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Christmas around the world: the present simple passive for holiday customs

This B1 ESL lesson plan teaches the present simple passive through Christmas around the world, with holiday customs from the UK, Ukraine, Japan and Australia.

Grammar
Am, is or are + past participle for customs (Carols are sung.), with negatives, questions such as What is kutia made from?, irregular participles and by + the doer.
Topic
Christmas crackers in the UK, the twelve-dish Holy Evening supper in Ukraine, fried chicken in Japan and a summer Christmas in Australia, with words such as wreath, carol and stocking.
Activities
An article to read, a classroom dialogue to hear, self-checking drills, a chat with a friend in Japan and open boxes about winter holidays.

What's inside

  1. Chapter 1Warm-up: lights on!

    • PictureUnlock
    • Spin the wheel and answerSpin the wheelUnlock
    • Study the words: holiday timeVocabularyTry it
    • Match the words and the meaningsMatchUnlock

  2. Chapter 2Let's read: four tables, four Christmases

    • Read the articleArticleUnlock
    • Read and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Read again and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
    • Sort the phrases into the correct columns: which country?Sort into columnsUnlock

  3. Chapter 3Let's listen: that song from Home Alone

    • Listen to Daria and LiamListeningTry it
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock

  4. Chapter 4Grammar: how is it done?

    • Study the scheme: the present simple passiveGrammar schemeTry it
    • Choose the correct option: holiday customsChoose the optionUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps: use the present simple passive of the verbs in bracketsFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Fill in the table: from active to passiveFill in the tableTry it
    • Choose the correct answer: passive sentences and questionsQuizUnlock
    • Drag the words into the gaps: past participlesDrag and dropUnlock

  5. Chapter 5Let's talk: how is it done where you live?

    • Choose the right replies: Kenji's holiday videoChatTry it
    • Open a box and answer: winter holidays where you liveOpen the boxUnlock

  6. Chapter 6Homework

    • Unscramble the wordsAnagramUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps with the lesson's wordsFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Find the matching pairs: words and meaningsMemory gameUnlock
    • Drag the words into the gaps: Liam's postDrag and dropUnlock
    • Choose the correct option: in our townChoose the optionUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps: use the present simple passive of the verbs in bracketsFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Put the words in the correct orderUnjumbleUnlock
    • Fill in the table: the present simple passive with is and areFill in the tableUnlock
    • Choose the correct option: a message from DariaChoose the optionUnlock
    • Choose the correct answer: the holiday customs quizQuizUnlock

29 exercises in 6 chapters. Start a 7-day free trial to open all of them, copy any part into your own lessons, and teach the lesson live.

Christmas vocabulary

10 words and phrases from the lesson, each with a picture and audio in edio.

+7 more with pictures and audio in the lessonMore words

  • carol
  • tradition
  • ornament
  • wreath
  • feast
  • Christmas Eve
  • stocking

Grammar: the present simple passive for customs

The present simple passive describes what is usually done, when the action matters more than the person who does it: The first dish is served when the first star appears. Holiday customs are full of it, since nobody asks who exactly sings the carols. Learners put am, is or are before a past participle, make negatives and questions, turn active sentences into passive ones and add by when it matters.

Carols are sung

Use the present simple passive to describe a custom: the action matters more than the person who does it.

One thing or many: is or are

Be agrees with the subject: The first dish is served at six. Twelve dishes are served. Negatives add not (Meat isn't eaten.), and questions put is or are before the subject: When are the presents opened? What is kutia made from? With I, it's am: I am invited.

am / is / are + past participle

FormOne thing: isMany things: are
PositiveThe first dish is served at six.Twelve dishes are served.
NegativeMeat isn't eaten. (= is not eaten)Eggs aren't used. (= are not used)
QuestionWhat is kutia made from?When are the presents opened?

Every person

PersonbePast participle
Iaminvited to the party.
youareinvited to the party.
he / she / itisinvited to the party.
weareinvited to the party.
theyareinvited to the party.

