New Year Celebration (C1)

📝 Exercise: Emotions & Reflection

😊 Which emotions have you felt this week, and why?

(Answer in full sentences. Try to explain the reasons briefly.)

😌 calmness, 😟 anxiety, 😤 irritation, 😴 fatigue, 😞 disappointment, 😌 relaxation, 😐 indifference,

🧘‍♀️ serenity, 🔥 indignation, 🌊 overwhelm, ⚡ exasperation, 🌱 resilience, 🌑 despondency, 🌟 elation, 🌪️ restlessness, 🕯️ wistfulness

💡 Tip: You can say, for example:

“I experienced gratitude because…”, “I felt frustration when…”, “There was a sense of calmness after…”.

❄️🎄 Winter, New Year and Christmas: Traditions, Feelings and Personal Experience

Discussion Exercise. Answer the following questions in full sentences.

❄️ Winter and Lifestyle

🌨️ What does winter mean to you personally: comfort, joy, nostalgia, or challenge?
⛄ What winter activities do you usually take part in?
🏠 Do you prefer spending winter evenings indoors or outdoors? Why?
🕯️ Does winter influence your mood or daily routine? If so, how?

🎉 New Year Celebrations

🎆 How did you celebrate New Year as a child, and how do you celebrate it now? 🕰️ Do you usually reflect on the past year when New Year approaches? Why or why not?
🎶 Is New Year associated with particular music, sounds, or traditions for you?
📅 Is the exact date of New Year important to you, or is the atmosphere more important?

🎁 Gifts and Emotions

🎁 What do you enjoy more: giving presents or receiving them? Why?
🧸 Do gifts play an important emotional role in winter holidays for you?
💭 Do you think the meaning of giving presents has changed over time? In what way?

🎄 Christmas: Meaning and Traditions

🕯️ How is Christmas different from New Year for you in terms of mood and meaning?
🎄 Are there any Christmas traditions in your family that are especially meaningful to you?
🍽️ Are there any special dishes that your family prepares for Christmas?

🌟 Reflection and Personal Meaning

📖 Has your attitude towards winter holidays changed as you have grown older? How?
🧠 Do winter holidays encourage you to think about the future or focus more on the past?
🌈 What is more important to you during winter holidays: celebration, calmness, or a sense of togetherness? Why?

📝 Exercise: Fill in the blanks with the correct preposition

🎄 During winter, I’m really interested ___ making handmade decorations for Christmas. (in / on / at)
✏️ She enjoys working ___ drawing human figures from observation. (on / in / at)
🎉 We usually focus ___ preparing a cosy New Year celebration at home. (at / on / in)
📚 I often lose myself ___ reading books about art and creativity. (on / in / at)
🖌️ He is passionate ___ drawing portraits from life, not from photos. ( with / for / about)
🎶 I like listening ___ calm music while I draw in the evenings. (for / to / on)
🖼️ She’s interested ___ learning how to capture emotions in sketches. (in / on / by)
🎆 We usually concentrate ___ celebrating New Year quietly with close friends. (at / on / in )
📓 I’m working ___ improving my drawing skills step by step. (on / at / with)
🎁 He is keen ___ creating personalised gifts for Christmas. (about / on / with)
🧘‍♂️ Drawing from nature helps me relax ___ stressful days. (after / in / on)
🍵 I enjoy listening ___ podcasts while sketching at my desk. (for / to / on)
🎄 Before Christmas, we focus ___ creating a warm festive atmosphere. (on / in / at)
✂️ I’m interested ___ crafting simple decorations for the New Year. (in / on / by)
🖼️ He enjoys working ___ charcoal and pencil when drawing people. (with / by / on)
📖 I often get absorbed ___ studying artists who worked from life. (at / in / on )
🎉 On New Year’s Day, I’m involved ___ organising a small family dinner. (in / on / at)
✏️ She is passionate ___ observing small details in human posture. (with / for / about)
🏠 Staying at home is something I enjoy ___ the winter holidays. (during / on / at)
🎁 I enjoy taking part ___ preparing surprises for New Year. (on / at / in )
🖼️ He is keen ___ drawing people as they really look. (on / about / with)
🕰️ During the holidays, I spend more time ___ creative hobbies. (on / in / at)
📚 I often lose myself ___ reading about art philosophy. (on / at / in)
🎉 We focus ___ spending meaningful time together at New Year. (in / at /on )
✏️ She is interested ___ studying light and shadow on real faces. (in / on / by)
🎄 I enjoy working ___ Christmas cards by hand. (in / at / on)
🖌️ He spends hours ___ sketching people in cafés and parks. (in / on / at)

🕰️🎄🧠 New Year and Christmas in Great Britain: History, Traditions and Emotions

📝 Verb Tenses Exercise

Fill in the gaps with the correct tense of the verbs in brackets.

📜 In medieval England, the New Year traditionally ___ on 25 March rather than on 1 January. (begin)
📅 When Pope Gregory XIII ___ the new calendar in 1582, Britain initially refused to adopt it. (introduce)
🕰️ By the time Britain finally ___ the Gregorian calendar in 1752, public confusion was widespread. (adopt)
😠 Many people ___ anger and anxiety because eleven days were removed from the calendar. (feel)
📖 Over the following decades, society gradually ___ to accept 1 January as New Year’s Day. (begin)
🎉 By the 19th century, New Year celebrations ___ increasingly secular and social. (become)
🎶 During the Victorian era, families often ___ together to welcome the New Year at home. (gather)
😌 At midnight, people usually ___ a mixture of hope and nostalgia. (experience)
🎵 When the clock ___ twelve, “Auld Lang Syne” was traditionally sung across Britain. (strike)
🤝 The song, which ___ from Scotland, symbolised friendship and shared memory. (originate)
📺 Since the mid-20th century, millions of people ___ New Year celebrations on television. (watch)
🎇 In modern London, large crowds ___ near the Thames hours before midnight. (gather)
😃 At that moment, many participants ___ excitement and anticipation. (feel)
🕛 By the time the fireworks ___, the atmosphere has usually reached its emotional peak. (start)
🎄 Long before New Year traditions developed, Christmas ___ already ___ as a major Christian festival. (be / celebrate)
📖 In early medieval Britain, Christmas ___ primarily ___ as a religious event. (be / observe)
⛪ During the Puritan period in the 17th century, Christmas celebrations ___ officially discouraged. (be)
😢 As a result, many people ___ disappointment and frustration. (feel)
🎁 By the Victorian era, Christmas ___ into a family-centred celebration focused on warmth and generosity. (develop)
📚 Charles Dickens’ works ___ strongly ___ Victorian attitudes towards Christmas. (influence)
🎄 In the 20th century, Christmas traditions ___ widely ___ across British society. (be / revive)
🕯️ Today, many families ___ Christmas as a time for reflection, togetherness and emotional comfort. see)
🎉 At present, New Year in Britain ___ mainly ___ as a social celebration rather than a religious one. (be / view)
🤔 While celebrating, people often ___ on the past year and ___ resolutions for the future. (reflect / make)
🌅 In modern Britain, both Christmas and New Year ___ emotional landmarks marking the end and beginning of personal cycles. (represent)