Christmas Around the World Lesson Plans: Christmas in Italy

Here are some of our favorite classroom ideas for Christmas in Italy.

The presepe or presepio, sometimes called a nativity scene or creche in the United States, is believed to have originated in Italy. According to tradition, Francis of Assisi built the first presepe in 1223 to help the people of his town understand the Christmas story. If this custom would be appropriate for your school, have students make dioramas or create a classroom presepe. If you’re studying Christmas around the world and including Christmas in France, you might choose to begin the presepe while studying Italy and then add santons (figures of villagers) while studying France.

A presepe might include a figure of Old Befana, Italy’s Christmas gift bringer. Legend has it that Old Befana was sweeping her house when the Wise Men came and asked her to go with them to see the Christ Child. She said she was too busy cleaning. A shepherd stopped and asked her, too, but she refused, since she was too busy. Later, she regretted her choice, and now she flies on her broomstick at Christmas time searching for that baby and taking presents to children. Tomie de Paola has done his usual masterful job in a picture book of The Legend of Old Befana. Sunday Frey-Blanchard has done a nice rhyming one with witty illustrations, too.

Papier mache angels are a traditional in Italy. They probably were mostly used in the manger scenes, but they’ll look great on your classroom Christmas tree. Use DLTK’s simple instructions to make an angel vase instead and you’ll have a nice holiday gift to send home to parents.

In Italy, Christmas Eve is a fast day, to be ended late at night with a meal of fish. The details vary from one region to another, but eels are a favorite. Merry Christmas, Strega Nona is another book by Tomie dePaola with a number of Italian words and traditions. It makes a fun read aloud on a busy day as the winter break approaches.

Pannetone is the traditional Christmas cake of Italy, and it is easy to buy packaged pannetone in the United States. Cut it up into bite-sized pieces for your holiday parties.