Regular and irregular participles

Regular verbs add -ed or -d, as in the past simple: pulled, served, and wrap doubles the p: wrapped. Irregular verbs use the participle, not the past simple: Meat isn't eaten, not isn't ate. The scheme lists fourteen, from sung and hung to brought and hidden.

The past participle: regular verbs

Regular verbs add -ed (or -d), just like the past simple: open → opened, pull → pulled, decorate → decorated, serve → served, bake → baked. Wrap doubles the p: wrapped.

The past participle: irregular verbs

Base formPast participleExample
eateatenMeat isn't eaten.
singsungCarols are sung.
hanghungStockings are hung by the fireplace.
givegivenPresents are given.
makemadeKutia is made from wheat.
wearwornA paper crown is worn.
sendsentCards are sent.
telltoldJokes are told.
bringbroughtA didukh is brought into the home.
putputHay is put on the table.
writewrittenCards are written by hand.
buyboughtThe tree is bought in December.
hidehiddenThe presents are hidden.
keepkeptThe ornaments are kept in a box.

Active or passive?

An active sentence starts with who does it: Two people pull the cracker. The passive starts with the thing the action happens to: The cracker is pulled by two people. When the doer is just “people,” the passive sounds natural: Christmas is celebrated in many countries.

Active or passive?

Active: who does it?

  • People sing carols from house to house.
  • Two people pull the cracker.
  • People don't eat meat.

Passive: what happens?

  • Carols are sung from house to house.
  • The cracker is pulled by two people.
  • Meat isn't eaten.

At the holiday table

  • Christmas is celebrated in many countries.
  • December 26 is called Boxing Day in the UK.
  • Uzvar is made from dried fruit.
  • Milk and eggs aren't used.
  • Is turkey served too?
  • Where is this wreath hung?

By + the doer, when it matters

Most customs leave the doer out, because it's everybody or it isn't important. Add by when the doer is worth naming: The message is given by the King. The kutia is made by my grandmother.

by + the person who does it

Usually we don't say who does it: it's “people”, or it isn't important. When it matters, add by: The message is given by the King. The kutia is made by my grandmother.

Four common mistakes

Watch for Carols are sing (it's are sung), Meat isn't ate (isn't eaten), Christmas is celebrating in December (is celebrated) and Carols sing on Christmas Eve. Carols can't sing anything, so they need are sung: people sing them.

  • Carols are sing from house to house.

    Carols are sung from house to house.

    be + past participle

  • Meat isn't ate.

    Meat isn't eaten.

    the past participle, not the past simple

  • Christmas is celebrating in December.

    Christmas is celebrated in December.

    not -ing

  • Carols sing on Christmas Eve.

    Carols are sung on Christmas Eve.

    carols can't sing: people sing them

More lessons on this grammar: Passive voice lessons and exercises

Try the present simple passive exercises

Try them yourself: these are the same exercises your students do in edio.

More exercises

What's in the lesson

  • 18 auto-checked exercises
  • 5 games
  • 1 article
  • 1 grammar scheme
  • 1 set of word cards
  • 1 audio clip
  • 1 picture
  • 1 transcript

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

  • describe customs with is or are + past participle: Twelve dishes are served. A paper crown is worn during the meal.
  • say what isn't done and ask about customs: Meat isn't eaten that evening. When are the presents opened? What is kutia made from?
  • turn active sentences into passive ones and add by when the doer matters: The kutia is made by Daria's grandmother.
  • avoid the common slips: Carols are sung, not are sing; Christmas is celebrated, not is celebrating
  • describe the winter holidays where they live: Lights are hung on every tree on the main street.

English B1 · Hot Topics ties each of its five stand-alone lessons, all with their own speakers, to one event, and Christmas around the world is for the days before December 25. Before or after it, try Can you cross a city without going outside?, lesson 5 of English B1.2 · Changemakers, on the same passive. A custom is done every year by nobody in particular, which is why it calls for is served and are sung.

