Holiday Questions to Ask Students
For teachers who want holiday questions to ask a whole class in the weeks before winter break, or before any other school holiday. The 51 questions run in six groups, in the order a class conversation tends to go: Warm-ups, Traditions, Food, Time off, Kindness and Year's end. A student who celebrates Christmas, another holiday or nothing at all can answer every one, none asks about gifts, money or home, and each has a note on how to ask it and what to listen for.
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The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
Warm-ups
Which holiday or special day of the year do you look forward to most?
Why ask it
Saying 'special day' lets a birthday, Eid, Diwali, Lunar New Year, Hanukkah, Christmas or the last day of school count equally. Take one answer each around the room and write them all on the board, so the class can see how many calendars it holds.
What is the best thing about this time of year, and what is the worst?
Why ask it
Dark mornings, cold bus stops and crowded stores land in the worst column, next to the food and the days off in the best. Asking for both halves gives a student who is not excited by the season an honest way in.
What movie, show or book do you go back to at this time of year?
Why ask it
Leaving 'holiday' out of the wording lets in a snowed-in cartoon episode, a fantasy series on its third reread or a film with no holiday in it at all. When two students name the same one, have them agree on its best scene without giving away the ending.
Snow day or beach day?
Why ask it
Send each choice to one side of the room and let two students per side argue the case. It suits the last week, when sitting still is hard, and nobody has to share anything personal to take part.
What sound, smell or taste tells you a celebration is close?
Why ask it
Frying oil, incense, firecrackers, pine, one particular spice: the senses pull out details that 'what do you celebrate?' never does. Ask for a single detail and not a story, and it doubles as a quick-write before a descriptive writing lesson.
Which seasonal song would you be happy never to hear again?
Why ask it
Complaining is easier than praising, so even reluctant teenagers answer this one. A student who says they do not know any can name whatever plays in every store in December instead.
Would you rather have one giant celebration a year or a small one every month?
Why ask it
Take a show of hands, then one reason from each side. A student who picks the small monthly one may be telling you that big days wear them out, which is worth knowing before you plan the class party.
What is the best hot drink, and what has to go in it?
Why ask it
Tally the votes on the board and younger grades have a bar graph by the end of the argument. Expect hot chocolate, chai, cider, atole and tea with far too much sugar.
If you could decorate one part of the school for the season, which part would you pick and what would you do?
Why ask it
Leave 'for the season' loose so paper snowflakes, lanterns and plain strings of lights are all fair. 'I'd leave it alone' is a real answer too: ask that student what they would put up in spring.
What is a word, in any language, that you only hear at one time of year?
Why ask it
Greetings, names of dishes and the name of a game all come up. Let the student teach the room to say it, then stop there: one word of their own, not a talk about a whole culture.
Traditions
What is one thing you do every year that you would hate to miss?
Why ask it
Leaving the holiday out of the wording opens it to the first swim of summer, a birthday breakfast or a team's opening game. If nothing comes to mind, offer 'something you do every weekend' and move on without a fuss.
What tradition have you heard about from a friend, a book or a show that you would like to try once?
Why ask it
Students get to talk about celebrations without reporting on their own. When someone describes a tradition wrongly, ask the class how you could find out together; do not turn to the one student who might know and make them the expert.
Which celebrations can you think of that use light, and why do you think so many do?
Why ask it
Candles, lanterns, fireworks, bonfires and strings of bulbs fill the board quickly. The second half is where the thinking happens, and the list the class builds is a ready start for a compare-and-contrast lesson.
What game do people only seem to play at certain times of year?
Why ask it
Ask for the rules in three sentences, which is harder than it sounds, and let the class vote on one to try on the last day. Spinning tops, card games after a big meal and egg hunts are typical.
What is a celebration, big or small, that you still remember clearly?
Why ask it
A parade, a school concert, a street festival or a team's win counts, and the question never says whose celebration or where it was. Ask for the one detail that made it stick. If a memory turns sad partway through, thank the student and go on to the next hand without asking for more.
What do people wear for a special day that they would never wear on an ordinary Tuesday?
Why ask it
The question says 'people' on purpose: a student can describe what they have seen without describing what they own. Matching pajamas, a team jersey and embroidered clothes kept for one day a year are the kind of thing you will hear.
Which tradition seems strange once you stop and think about it?
Why ask it
Hold it to traditions the speaker takes part in, such as bringing a tree indoors or blowing on a cake before serving it. The moment it becomes laughing at someone else's, restate the question and take a different hand.
If you could invent a new holiday, what would it celebrate and what would everyone do that day?
Why ask it
Younger students invent a day for pets or pancakes, older ones a day when nobody is allowed to hurry. Push for the details (the food, the rule, the thing everyone wears), because a holiday with details makes a poster or a persuasive paragraph.
What should this class do on the last day before every break?
Why ask it
Take the suggestions seriously and actually do one, then do it again before the next break so it becomes the class's own tradition. Steer toward things that need nothing brought from home: a read-aloud, a lap of the field, a class photo in the same pose each time.
