american culture

American culture

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Index

Holidays

Flag and symbols

The 13 colonies

13 Colonies

Watch the video about the 13 American Colonies and take notes if necessary.

Activity 1

Activity 2

Match the name of each colony with its geographical area.

13 Colonies

What were the New England colonies good at?

13 Colonies

What were the Middle Colonies better at?

13 Colonies

Where did the Southern Colonies make money from?

13 Colonies

First, click on all the images below and try to memorize the symbols.

Activity 1:

The White House

Lincoln Memorial

Flag of the United States

Flag and symbols -

The Gateway Arch

Mount Rushmore

The Liberty Bell

Washington Monument

The Statue of Liberty

The American Bald Eagle

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Activity 2

Now, watch the video and answer the questions.

Flag and symbols

Activity 3

Finally, match the image of each American symbol with its respective name.

Flag and symbols

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Click on all the images below , then click here to start the acivity.

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Activity 1:

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American holidays

American holidays

Do the crossword puzzle about the holidays in the United States.

Activity 2

Activity 3

Finally, help the frog to get to shore by answering the questions about American holidays.

American holidays

Labor Day

• It honors all workers and also signifies the end of summer.
• It's celebrated on the first Monday in September.
• Workers of all kinds enjoy the day off and celebrate all that their work has made possible.
• The holiday is sometimes observed with parades and speeches, as well as political rallies.

The Gateway Arch

• It stands on the west bank of the Mississippi River in Saint Louis, Missouri.
• It was designed by the famous architect Eero Saarinen in 1948 and was completed in 1965.
• It was built to honor Saint Louis, which is known as the “Gateway to the West.”
• Many pioneers passed through the city before settling the western territory of the United States.

The White House

• The president of the United States lives and works in the White House.
• The president’s family lives there also.
• The White House is in Washington, D.C., at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W.
• Its walls are made of sandstone and painted white.

Mount Rushmore

• It's a monument in the Black Hills of southwestern South Dakota.
• It consists of huge faces carved into the side of a mountain.
• The faces are those of four U.S. presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt.

The Statue of Liberty.

• It's located on Liberty Island in New York Harbor.
• It was dedicated on October 28, 1886 by the French sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi.
• It was designated as a National Monument in 1924.

• It was a gift from the people of France to honor the friendship between the two countries.
• It's a universal symbol of freedom

Memorial Day

• It honors the memory of soldiers who died in the nation’s wars.
• It began in about 1866, after the American Civil War.
• The holiday falls on the last Monday in May.
• On Memorial Day, Americans attend parades, church services, and other social events. People also decorate soldiers’ graves with flowers and flags.

Lincoln Memorial

• It´s a monument dedicated to Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States.
• It's in Washington, D.C., near the Potomac River.
• Construction began in 1914 and it was completed in 1922.
• The memorial was designed by Henry Bacon.

Halloween

• It takes place on October 31.
• People dress up in costumes, go trick-or-treating, and carve jack-o’-lanterns from hollowed out pumpkins.

• It was marked by customs started by pagans, who believed in many gods rather than a single god. It was believed that on the last night of October, the spirits of the dead roamed the Earth.

The USA flag

• The flag's 13 red and white stripes represent the 13 original colonies. Its 50 white stars on a blue background represent the 50 states.
• Each of the colors on the flag has a meaning:

-Red: valor and bravery.-White: purity and innocence.-Blue: vigilance, perseverance, and justice.

• The flag was last modified on July 4, 1960, when Hawaii was incorporated as a state.

Independence day

• It's celebrated the 4th of July.
• It celebrates the day the Declaration of Independence was adopted declaring the United States as an independent country no longer under the rule of Great Britain.
• To celebrate, most people have a cookout with friends and then view fireworks.
• People fly the US flag and wear red, white, and blue.

Christmas

• It's celebrated on December 25.
• It marks the birth of Jesus, but for many people it is no longer only a religious festival.
• It's common to give presents, which is frequently associated with a figure named Santa Claus.
• Other traditions include the sending of cards to family and friends, parties with good food and drink, and the singing of carols and other songs.

Washington Monument

• Built to honor George Washington, the United States' first president.
• It is located in Washington, D.C.
• The monument is just under 555 feet (169 meters) tall.
• It was the world’s tallest human-made structure when it was finished in 1884.

Thanksgiving

• It's a yearly holiday marked by feasts and family gatherings.
• It takes place on the fourth Thursday in November.
• It's celebrated with turkey feasts.
• It honors the early settlers and Native Americans who came together to have a historic harvest feast.

• It has been the national bird of the United States since 1782.

• It appears on the president’s flag, the mace of the House of Representatives, military insignia, and billions of one-dollar bills.

The American Bald Eagle

The Liberty Bell

• In Philadelphia in 1776, the Liberty Bell rang to announce the independence of the United States from Great Britain.
• People who wanted liberty, or freedom, for enslaved people gave the bell its name in 1839.
• It's a familiar symbol of freedom and justice in the United States.
• The Liberty Bell is mostly copper and tin.