Students spin a wheel of holiday questions, then learn ten words, from decorate to stocking, with audio and short definitions, and match them to meanings. They read “Four tables, four Christmases,” answer true-or-false and multiple-choice reading comprehension questions and sort its customs by country. In an AI-voiced dialogue, Daria, an exchange student from Ukraine, tells her classmate Liam where “Carol of the Bells” comes from. The scheme comes with five self-checking drills, among them a table that turns active sentences into passive ones. To speak, students answer Kenji's questions for his holiday video in a chat, then open boxes about winter holidays where they live.

All ten homework tasks check themselves: an anagram, gaps and a memory game for the words, and Liam's class post with words to drag in; then forms to choose, passive gaps, word order, an is-or-are table, Daria's message from Holy Evening with forms to choose and a quiz on the four countries' customs.

Grammar:
present simple passive · passive voice · past participles · by + agent
Topic:
Christmas · winter holidays · traditions · food · United Kingdom · Ukraine · Japan · Australia

Teaching tips

  • Hum the melody of “Carol of the Bells” before the dialogue and ask where students know it from. After listening, they explain where it comes from: It's based on a Ukrainian New Year's song.
  • Split the article between four groups, one country each. Each group reads its part and reports three customs in the passive, such as Crackers are pulled at dinner, and then everyone reads the whole article to check.
  • Ask who hangs the stockings in Stockings are hung by the fireplace. The sentence doesn't say: here, by names a place. In The kutia is made by Daria's grandmother, it names the cook.
  • Say “winter holidays” in the speaking tasks, as the lesson's own prompts do, so students who don't celebrate Christmas can describe New Year or another family holiday: What is eaten? What is sung?

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The whole course: English B1 · Hot Topics

Five stand-alone lessons for teens and adults at B1, in American English, each tied to an event of late 2026: GTA VI's release on November 19, Black Friday, two blockbusters on December 18, Christmas around the world and New Year. Teach each one in the week of its event, for example between units of English B1.1 or B1.2. Every lesson has its own grammar point, and the practice exercises check themselves.See the course

  1. Unit 1 November: a launch and a sale

    GTA VI's release after two delays and Black Friday deals, with the present perfect with already, yet, for and since, and the first conditional

    1. Lesson 1GTA 6: worth the wait?The present perfect with already, yet and just vs the past simple
    2. Lesson 2Black Friday: deal or trap?The first conditional: if + present simple, will / won't

  2. Unit 2 December: holidays and big screens

    Christmas in four countries, two blockbusters on one Friday and New Year's resolutions, with the present simple passive, -ed and -ing adjectives, and be going to vs will

    1. Lesson 3 · you're hereChristmas around the worldThe present simple passive for customs
    2. Lesson 4Two blockbusters, one Friday-ed and -ing adjectives: bored or boring?
    3. Lesson 5Goodbye 2026, hello 2027Be going to vs will

