Control reading

“Holidays and traditions”

Jeremy tells about his birthday memories:

«Our family’s birthday traditions in England were always full of sweets and good cheer. My family prepared lots of food for the occasion. There were lots of various sweets in the house. And always, a freshly baked chocolate cake served with warm, homemade jam!

The birthday party officially began with serving the cake and blowing out candles.

One very popular game we played during birthdays was «pass the parcel». The children sat in a circle and passed a parcel wrapped in multiple layers of newspaper (a parent played music as we did this) to each other. When the music stopped, whichever child was holding the parcel would unwrap a layer of news-paper. At the end, the child who unwrapped the last sheet of newspaper got to keep the prize!

The prizes were normally little things, so our parents often cheated to make sure that each child got to have at least one.

I’m not a child any more, but I still smile when I remember those birthday games and sweets.»

What kind of food did Jeremy's family prepare for his birthday?

What was served with the chocolate cake?

How did the birthday party officially begin?

What game did Jeremy and his friends play during birthdays?

What did the children wrap in multiple layers of newspaper when playing pass the parcel?

What happened when the music stopped during pass the parcel game?

What did the child who unwrapped the last sheet of newspaper in pass the parcel game get to keep?

What was the prize for the game?

Did the parents sometimes cheat during the game?

What does Jeremy remember about his family's birthday traditions?

What did the parents do while the children played the pass the parcel game?

What did the children do during the pass the parcel game?