Many years ago, though I remember it like it was yesterday, I was teaching an English class for middle school students in France. Around Christmas time, I thought it might be nice to teach the song, “The 12 Days of Christmas.” The students really enjoyed learning the song, though I think they wondered about the very unique gifts in the song (I don’t think we talked much about the rich symbolism in the song).
Inspired by this memory, I decided to create two different 12 Days of Christmas garlands this year. One has “The 12 Days of Christmas” translated into French. The other lists the symbolism of each of the 12 gifts. The printable garlands are available in our Etsy shop.
“The 12 Days of Christmas” is, of course, a very English song (however, it may actually have French origins). But why learn the words to an English song in French? Studies show that knowledge of vocabulary in learning a second language is very beneficial for enhancing comprehension, fluency, and confidence. Plus, having knowledge of new words in a second language is fun. We hope learning vocabulary in French for words we are so familiar with in English will add a little extra joy in this joyful season! (You can learn the pronunciation of the French words with our short YouTube video. Please note that the translation is for the sake of learning vocabulary in French, but the translation does not fit into the melody of the song.)
The garland with the symbolism of the gifts is in English. I often forget the meaning of the symbolism of the gifts, and if you are like me, you might enjoy this festive little reminder too. While celebrating the 12 days, starting on December 25th, you might also enjoy the ideas suggested in this article about the “12 Days of Christmas” song from dynamiccatholic.com.
The printable garlands are available in our Etsy shop. Simply print and cut out the cards, then hang them, using mini clothespins. If you like, you can face them all forward right away, or you can turn them over one-by-one on each of the 12 days of Christmas
Joyeux Noël! Merry Christmas!
