__ Hunyadi Laszlo: Csardas by erkel Zigeunerweisen by Sarasate Hungarian Dance #5 by Brahms Hungarian Fantasy by Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody #6 by Liszt The Gypsy Baron: March by J. Strauss III //The Blue Danube by Strauss// The Merry Widow by Lehar The Csardas Princess by Kalmar

//The Four Seasons by Vivaldi// The Sicilian Vespers by Verdi Adagio by Albinoni //The Barber of Seville by Rossini (opera, stories, Paine Estate)// //William Tell Overture by Rossini// Nabucco: Overture by Verdi Manon Lescaut - Intermezzo by Puccini //La Giaconda: Dance of the Hours by Ponchielli (ballet)// Cavalleria Rusticana: Intermezzo sinfonico by Mascagni Caro mio ben by Giordano
 * ITALY**

__**RUSSIA**__ Ruslan and Ludmilla: Overture by Glinka Eugene Onegin by Tchaikovsky //Nutcracker Suite by Tchaikovsky// Chanson Triste by Tchaikovsky 1812: Ouverture Solennelle by Tchaikovsky March of the Wooden Soldiers by Tchaikovsky Gayaneh: Sabre Dance by Khatchaturian Snegourotchka: Dance of the Tumblers by Rimsky-Korsakov //Flight of the Bumblebee by Rimsky-Korsakov// Mlada: Cortege by Rimsky-Korsakov Peer Gynt Suite: Night on Bald Mountain (Norwegian folk tale) by Mussorgsky Khovanshchina: Dance of the Persian Slaves by Mussorgsky Rite of Spring by Stravinsky Three Pieces for clarinet by Stravinsky Gavotte by Kabalevsky The Comedians: Intermezzo by Kabalevsky

__**SPAIN:**__ Concierto de Aranjuez: Allegro con spririto - Adagio by Rodrigo Castilla No. 7 by Albeniz Love the Magician: Ritual Fire Dance by Falla Espana by Chabrier Capriccio Espagnol by Rimsky Korsakov Carmen Suite No. 1 by Bizet