Questions about this lesson

What is the present simple passive?
The present simple passive is am, is or are + past participle, used when what happens matters more than who does it: Carols are sung from house to house. Negatives add not (Meat isn't eaten.), and yes/no questions start with is or are: Is turkey served too? It's the usual way to describe a custom. The B1 lesson Christmas around the world on edio.ai teaches it with holiday traditions from four countries.
What are some examples of the present simple passive for Christmas traditions?
Five from Christmas around the world, a B1 lesson on edio.ai: A paper crown is worn during the meal. Twelve dishes are served. Kutia is made from wheat, honey and poppy seeds. December 26 is called Boxing Day in the UK. Stockings are hung by the fireplace. Use is for one thing, are for several: The tree is decorated, but cookies are baked.
Is it "Christmas is celebrated" or "Christmas is celebrating"?
It's Christmas is celebrated, with the past participle: Christmas doesn't celebrate anything; people celebrate it. Is celebrating is the active present continuous, and is celebrate has no participle at all. The same goes for Carols are sung, not are sing, and Meat isn't eaten, not isn't ate. The scheme of Christmas around the world on edio.ai lists these slips, and every wrong reply in its chat has a passive mistake.
How is Christmas celebrated around the world?
Each country sets a very different table, as the B1 lesson Christmas around the world on edio.ai shows with four of them. In the UK, crackers are pulled at Christmas dinner. In Ukraine, usually twelve dishes without meat, milk or eggs are served on December 24. In Japan, fried chicken from KFC is a well-known Christmas meal. In Australia, Christmas comes in summer, and prawns, salads and pavlova are often served.
How is Christmas celebrated in Japan?
In Japan, fried chicken from KFC is a well-known Christmas meal. The story goes back to 1970, when Takeshi Okawara, who managed Japan's first KFC restaurant, began selling a “party barrel” of fried chicken for Christmas. In 1974, the company ran a national advertising campaign called “Kentucky for Christmas.” In 2019, sales around Christmas Eve came to almost five percent of KFC Japan's sales for the year. Christmas around the world on edio.ai tells this story.
What is Christmas like in Australia?
Christmas in Australia comes in summer, and the day is often hot. Lunch often includes prawns (shrimp), oysters, ham, cold meats and salads, and pavlova with fresh berries and kiwi fruit is a popular dessert. Many people swim or play street cricket, and Santas on surfboards have been seen at Bondi Beach in Sydney. On Christmas Eve, carols are sung outdoors at Carols by Candlelight, which began in Melbourne in 1938. Christmas around the world on edio.ai covers it.
How is Christmas celebrated in Ukraine?
In Ukraine, Christmas Day is December 25, and the evening before is called Holy Evening. The supper starts when the first star appears, and usually twelve dishes are served, with no meat, milk or eggs. Kutia, made from wheat, honey and poppy seeds, comes first, and uzvar is a drink made from dried fruit. A didukh, a sheaf of wheat, decorates the table, and carols are sung from house to house, as Christmas around the world on edio.ai explains.
What are the Christmas traditions in the UK?
At Christmas dinner in the UK, crackers are pulled and paper crowns are worn. A cracker is a cardboard tube in bright paper: two people pull it, it opens with a small bang, and a paper crown, a small toy and a joke are inside. Tradition says a London candy maker, Tom Smith, invented it in 1847. The King's Christmas message is broadcast at 3 p.m. on Christmas Day, and December 26 is called Boxing Day.
How do I teach the present simple passive in the week before Christmas?
Start from customs your students already know: ask what is eaten, sung or hung where they live, and write their answers in the passive. Then read about the four tables and listen to Daria and Liam. Christmas around the world on edio.ai moves from there to the scheme and five drills. Its customs are about food, music and decorations, and its speaking tasks ask about winter holidays, so students who don't celebrate Christmas can join in.
What's a good Christmas game for practicing the passive?
Play “Which country?”: read out a custom in the passive without the place (Kutia is served first. A paper crown is worn.), and teams race to name the country. In Christmas around the world on edio.ai, students sort customs by country after the reading, and the speaking chapter ends with open boxes such as How is your home decorated in December? What is hung on the walls, the windows or the door?
What's good homework after a Christmas lesson on the passive?
Good homework mixes the forms with real customs: a choice between is made, is make and makes, passive gaps, word order and a table of is and are. All ten homework tasks in Christmas around the world on edio.ai check themselves; one is Daria's message from her family's Holy Evening table, and the last is a quiz on the customs of the four countries.
How do you practice the passive one-to-one in December?
Swap family traditions: the student describes one in the passive (The tree is bought at the same market every year.), and the teacher asks When is it done? and Who is it done by? Then switch. This page plays three parts of Christmas around the world on edio.ai with no account: Daria and Liam's dialogue, the active-to-passive table and Kenji's chat, which a student can do alone.
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