Twas the Night Before Christmas. A visit from St. Nicholas

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This image refers to lines 5-6 in the poem. What would we call "sugar-plums" today, looking at this picture? (Click image description to find out)

A child lies in bed the night before Christmas, dreaming about candieshttp://www.gutenberg.org/files/17135/17135-h/17135-h.htm

1- Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
2- Not a creature was stirring , not even a mouse;
3- The stockings were hung by the chimney with care
4- In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

5- The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
6- While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
7- And mamma in her kerchief , and I in my cap,
8- Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap,

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In this poem, the last word of every two lines rhyme. The word "house" in line 1 rhymes with "mouse" from line 2. Some words are tricky- they rhyme, but are not spelled the same. Can you see which word rhymes with "care?" (fill it out in the student response area).

Poems that were written long ago are fun to read, but they might have words that you are not used to reading. The first word here, "Twas," is short for "it was." Sometimes, old poems also have phrases that you might not know. Can you guess what "settled our brains" might mean? It means "rest" or "take a nap."

In this poem, we are reading about traditions for Christmas. St. Nicholas is another name for "Santa Claus." In the Christmas tradition, St. Nicholas was a real person, who gave gifts during his life. You can hear more about the traditional story of St. Nicholas in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ-5GzZDLas

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