Учебно-методическая разработка на тему: "Традиции и обычаи англоговорящих стран".

Разработка открытого урока

на тему: «Традиции и обычаи англоговорящих стран»

Цели урока :

Практические:

· развитие умения аудировать;

· активизация лексики по теме;

· развитие говорения (умения сообщать, объяснять, рассказывать);

· развитие навыков самостоятельной работы и работы в команде.

Образовательные:

· приобретение знаний об истории, традициях и обычаях англоговорящих стран;

Воспитательные:

· воспитание положительного отношения к культуре народа изучаемого языка;

Развивающие:

· развитие творческих способностей учащихся;

· развитие умения общаться, а также таких черт характера как

трудолюбие, целеустремленность, активность.

Учебно-методические задачи.

- Общеобразовательные:

- привлечение учащихся к активной творческой деятельности; -формирование коммуникативного поведения;

активизация навыков и умений в аудировании, говорении, письме; - расширение знаний страноведческого характера.

Развивающие:

- развитие памяти, внимания, логического мышления;

- развитие способности к догадке;

Воспитательные:

- обучать навыкам взаимопонимания;

- формировать чувство ответственности при работе в команде; толерантного отношения друг к другу

-активизировать интерес к изучению английского языка;

-привлечь учащихся к активной творческой деятельности.

1.Организационный момент. Этап введения учащихся в урок.

Good morning, pupils! The theme of our lesson today is traditions and customs of English-speaking countries. We are going to discuss such holidays celebrating in Great Britain as the Bonfire Night, Christmas and New Year and the May Day. But, firstly, I would like to tell you about celebrations in Britain in the whole.

2. Преподаватель рассказывает на английском языке общую информацию о праздниках и традициях Великобритании. Рассказ сопровождается презентацией.

3. Первый учащийся выходит и рассказывает о празднике the Bonfire Night на английском(см. Приложение 1). После своего рассказа данный учащийся задаёт вопросы группе по теме, затем, с помощью презентации, демонстрирует задания, которые остальные учащиеся должны выполнить. На данном этапе отрабатываются коммуникативные навыки и навыки аудирования, т.к. презентация содержит видео на английском языке. Здесь необходимо отметить, что доклад, презентация и задания по теме были подготовлены заранее студентом. Преподаватель на этапе подготовки материала контролирует и проверяет работу студента.

4. Следующий учащийся рассказывает на английском об обычаях празднования Рождества и Нового года в Соединённом Королевстве(см. Приложение 2). Рассказ сопровождается презентацией, выполненной студентом. На данном этапе отрабатываются навыки написания письма, т.к итогом рассказа студента является демонстрация письма на английском языке, которое требует ответа. Учащиеся группы должны написать ответное письмо, описав в нём свой любимый праздник и особенности его проведения в нашей стране. Должны отметить, что в презентации есть схема написания письма в английском языке. Преподаватель ещё раз напоминает студентам о некоторых нюансах написания письма в английском, опираясь на данную схему, затем, студенты выполняют задание. После этого некоторым студентам предлагается зачитать свои варианты ответного письма. Преподаватель после завершения чтения, говорит об ошибках, допущенных студентами. Затем, преподаватель раздаёт учащимся задания на отработку лексико-грамматических навыков по данной теме (Рождество и Новый год). (см. Приложение 3).

5. Последний учащийся рассказывает о празднике May Day. Рассказ студента сопровождается презентацией и видео об обычаях проведения этого праздника (см. Приложение 4). На данном этапе отрабатываются навыки аудирования. После завершения рассказа учащимся предлагается разгадать кроссворд по данной теме.

6. завершающий этап, подведение итогов, выставление оценок.

Приложение 1

Bonfire Night

British people celebrate Bonfire Night every year on 5 November in memory of a famous event in British history, the Gunpowder Plot. On 5 November 1605 a group of Roman Catholics planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament while King James I was inside. On the evening before, one of them, Guy Fawkes, was caught in the cellars with gunpowder (= an explosive), and the plot was discovered. He and all the other conspirators were put to death. Bonfire Night is sometimes called Guy Fawkes Night.

Originally, Bonfire Night was celebrated as a victory for Protestants over Catholics, but the festival is now enjoyed by everyone. Some children make a guy, a figure of a man made of old clothes stuffed with newspaper or straw to represent Guy Fawkes. The guy is then burned on top of a bonfire on Bonfire Night. A few days before, children take their guy into the street and ask for a ‘penny for the guy’, money for fireworks (= small packets of explosives which, when lit, make a bang or send a shower of coloured light into the air). Only adults are legally allowed to buy fireworks.

