Build-A-Santa

As the song says "it's the most wonderful time of the year" and here at Matt-erials HQ we (alright, I) love nothing more than a good ol' Christmas!! So, to celebrate, I've finally finished a lesson based on Santa and all things Christmassy!

The aim is to teach the students some Christmas vocabulary, you can always add more vocab if you require, and the various items of clothing Santa wears.

Start by playing some Christmas music for you class, maybe as they enter, let them have a dance around and then you can start. Tell them a bit about Christmas and Santa (especially if they are in a country that does not celebrate Christmas) and then move on to the PPT.


  1. Elicit the vocabulary items from the students an give them the answers if they need them. The vocabulary items include hat, beard, gloves, jacket, belt, trousers, boots and presents.
  2. You may want to play some variety of flashcard game, with the flashcards provided, at this point.
  3. Next step is a Top Score. Simply split the students into pairs, have one student produce the vocabulary an then role the dice and record their score. The winner is the student with the highest number.
  4. The there is a worksheet to consolidate the vocabulary. The students must label the vocab items they have learnt. When this is complete, they can draw them on the blank Santa provided, creating their own, unique Santa Clause!
  5. The final activity is for the whole class. Show the second to last slide of the PPT and have students come up and name the item of clothing. If they are correct they can simply touch the item they have named and one of Santa's Elf's will carry it over to help build Santa. Ensure that you leave the gloves until last as, once Santa is dressed and complete, he will start to dance to one of his favourite songs!
I have made all the items you need for the lesson available to download. They include;
  1. Powerpoint for eliciting the vocab items and for the final activity.
  2. Vocabulary flashcards.
  3. Top Score game.
  4. Worksheet.
So, without further ado I shall leave you to your planning and teaching and wish you all a very, very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!