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Explicit Instruction/Teacher modeling (10 minutes)

Write the word tradition on the board, and ask students to repeat the word after you. Invite students to

turn and talk to each other about what the word means.

Define a tradition as the beliefs and ways of doing things that are passed down from grown ups to

children. Point out that traditions have usually been used for a long time, but that sometimes people

decide to start new traditions as a family.

Utilize some of the picture books in the Suggested Media section to give more examples of traditions

people honor at different times of the year.

Call on students to share some of the fall family traditions they talked about at home with their loved

ones. (e.g., pumpkin picking, carving or painting pumpkins, bobbing for apples, reading a specific fall-

themed book together, going to see the leaves changing colors, apple picking, going on a hayride,

decorating the house, attending a fall festival, etc.)

Display your complete copy of the worksheet (the Fall Family Interview worksheet is for lower grades;

Conduct an Interview: Fall Family Traditions is for upper grades) and share some of the traditions you

participate in with your loved ones. Point out that traditions do not only have to be with family. They can

be shared with friends, at school, or in another area of life, like a place of worship, on a sports team, or in

your neighborhood. Go over the rest of your worksheet with the class.