Some people hold private bonfire parties in their gardens, while others attend larger public events organized by local councils or charities. Chestnuts or potatoes are often put in the bonfire so that they will cook as it burns. Fireworks such as Roman Candles, Catherine Wheels, bangers and rockets are put in the ground and are let off one by one. Children hold lighted sparklers (= metal sticks covered in a hard chemical substance that burns brightly when lit) in their hands and wave them around to make patterns. Unfortunately, there are sometimes accidents involving fireworks and there are now restrictions on the type of fireworks that can be used by the general public.

▪ English history

(1605), the conspiracy of English Roman Catholics to blow up Parliament and King James I, his queen, and his oldest son on November 5, 1605. The leader of the plot, Robert Catesby (Catesby, Robert), together with his four coconspirators—Thomas Winter, Thomas Percy, John Wright, and Guy Fawkes (Fawkes, Guy)—were zealous Roman Catholics angered by James's refusal to grant more religious toleration to Catholics. They apparently hoped that the confusion that would follow the murder of the king, his ministers, and the members of Parliament would provide an opportunity for the English Catholics to take over the country.

In the spring of 1605 the conspirators rented a cellar that extended under the palace at Westminster. There, Fawkes, who had been fighting in the Spanish Netherlands, concealed at least 20 barrels of gunpowder. The conspirators then separated until the meeting of Parliament.

In the interim the need for broader support persuaded Catesby to include more conspirators. One of these, Francis Tresham, warned his Catholic brother-in-law Lord Monteagle not to attend Parliament on November 5, and Monteagle alerted the government to the plot. Fawkes was discovered in the cellar on the night of November 4–5 and under torture revealed the names of the conspirators. Catesby, Percy, and two others were killed while resisting arrest, and the rest were tried and executed (January 31, 1606).

The plot bitterly intensified Protestant suspicions of Catholics and led to the rigorous enforcement of the recusancy law, which fined those who refused to attend Anglican services. In January 1606 Parliament established November 5 as a day of public thanksgiving. The day, known as Guy Fawkes Day, is still celebrated with bonfires, fireworks, and the carrying of “guys” through the streets.

In the UK, Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes is celebrated on November 5th and the night skies are filled with colour. It's a special day in honour of a historic event.

Bonfires, Guys and fireworks

On November 5th people remember the plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament by celebrating ‘Bonfire Night’. All over Britain there are firework displays and bonfires with models of Guy Fawkes, which are burned on the fire. The Guy is made of old clothes and the clothes are filled with newspaper. The Guy is a reminder of Guy Fawkes. The fireworks are a reminder of the gunpowder that Guy Fawkes hid in the cellar of Parliament. Some people have a small bonfire in their garden on November 5th. In main towns and cities there are big bonfires and firework displays. The biggest fireworks display is the Edenbridge Display in Kent. Edenbridge also has the biggest Guy. A 9-metre ‘celebrity’ model is burned there every year. Last year the celebrity Guy was Wayne Rooney wearing Shrek–style ears and a Manchester United football shirt.

Food

It’s normally quite cold in November in Britain, so on Bonfire Night people wear hats, scarves and gloves to spend the evening outside. They need some warm food too. Traditional Bonfire Night food is hot baked potatoes. The potatoes are cooked on the bonfire and filled with butter and cheese. There are also toffee apples (apples on a stick, covered in sweet toffee) and in the north of England they eat a special type of cake called parkin. Cooking marshmallows on the bonfire is also popular. Yum!

Penny for the Guy

In Britain only adults can buy fireworks but in the past they were sold to children too. During the days before Bonfire Night, children used to take their home-made Guys onto the streets and ask for ‘a penny for the Guy’ to collect money to buy fireworks. Now you have to be over 18 to buy fireworks, and safety on Bonfire Night is an important issue.

Приложение 2

Christmas in the United Kingdom

In the UK (or Gr eat Britain), families often celebrate Christmas together, so they can watch each other open their presents! Most families have a Christmas Tree (or maybe even two!) in their house f or Christmas. The decorating of the tree is usually a family occasion, with everyone helping. Christmas Trees were 1rst popularised the UK b y Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria.

