They then write and share their own holiday memory pieces and examine how nostalgia can affect what and how we remember. Review the Academic Content Standards related to this lesson. Explore their understanding of the concept of nostalgia through journal writing and discussion. Confront their own nostalgia by interviewing someone who shares that memory and comparing the two accounts of the same occasion. Give personal examples to support your argument.
Students then share their answers.
Ask students to describe in writing the memory of a holiday or special occasion which they remember as especially happy and rich. Give students about ten minutes to jot down all of their memories of the occasion in whatever writing form they wish to use. Then, have students share these pieces in some way. Students should write down their thoughts comparing the two perceptions of the occasion to share in a future class. Students will be evaluated based on their written journal entry, participation in class discussions, written memory pieces, and comparison of memories of a particular holiday or special occasion to the memories of another who shared that occasion.