Realistic Brick Halloween Prop Accessory - Great gag prop to fool your friends, or to use as a weapon prop for theater or film. Latex shell filled with soft foam, realistic size and color. (Please NOTE: This product is a specialty item that may take up to 10 business days to produce.)Halloween is a new and confusing holiday for most ESL learners - and for some, it's also controversial.
A few years ago, as I was teaching a class of adults about Halloween, one student said that he and his wife and children wanted no part of the holiday, because their church taught that it was (in his words) "devil day".
Many people, including ESL students, sincerely feel that their beliefs won't let them celebrate Halloween - and will tell you so. What does an ESL teacher do when confronted with a statement like this? Argue that Halloween is harmless fun? Drop the subject and switch to irregular verbs for the rest of the class?
We don't have to do either. I think we all know better than to get into what would end up as a religious argument with students. Avoiding the subject isn't the way to go, either. Halloween is a reality of North American life that touches people whether they like it or not.
That's the best place to begin. Tell the students they need to know what to expect on the night of October 31st - trick-or-treating, firecrackers, pumpkins and all. Next, get into why these things happen: the pagan and Christian roots of the celebration. Explain the ancient Celtic new year and the All Saints' Day custom of beggars asking for food in exchange for their prayers. Explain, also, that Halloween celebrations began in Britain died out there, but lived on in the U.S. and Canada (as one of my TESL instructors said, it's the colonies that preserve the old traditions). In other words, give the class information rather than advocacy for either side. Even students who don't celebrate Halloween may find its background interesting.
You'll probably want to avoid Halloween crafts, or anything else that would make the class feel as if they were involved in getting ready for the holiday - or have an alternate activity ready. Halloween activities could also be optional take-home work.
Handle this potential controversy with respect for all involved, and you'll be demonstrating a little bit of what makes our society great.
Jane Wangersky is an ESL teacher and author. To get a reading for your ESL class right now, visit her site, The ESL Dollar Store.
halloween costumes