Most villages, towns and cities are decorated with Christmas lights over Christmas. Oft en a famous person switches them on. The most famous Christmas lights in the UK are in Oxford Street in London. Children believe that Father Christmas or Santa Claus leaves presents in stockings or pillow-cases. These are normally hung up by the 􀃖re or by the children's beds on Christmas Eve. Children sometimes leave out mince pies and brandy for Father Christmas to eat and drink when he visits them. Now, some people say that a nonalcoholic drink should be left f or Santa as he has to drive! Children write letters to Father Christmas/Santa listing their requests, but sometimes instead of putting t hem in the post, the letters are tossed into the 􀃖replace. The draught carries the letters up the chimney and Father Christmas/Santa reads the smoke. There are some customs that only take place, or were started, in the UK. Wassailing is an old anglo-saxon custom that doesn't take place much today. Boxing Day is a very old custom that started in the UK and is now taken as a holiday in many countries around the world. In the UK, the main Christmas Meal is usually eaten at lunchtime or early afternoon on Christmas Day. It's normally roast turkey, roast vegetables and 'all the trimmings' which me and vegetables like carrots & peas, stuffing and sometimes bacon and sausages. It's oft en served with cranberry sauce and bread sauce. Traditionally, and before turkey was available, roast beef or goose was the main Christmas meal. One vegetable that is oft en at Christmas in the UK are brussel sprouts. I love them but lots of people don't! Dessert is oft en Christmas Pudding. Mince pies and lots of chocolates are often eaten as well! Trifle is also a popular dessert at Christmas. The UK is also famous for Christmas Cake - some people love it and some people really don't like it! It's traditionally a rich fruit cake covered with marzipan and icing - and oft en top with Christmas themed cake decorations like a spring of holly. In the UK, it doesn't snow very often, but people always want to know if it will be a 'White Christmas'. The British defnition, used b y the UK Meteorological Office (who say if it has been a Whit e Christmas in the UK or not!), is that a single snow fake has been seen falling in the 24 hours of Christmas Day! This doesn't happen a lot in the UK!!! Statistics show that in the UK, they get an official Whit e Christmas about every 4 or 5 years and have real snow at Christmas about 1 in 10 y ears (but oft en this is only normally in Scotland!). In Scotland, some people celebrate New Year's Eve (which is called Hogmanay) more than Christmas! The word Hogmanay comes from a kind of o at cake that was traditionally given to children on New Year's Eve. All across the UK, in cities and towns, there are fireworks to celebrate the New Year. Two of the most famous fireworks displays are in London, along the River Thames, and in Edinburgh at the Hogmanay celebrations. Also in Scotland, the first person to set foot in a house in a New Year is thought to have a big effect on the fortunes of the people that live there! Generally strangers are thought to bring good luck. Depending on the area, it may be better to have a dark-haired or fair-haired stranger set foot in the house. This tradition is widely known as 'first footing'.

Приложение 3

I. Match the words with their definitions:

II. Insert the words in the gaps:

1. … is one of the main festivals in the Christian Calendar.

2. I was searching for a … for Mark’s birthday.

3. Children's pictures … the walls of the classroom.

4. … contain a small …, a paper hat, and a joke, and are used at Christmas in Britain.

5. It is believed that some plants can attract ….

6. Some people ignore … completely.

Decorate, present, gift, goblins, Christmas, New Year, crackers.

III. Put in the right prepositions:

1. They celebrate Christmas … the 25^th of December.

2. There are a lot of traditions connected … Christmas.

3. The biggest Christmas tree … Great Britain stands … Trafalgar Square.

4. People decorate their houses … a Christmas tree

5. Children hang stockings … the end … their beds or … the fireplace.

6. Santa Clause arrives … his flying sleigh pulled … flying reindeer, climbs … the chimney and fills each stocking … presents.

7. The traditional lunch consists … roast turkey … vegetables, followed … Christmas pudding.

8. There was a custom to put an ivy leaf … water … New Year’s Eve and leave it there … Twelfth Night

9. The Twelfth night is … the eve … the 6^th of January.

10. Many people go … church … Christmas … a midnight mass … Christmas Eve or … the morning service … Christmas Day.

11. A Christmas box is wrapped … bright coloured paper … ribbons.

12. This the traditional time … making New Year resolutions, but they are more talked … than put … practice.

IV. Translate into English.

1. С празднованием Рождества связано много языческих и христианских традиций.

2. Одним из символов Рождества является малиновка, которую часто изображают на открытках.