Food
What food do you think of as a celebration food?
Why ask it
Follow with 'what makes it a celebration food?'. The answer is usually time or hands: tamales, dumplings and latkes get made in batches by more than one person, and a once-a-year cake can take an afternoon.
What food should be around all year but only shows up for a few weeks?
Why ask it
Framed as a complaint, it gets louder answers than 'what is your favorite holiday food?'. A student can answer from a store shelf or a cafeteria menu, so no one has to describe their own table.
If the class could share one treat on the last day, what should it be?
Why ask it
As a debate it is free, and it is livelier than you would expect. Before you promise anything real, ask how your school handles food in classrooms and allergies, since the rules differ from one building to the next.
Sweet or savory: which end of the table do you head for first?
Why ask it
A show of hands takes ten seconds, which makes it a good one for lining up or for the minute before the bell. Let the savory side explain itself; it is usually outnumbered and enjoys the fight.
What is one dish you would like to learn to make from start to finish?
Why ask it
It asks for a wish, not for who cooks where the student lives, so everyone starts level. Push for the steps they picture, such as rolling, stirring or cracking eggs, because those steps are the bones of a how-to paragraph.
Which seasonal flavor is overrated, and which one deserves more respect?
Why ask it
Run it as ten-second verdicts with no rebuttals, or the peppermint argument alone will eat the lesson. A student who has never tasted gingerbread or eggnog can ask a neighbor to describe it, which is a small speaking exercise of its own.
What is the best thing to eat on a very cold day?
Why ask it
Soup tends to win, and then the room splits over which soup. In a place where the long break falls in summer, ask about the hottest day of the year instead.
Time off
What is one thing you hope to do over the break?
Why ask it
Hold it to one thing and welcome the small answers: sleeping in, finishing a game, seeing a cousin. Do not follow with 'are you going anywhere?', which turns the question into a comparison of trips.
What will you not miss about school during the break, and what will you miss a little?
Why ask it
The alarm and the bus go in the first half, friends and lunch in the second. Notice the student who will miss school more than a little: for some, this building is the steadiest part of the week, so check in privately and ask what your school offers over a break.
What time would you wake up if nobody set an alarm?
Why ask it
Have the class line up from earliest to latest without talking and you get a human bar graph. Teenagers answer noon and mean it, and one early riser usually shocks the room.
What could you finally finish, build or learn with a few free days?
Why ask it
Collect the answers on cards and hand them back on the first day after the break, asking 'what happened instead?' and never 'did you do it?'. A game level, a drawing or a skateboard trick is the right size of answer.
What are you planning to read, watch or play when you have the time?
Why ask it
Turn the answers into a class list before the last day, so a student who says 'nothing' has something to pick from. Timed before the final library visit, it sends a few more books out the door.
What can you only do outside at this time of year?
Why ask it
None of it needs a ticket: sledding, seeing your own breath, cracking the ice on a puddle, spotting stars before dinner. Where the break is warm the list changes and the question still works.
What would a perfect day with nothing planned look like, hour by hour?
Why ask it
The 'hour by hour' part forces detail and makes a tidy timeline piece. A day spent entirely on a phone or in bed is an honest answer, so take it without comment.
What is the best thing to do when you are bored and it is dark or cold outside?
Why ask it
Build one long list from the whole class and send a copy out with everyone. The students who find a break long get the ideas without having to say that is why they wanted them.
Do school breaks feel too long, too short or about right to you?
Why ask it
Ask for the answer on paper or with fingers held against the chest, not hands in the air. 'Too long' may only mean boredom, but it can mean time away from school is hard, so skip the 'why?' in front of the class and find a quiet moment later.
What should we do on the first day back to make starting again easier?
Why ask it
Expect 'no test', a seat change and time to talk. Choose one, and tell the class before they leave, so they know what they are coming back to.
Kindness
What is something small you are thankful for this year?
Why ask it
'Small' is the word that matters. It brings out a warm bus, a dog or a friend who saves a seat, and it keeps the round from turning into a list of big things that some students have and others do not. Take the answers fast, one breath each, and do not rank them.
What is something kind you could do for someone this month that can't be wrapped?
Why ask it
Each student writes one on a slip and keeps it: shoveling a path, a note, letting someone else choose the movie. Checking up afterwards turns it into homework, so don't.
Who at this school does work that most of us never see, and how could we thank them?
Why ask it
If the room goes quiet, walk through the day from the bus to the last bell and ask who made each part happen. Follow through with cards from the class, and get the names right first so the thanks is personal.
What is a compliment someone gave you that you still remember?
Why ask it
Many students can quote one word for word, sometimes from years ago, and that is the lesson: words last. It leads straight into writing one true line about each classmate.
What makes someone feel included when everyone around them is celebrating something they don't?
Why ask it
Listen for the practical answers: being asked along, not being asked to explain yourself, an invitation with no pressure attached. Students who have been on the outside tend to give them, so let everyone speak in general terms and do not ask whose experience it was.
If you could give the whole class one thing that is not an object, what would it be?
