Spanish Christmas celebrations last from December 1st through January 6th. Families put up lights and Christmas trees on December 1st. On December 24th, families have a seafood and roast lamb dinner together and sing carols. They exchange gifts and eat 12 grapes at midnight on New Year's Eve for good luck in the new year. On January 5th, there are parades welcoming the Three Wise Kings, who throw sweets to people and leave presents for children.

1. CHRISTMAS IN SPAIN
HOW WE CELEBRATE
CHRISTMAS

2. 1st DECEMBER
WE PUT THE
LIGHTS ON THE
STREETS AND THE
CHRISTMAS TREES.

3. Some families make a nativity scene at home.
In Spanish we call it BELEN.

6. 22nd DECEMBER
CHRISTMAS LOTTERY
Everybody in Spain buys tickets for this lottery in
the hope of winning EL GORDO
(the fat one).

7. 24th DECEMBER
NOCHEBUENA (Good Night)
Families have dinner together and sing Christmas
Carols.

8. A typical meal for this night is se-afood and roast
lamb. Turrón (a nougat made of toasted
almonds) and polvorones (almonds with flour
and sugar) make a typical dessert.
TURRÓN

9. POLVORONES

10. We drink
CAVA, which is
a Spanish kind
of champaigne.

11. PAPA NOEL
Spanish name for Santa Claus.
He comes and brings presents to the
children.

12. 28th DECEMBER
We celebrate “Fools’ Day”.
We play jokes on our friends and
family and we hang paper
dolls on their backs.

14. 31st DECEMBER
NOCHEVIEJA (Old Night)
It is a big celebrationwith a lot
of parties everywhere. Until
midnight people stay at home
and it is traditional to eat 12
grapes (one each stroke of the
clock) at midnight to bring luck
for the new year.

16. PARTIES
EATING THE TWELVE GRAPES

17. 5th JANUARY
There are parades in all cities to welcome the
Three Wise Kings.
They go on their camels throwing sweets to all
the people.

21. That night they leave presents to all the
children. Some children receive gifts from
Santa Claus, some from the Kings and some
from both.

22. 6th JANUARY
For children this is the best day of the year,
when they wake up they find that the Three
Wise Kings have left them gifts.

23. For breakfast we have a traditional cake:
“Roscón de Reyes” ( a large ring-shaped cake
decorated with candied fruit).

25. Inside the cake there is a “surprise” (a small toy)
and the person who finds it is coronate the
King or Queen of the day.

26. There is also a dried bean and the person who
finds it is the one who pays the cake.
DRIED BEANS

27. I.E.S. GUADIANA
BILINGUAL SECTION
2009-2010