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Easter

Date: Apr 10 2009

Themes: Holidays

Grammar: Gerunds vs. Infinitives

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Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

For Christians, Easter is one of the most important holidays of the year. But for non-Christian and secular Americans, it’s kind of a weird one. This Sunday, people all over the US are going to hunt for colored eggs in their yards that were left there by a rabbit. You read that correctly.

People celebrate Easter with an Easter egg hunt. They dye eggs and then hide them so that other people can try to find them. Children like Easter because they usually get a basket full of chocolate eggs, which a giant bunny supposedly delivers to them. For college students, Easter means spring break, a week of no school and lots of partying. Now, just don’t ask what all this has to do with Jesus Christ and the resurrection!

Devan loves Easter, but Mason isn’t a fan. Listen to them discuss this unique holiday.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Mason

Devan

Mason: So Easter is coming up, which is, you know, lame.

Devan: Lame, what do you mean lame?

Mason: I have a very conflicting relationship with Easter because it falls on my birthday one every three years.

Devan: Oh, when’s your birthday?

Mason: April 16th. So you know, I have these bad memories of none of my friends being able to come to my party because they had to go do lame Easter things.

Devan: Like Easter egg hunts or dyeing Easter eggs?

Mason: Yeah, all that crap. Totally lame.

Devan: Yeah, I don’t know. I think Easter’s great. I love getting an Easter basket, and you always have your chocolate Easter bunny in your basket, and I love doing the Easter egg hunt. One year I found the golden egg and I won a prize.

Mason: See this is another thing, I mean, as a bunny-owner in my older years, bunnies don’t lay eggs. Just another inaccuracy.

Devan: Do you know how they celebrate it in France? It’s a giant bell that drops off the baskets.

Mason: A bell?

Devan: Like a Liberty Bell. So if you think a rabbit laying eggs is weird, try having a bell.

Grammar Point

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Discussion

This Sunday is Easter, and Mason isn’t looking forward to it. His birthday sometimes gets ignored because it falls on the same day as Easter, which is always on a Sunday in the spring.

Mason also thinks that the way we celebrate Easter is weird. Unlike Devan, he doesn’t enjoy dyeing Easter eggs or going on Easter egg hunts. He doesn’t understand the connection between bunnies and eggs. But as Devan points out, other countries have their own interesting ways of celebrating this holiday.

One reason bunnies and eggs are a part of Easter celebrations is that the holiday is associated with spring. Do you have a spring holiday or festival in your country? How do you celebrate it?

Comments

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Eydo

Turkey

HAPPY EASTER TO THOSE WHO CELEBRATE IT

Eydo

Turkey

"HAPPY EASTER TO THOSE WHO CELEBRATE IT"

natasha8965

China

sound interesting~

Haijiao

China

Hi,

Everyone here,Glad to meet you.Before I didn't know Easter.But half a year ago,my wife joined the Christian.So she will go to attend the baptsim that day. And I am lucky to attend with her.

michael1028

China

i don't know anything about Easter, i think everybody loves it if we have a spring break. We just had a Tomb-Sweeping Day last week from this year. so i think it's our spring break.

sofree

China

Not at all! I don't even know exactly what day is Easter until now. But I would LOVE to have it here, nothing about religion, good reason to have fun, so why not? And China never have spring break, only summer and winter break.

Btw, without any other opitions, I would prefer the bunnies lay eggs, a bell definitely doesn't lay anything, right? :D

zhouji

China

I don't know Easter anything,people around me hardly ever mention it.But I am interesting in the festa.I wonder what slight will appear when children play each other with many bunny and color eggs.

June1

Malaysia

I'm a non-Christian and I don't celebrate Easter in my country, but some of my friend who are Christian celebrate Easter every year. Easter is sounds interesting, the kids dyeing Easter eggs or going on Easter egg hunts and it's fun. I would like to join them too if I'm invited

mukashi

Myanmar

I really don't know the meaning of Easter before. But I have known that there is an Easter festival in Christian religious. Every religious have their own festivals and own trust. Eventhough we have different believes the most important thing is how we act the people to make happy and let them to have good point of view to other peoples.