Why ask it
Grant one if you can: extra recess, a homework-free night, ten quiet minutes. A wish such as 'everyone gets along' deserves a spot on the wall.
What did someone do for you this year that they probably don't know mattered?
Why ask it
Hand out paper straight afterwards so the answer can become a note. A student who names a classmate or a teacher can deliver it in person, and nobody should have to read theirs aloud.
Year's end
What is one thing from this year that you want to remember?
Why ask it
Sticky notes on a wall work better than a circle here, since students like reading each other's. A hard year can produce a blank note, and a blank note is allowed.
What were you worried about earlier this year that turned out fine?
Why ask it
Good answers are specific: the first day at a new school, a tryout, a presentation. With exams close, it reminds an anxious class, from its own year, that the worry was bigger than the event.
What did you get better at this year outside of school?
Why ask it
You will hear things no grade book holds, such as cooking rice, a kickflip or looking after a pet. Jot them down, because they make good openers for conversations in January.
Which trend, phrase or song should stay behind in this year?
Why ask it
Teenagers will fight about this happily for ten minutes, and you will learn what the phrases mean. Set one rule first: trends, not the people who like them.
What is one thing this class did well together since the start of the year?
Why ask it
Write every answer on the board and photograph it before you wipe it off. Shown again on the first day back, the photo reminds the class of what it already knows how to do.
What word would you choose for your next year?
Why ask it
One word is easier to keep than a resolution and harder to fail by the second week. Seal the words in envelopes and return them in spring, when most students have forgotten what they wrote.
What is one thing you want to try for the first time next year?
Why ask it
Ask who in the room has already done it and pair them up, which gives the plan a better chance than a list on the wall. Small answers are the good ones: a club, a food, a kind of book.
What is coming up after the break that you are looking forward to?
Why ask it
Save it for the last minutes of the last day so the class leaves looking ahead. For a student who cannot think of anything, point at the class calendar: a trip, a new unit, a change of season.
How to ask holiday questions in a classroom
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Before you ask
Say 'a holiday' and mean it
Every question here is worded so that a birthday, a national day, a religious festival or the first day of summer is a full answer. Keep that wording when you read them out. Swapping 'a celebration' or 'this time of year' for the name of one holiday changes who can answer.
Leave gifts, trips and home out of your follow-ups
None of the questions asks what a student is getting, where they are going or what their house looks like in December, because those answers get compared across the room. Students will bring them up anyway. Take the answer warmly, do not ask for more, and move to the next hand.
Ask what your school expects
Rules on holiday content, parties, decorations and food in classrooms differ from one school and district to the next. Ask an administrator or a colleague how it works where you teach before you plan anything that goes beyond talking.
Make 'pass' an answer
Say once, at the start, that anyone can pass on any question and nobody will ask why. Some students do not celebrate, some are not looking forward to the break, and a free pass keeps them in the circle for the next question.
Ways to run it
One a day until the break
Take one question each morning for the last two or three weeks, moving through the groups in order: Warm-ups first, Traditions and Food in the middle, Time off in the final week, and a Year's end question on the last day. Two minutes is enough.
Sides of the room
For the either-or questions in Warm-ups and Food, name a wall for each choice and let students walk to one. Ask one person per side for a reason. It burns energy in a week when there is plenty of it.
Slips in a jar
Hand out paper, ask the question, collect the slips folded and read a handful aloud without names. Use this for anything in Time off or Kindness where a spoken answer might cost a student something.
Partner first, then the room
Give pairs one minute each, then ask who heard an answer worth sharing and whether their partner minds. Quiet students get heard, and the partner's permission keeps anything private from reaching the whole class.
What to listen for
A student who is dreading the break
It sounds like 'too long', 'nothing', or a joke about wishing school stayed open. Do not explore it in front of the class. Find a private moment, listen, and ask your counselor or administrator what the school's process is and what it can offer while the building is closed.
A student made to speak for a whole group
When a classmate turns and asks 'what do your people do?', step in. Each student answers for one person. If the class is curious about a tradition, make it something everyone looks up together.
Laughter at someone's tradition
Stop it at the first laugh and say plainly that unfamiliar is not the same as funny. Then ask the class a question from Traditions about a custom of their own that would look odd to a visitor, which usually resets the tone.
The class only talks about one holiday
In many rooms one holiday fills the air in December. Bring in the questions that name no holiday at all, on the season, the food and the year ending, and take the first answer from a student you know will widen it, if they are willing.
Before other school holidays
Spring break, a long weekend or the summer
Time off, Kindness and most of Food need no changes at any point in the year. In Warm-ups, swap the cold-weather choices for whatever the season is outside your window.
Where the long break is in summer
If your school year ends in December, the Year's end group fits even better, because the calendar year and the school year close together. Change 'cold' and 'dark' to 'hot' and 'long' and keep the rest.
A holiday most of the class does not know
Before a break tied to a holiday few students celebrate, start with the Traditions question about a tradition they have only heard of. It lets the class be curious without putting the students who do celebrate on the spot.