3. Рождественский пудинг – традиционное блюдо, в приготовлении которого участвует вся семья.

4. Хлопушки – любимая детская забава.

5. Считается, что Санта Клаус живет на Северном полюсе вместе со своей женой. На Рождество он развозит подарки, попадая в дом через дымоход. В благодарность дети оставляют для него молоко и печенье.

Приложение 4

MAY DAY

The earliest May Day celebrations appeared in pre-Christian Europe, although the pagan-oriented celebrations faded as Europe became Christianised, a more secular version of the holiday continued to be observed in the schools and churches of Europe well into the 20th century. In this form, In the UK May Day is best known for its traditions of dancing the Maypole and crowning of the Queen of the May.

MAY DAY - MAY 1ST

May Day celebrations and festivities were once the highlight of the year in every town and village through Britain. Although it is not as popular today as it once was, it seems to be enjoying something of a come back.

THE HISTORY OF MAY DAY

The old Celtic celebration of May Day was called Beltane. Other names for May Day include: Cetsamhain ('opposite Samhain') and Walpurgisnacht (in Germany). For the Celts, Beltane was a festival where fires were set to mark the beginning of summer.

Some people believe that the celebrations on May Day began with Beltane and the tree worship of the Druids. Others believe they go back to the spring festivals of ancient Egypt and India. However, May Day as it is celebrated today is more of a European import, believe it or not, from Italy. The people of ancient Rome honored Flora, the goddess of flowers and springtime, with a festival called Florialia. The goddess was represented by a small statue wreathed in garlands. A procession of singers and dancers carried the statue past a sacred blossom-decked tree. Later, festivals of this kind spread to other lands conquered by the Romans, and of course this included Britain.

As Europe became Christianized, the pagan holidays lost their religious character and either morphed into popular secular celebrations, as with May Day, or were given new Christian interpretations while retaining many traditional pagan features, as with Christmas, Easter, and All Saint's Day. Beginning in the 20th century, many neopagans began reconstructing the old traditions and celebrating May Day as a pagan religious festival once more.

These festivals reached their height in England during the Middle Ages. On the first day of May, English villagers awoke at daybreak to roam the countryside gathering blossoming flowers and branches. A towering maypole was set up on the village green. This pole, usually made of the trunk of a tall birch tree, was decorated with bright field flowers. The villagers then danced and sang around the maypole, accompanied by a piper. Usually the Morris dance was performed by dancers wearing bells on their colorful costumes. Often the fairest maiden of the village was chosen queen of the May. Sometimes a May king was also chosen. These two led the village dancers and ruled over the festivities. In Elizabethan times, the king and queen were called Robin Hood and Maid Marian.

MAY DAY CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS

The Maypole

One popular Mayday custom was the making of a maypole. Early in the day the villagers would go to the nearest woodland and cut down a young tree. The tree (usually a tall birch tree) would be stripped of its branches except at the top (where the leaves symbolized new life) and dragged or carried to an open space in the town square or village green. It was then decorated with garlands of flowers and ribbons. Historians believe the cutting of the maypole was the villager's way of establishing their right to cut wood freely from the forest.

Traditionally the dancing was done by women but has now become a popular children's activity. Each child holds one of the coloured ribbons and circles the maypole with a hopping, skipping step. Some of the children dance in one direction while others dance the opposite way around the pole, changing their direction at carefully chosen moments. As they dance, the children pass each other until the ribbons are plaited together and wrapped tightly around the Maypole. When the circle is as small as it can be, the dance is reversed and the ribbons unwind until the dancers come back to their starting places.

The most famous Maypole in England was erected on the first May Day of Charles II reign in 1661. An enormous pole, 40 metres high, was floated up the Thames and erected in the Strand where it remained for almost 50 years.

Morris Dancing

Morris dancing is a traditional English form of folk dance which is also performed in other English-speaking countries such as the USA and Australia. The roots of morris dancing seem to be very old, probably dating back to the Middle Ages. From around April and through the green summer months beribboned troupes of Morris Dancers will be seen in market towns and on village greens up and down the land. You are especially likely to see them performing their medieval dances to the click clack of their sticks and the sound of bells, pipes, and drums, around the month of May.

In the dance men dress up in costumes with hats and ribbons and bells around their ankles. They dance through the streets and one man often carries an inflated pigs bladder on the end of a stick. He will run up to young women in the street and hit them over the head with the pigs bladder, this is supposed to be lucky!

