Answer Key: Halloween Learning
A Little Halloween Learning…and Fun!
I. Pre-Reading Tasks
Students’ choice.
II. While Reading Tasks
A. Word Inference
tradition noun the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation, or the fact of being passed on in this way : every shade of color is fixed by tradition and governed by religious laws.
festivities noun ( pl. -ties) the celebration of something in a joyful and exuberant way : the season of festivity and goodwill.
distribution noun the action of sharing something out among a number of recipients : the government donated 4,000 pounds of coffee for distribution among refugees.
roaming verb [ intrans. ]move about or travel aimlessly or unsystematically, esp. over a wide area : tigers once roamed over most of Asia | [as adj. ] ( roaming) roaming elephants.
spirits noun a supernatural being : such a part manifested as an apparition after their death; a ghost.
Celtic adjective of or relating to the Celts or their languages, which constitute a branch of the Indo-European family and include Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, Manx, Cornish, and several extinct pre-Roman languages such as Gaulish.
ghosts noun an apparition of a dead person that is believed to appear or become manifest to the living, typically as a nebulous image : the building is haunted by the ghost of a monk |
appease verb [ trans. ] pacify or placate (someone) by acceding to their demands : amendments have been added to appease local pressure groups. See note at pacify.
superstition noun excessively credulous belief in and reverence for supernatural beings : he dismissed the ghost stories as mere superstition.
depicted verb [ trans. ] show or represent by a drawing, painting, or other art form.• portray in words; describe : youth is depicted as a time of vitality and good health.
malevolent adjective having or showing a wish to do evil to others : the glint of dark, malevolent eyes | some malevolent force of nature.
detection noun the action or process of identifying the presence of something concealed : the early detection of fetal abnormalities.
B. Questions for Comprehension True / False
The American Halloween tradition of “trick-or-treating” probably dates back to the early All Souls’ Day parades during the 1800s. F
Poor people would beg for food and families would give them pastries. T
The tradition of dressing in costume for Halloween has both European and Catholic roots. F
People were afraid of the dark, and food supplies were often scarce hundreds of years ago. T
The distribution of soul cakes a practice was known as going a-souling. T
On Halloween, to keep ghosts away from their houses, people would place a bundle of clothes outside their homes. F
On Halloween it was believed that people would encounter ghosts if they visited cemeteries.F
To avoid being recognized by ghosts, people would wear masks when they left their homes after dark so that the ghosts would mistake them for fellow spirits. T
Today’s Halloween ghosts are often depicted as more fearsome and malevolent. T
We avoid crossing paths with black cats, because we are afraid that they might be our dead relatives. F
Answers for false responses:
1. The American Halloween tradition of “trick-or-treating” probably dates back to the early All Souls’ Day parades in England
3. The tradition of dressing in costume for Halloween has both European and Celtic roots.
6. On Halloween, to keep ghosts away from their houses, people would place bowls of food outside their homes.
7. On Halloween, when it was believed that ghosts came back to the earthly world, people thought that they would encounter ghosts if they left their homes.
10. We avoid crossing paths with black cats, afraid that they might bring us bad luck, because many people believed that witches avoided detection by turning themselves into cats.
III. Post Reading Tasks
Students’ choice. Have students share their paragraphs with the class.
IV. Listening Activity
1. The Merchant House Museum is located in___
c.New York City
2. The New York Times called this house___
a. Manhattan’s most haunted house
3. The story begins in the year___
c. 1835
4. Seabury Tredwell the head of the house was____
a. an affluent hardware merchant.
5. The Tredwells had___children when they arrived in New York.
b. seven
6. The family remained in the house for___years.
b. almost 100
7. The room that was most photographed was the ___
a. the parlor
8. In several of the photos an unexplainable____could be seen.
b. flash of light
9. The stories are mostly about people hearing______.
a. footsteps
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