Fourth Grade
Worksheets
Russian New Year
Russian New Year
Reading Comprehension for December 31
Russian New Year is celebrated a lot like Christmas in western countries. It is one of the most important holidays, and it definitely is a favorite holiday of all children in Russia.
Think of how people celebrate Christmas. They start decorating ahead of time. They put lots of lights on their houses, around the streets, and in their front yards. They get a Christmas tree and put beautiful ornaments on it. They buy gifts for their families, and children wait for Santa Claus to bring Christmas gifts for them.
People in Russia do many of the same things for New Year's Eve. They also put trees inside their houses. Except instead of calling them Christmas trees, they call them New Year's trees. They decorate their towns, too. They put lights on the buildings, windows, and trees, and hang colorful signs wishing everybody a happy New Year.
There is a very special place in every town that children especially like around the New Year. It is a city's main square. Why do they like it? Because it is a center of all New Year's celebrations. There is a very big tree in the center of the square with lots of colorful lights and decorations. There are many things made of ice and snow around it - sculptures of animals, castles, and fairy-tale characters. There are even buildings made of ice and snow with places to climb, slide, and play around! Can you imagine an entire playground made of snow?
The beginning of a new year is a very exciting time for schoolchildren. Why? Because they get time off from school! The end of December and about two weeks of January is a winter break from school. Children spend a lot of that free time going to the city squares to play. But before leaving school for that break, they celebrate by having New Year's parties.
