December Thematic Feature = Holiday Traditions Around the World.

Sam Mantics
"Hi, I'm Sam Mantics, Dean of Admissions & Directions at Vocabulary University."
Type in and submit the 16 answers (4 in each puzzle) to the Rooty*Hoot*Hoot® brand puzzles in the boxes BELOW THE PUZZLE.
When you hit the "Submit Query" button at the bottom of this page, you will get immediate feedback with both the correct answers and the use of the words in context.
Direct links to the puzzles are: Christmas, Ramadan, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah."




We have five other exercises using 16+ words and our Christmas Bonus:
"Christmas Musical Trivia and More"!


Puzzle #1
Christmas is always celebrated on December 25th and is the observance of the birth of Jesus Christ. Christians believe that Jesus is the son of God, and he is worshiped throughout the world with prayer and thanksgiving for life and love.
Directions - Type your answers to this puzzle in the boxes BELOW THE PUZZLE.

Christmas Puzzle #1 "text": all 4 words represent either "feelings" or items which are found during Christmastime.

PUZZLE #1 - Rooty*Hoot*Hoot® - Answer Sheet.

Your answer 1
Your answer 2
Your answer 3
Your answer 4

Cinny Nym
"Hi, I'm Cinny Nym, Dean of Faculty at Vocabulary University."

"With the help of the WORLD BOOK ENCYCLOPEDIA I learned that today's Santa Claus started with a real person, Saint Nicholas, who lived in Turkey in the 300's A.D. He was the bishop of Myra and, because of his generous gift-giving, he became a favorite saint of children. The jolly old soul's appearance, as we know it today, is credited to the famous American cartoonist of the late 1800's, Thomas Nast. Some names for Santa Claus in other countries are:


Puzzle #2
Ramadan starts this year on October 28th and is the holiest month of the Muslim calendar. The 28 day holiday month begins and ends on the sighting of the first crescent of the new moon. Ramadan celebrates the first revelation of the Koran to the prophet, Muhammad. This holiday is designed to test the Muslim's willpower and to cultivate a state of being more aware of God and of what is right and wrong. Type in and submit the 4 answer to RAMADAN puzzle in the boxes BELOW THE PUZZLE.

Ramadan Puzzle #2 "text": all 4 words deal with the required seriousness of human behavior during Ramadan.

PUZZLE #2 - Rooty*Hoot*HootĘ - Answer Sheet.

Your answer 5
Your answer 6
Your answer 7
Your answer 8


Puzzle #3
Kwanzaa is a seven-day festival in celebration of the African heritage of African-Americans. Traditional African harvest blessings become part of the festivities along with a focus on seven principles: Unity, Self-determination, Collective Work & Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity and Faith. There are many feasts and the role of the family and community culture receive the greatest emphasis. Type your answers to this puzzle in the boxes BELOW THE PUZZLE.

Kwanzaa Puzzle #3 "text": all 4 words emphasize the important principles of the Kwanzaa holiday.

PUZZLE #3 - Rooty*Hoot*HootĘ - Answer Sheet.

Your answer 9
Your answer 10
Your answer 11
Your answer 12

Crossword
"Hi, I'm Crossword, the Mascot at Vocabulary University. I love parties.
Here is a list of synonyms for the words celebrate and festival as well as several cliches that I love for this kind of event.




Puzzle #4
Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday that recalls the victory of Judas Maccabeus when he and his followers reclaimed and rededicated the Temple in Jerusalem. The word "Hanukkah" means "dedication". It lasts for 8 days and is marked by the lighting of candles in a menorah (a 9-branched candlestick) to commemorate the miracle that allowed a one day's supply of oil to actually burn for 8 days. Type your answers to this puzzle in the boxes BELOW THE PUZZLE.

Hanukkah Puzzle #4 "text": all 4 words relate to events and things remembered or enjoyed during The Festival of Lights.

PUZZLE #4 - Rooty*Hoot*HootĘ - Answer Sheet.

Your answer 13
Your answer 14
Your answer 15
Your answer 16


When you hit the submit button below you will see all your answers in one short form. When you hit submit again on that short form, you will immediately get all the correct answers and sentences that use each correct word.

Your name
Your E-Mail


Feel free to make a copy for home or the classroom!

Please visit our home page at Vocabulary University and our School Content Calendar 2005-2006 for ideas on challenging vocabulary exercises. We would like to acknowledge the invaluable help of Bob Marzewski in all phases of our technical and graphics layouts. To see more, go to Bob's site on the web by clicking The Wizzard. Also a big thank you to Maria Reeves. Her graphical expertise can be viewed by clicking Maria.

We want to acknowledge that the word definitions in these puzzles are used with the permission of Random House Inc. and most come from their "Random House Webster's College Dictionary". Any questions can be directed to Jan and Carey Cook at Vocabulary University for clarification.



Reminder:
Don't forget to complete other activities and educational exercises from our current Session #138:

Interactive puzzles at grade level: ["S138 Level 1"] -- ["S138 Level 2"] -- ["S138 Level 3"]
Crosswords: ["S138Level 1 C/W"] -- ["S138Level 2 C/W"] -- ["S138Level 3 C/W"]
Find the Words: ["S138Level 1 WF"] -- ["S138Level 2 WF"] -- ["S138Level 3 WF"]
Fill-in-the-Blanks: ["S138Level 1-FITB"] -- ["S138Level 2-FITB"] -- ["S138Level 3-FITB"]
Synonym/Antonym Encounters: [S138Level 1-Syn/Ant] -- [S138Level 2-Syn/Ant] -- [S138Level 3-Syn/Ant]
Definition MATCH: ["S138Level 1-Match"] -- ["S138Level 2-Match"] -- ["S138Level 3-Match"]
Is It True or False?: ["S138Level 1 T/F"] -- ["S138Level 2 T/F"] -- ["S138Level 3 T/F"]
Contextual Stories: ["S138Level 1 Story"] -- ["S138Level 2 Story"] -- ["S138Level 3 Story"]


Any questions can be directed to Jan and Carey Cook at Vocabulary University for clarification. If you are a teacher, please give us the name, city, state/country of your school. For details on other thematic content click School Thematic Content Calendar.

If you want our free "Alphalary" (alphabetical vocabulary list) of 310 science-related words just email your request to Science Words and put "science" in the subject line. Please include your school, city, state/country and grade you teach, if applicable.
We also have a thematic Alphalaries on Earth. Email your request to EARTH Words and put "earth" in the subject line.

If you want to see all of our 66 "Alphalaries" click on this link: Alphabetical Vocabulary List or, in particular, request our 432 Character-Ed related words just email your request to Character Education Words and put "character" in the subject line. Please include the name of your school, city, state/country and grade you teach, if applicable.
Have you tried our set of puzzles inspired by Harry Potter? "Visit our Wizard puzzles". If you want our alphabetical list of 160 Wizard-related words just email your request to Wizard Words putting "wizard" in the subject line.

Click here for "Teacher Tips & Ideas" on how to use our thematic Alphalaries.


Please visit our eight features on The Most Important SAT*/ACT* Words:
Most Important SAT* Words #1
Most Important SAT* Words #2
Most Important SAT* Words #3
Most Important SAT* Words #4
Most Important SAT* Words #5
Most Important SAT* Words #6
Most Important SAT* Words #7
Most Important SAT* Words #8

See a list of all TOP 144 SAT* words we have put in puzzles from SAT#1 -thru- SAT#8.
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