Jack in the Green ( The Cylenchar - The Hidden One)

Across rural England the key symbol of May Day is fresh spring growth, and the general hope is for a fertile harvest. Traditionally villagers would disguise one of their number as Jack-in-the-Green by enshrouding him with a portable bower of fresh greenery. Jack and his followers danced around the town collecting money from passersby for later feasting. Today he can often be seen accompanying traditional morris dancing groups.

Jack in the Green is believed to be a woodland spirit who guarded the greenwoods of England. He appears in many kinds of folk art, as a multi-foliate head peering through the leaves. He can still be seen portrayed in church decoration today, usually as a roof-boss, where he is a constant reminder of earlier beliefs.

MAY DAY TODAY

The modern May Day has been transformed into a holiday often associated with socialism and the Labour Movement. This is partly to do with a congress of world Socialist parties held in Paris 1889, who voted to support the U.S. labor movement's demand for an 8-hour day. It chose May 1, 1890, as a day of demonstrations in favour of the 8-hour day. Afterward, May 1 became a holiday called Labour Day in many nations. The holiday is especially important in socialist and communist countries when political demonstrations are often held.

Bonfire Night

• celebrated every year on 5 th November1. celebrated every year on 5 th November
• on 5 th November 1605 a group of Roman Catholics planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament
• Bonfire Night was celebrated as a victory for Protestants over Catholics
• Robert Catesby (1573-1605) recruited Guy Fawkes to their plot.

Bonfires, Guys and fireworks

There are firework displays and bonfires with models of Guy Fawkes, which are burned on the fire. The guy is made of old clothes and the clothes are filled with newspaper.

The fireworks are a reminder of the gunpowder that Guy Fawkes hid in the cellar of Parliament

Food

Traditional Bonfire Night food is hot baked potatoes, which are cooked on the bonfire and filled with butter and cheese. There are also toffee apples.

Tasks

I. Complete the sentences with the correct number

• 36 b. 1605 c. 9 d. 5 th e. first f. 18

• A group of people wanted to kill James the ____, the King of England.
• Guy Fawkes planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament in _____.

3. Guy Fawkes and his men put ____ barrels of explosive in the Houses of Parliament.

4. People remember the plot to destroy the Houses of Parliament and kill King James, with fireworks and bonfires on November _____.

5. Edenbridge in Kent burns a ____metre Guy on bonfire every year.

6. People under ____ can’t buy fireworks in the UK.

II.Match the sentences halves to make sentences about Bonfire Night. All the sentences include passive forms.

a. Are burned on fires; b. were tortured and killed; c. are cooked on the bonfire; d. were sold to children; e. are filled with newspaper to help it burn; f. is known as the “gunpowder plot”; g. is made with old clothes; h. was planned on the November 5 th

1. An enormous explosion; 2. the plan to blow up the Houses of Parliament; 3. Guy Fawkes and his men; 4. models of Guy Fawkes; 5. the Guy; 6. the Guy’s clothes; 7. potatoes; 8. in the past fireworks.

III.Complete the sentences with the correct passive or active verb form.

• We (planned/were planned) a big party for Bonfire Night last year.
• A lot (knows/is known) about the history of Bonfire Night.
• Is it true that the King (tortured/was tortured) Guy Fawkes?
• British people (burn/are burned) Guys on bonfires in local parks or in private gardens.
• Is the Guy (makes/is made) with old clothes?

6. You can (fill/be filled)the Guy with newspaper.

7. They (cook/are cooked) the potatoes in the oven then we put them on the bonfire.

8. Fireworks (sold/were sold) to children when my mum was little.

British culture, customs and traditions

British celebrations

• New Year's Day - January 1

2.Hogmanay (December 31 - January 2)

In Scotland, the term used for the New Year's celebration is "Hogmanay," and it can last up until January 2 (which is usually considered a bank holiday). 

3. Twelfth Night and Epiphany - January 5 - 6

It is considered bad luck to have Christmas celebration up past the day of Epiphany, so many people used January 5 (Twelfth Night) to take them down. 

4. Burns' Night - January 25

Burns' Night is celebrated in honor of the Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1796). 

5. Valentine's Day - February 14

6. St. David's Day (Wales) - March 1

St. David's day is to celebrate the man, Dewi Sant, who spread Christianity throughout Wales. 

7. St. Patrick's Day - March 17

While most of the UK doesn't celebrate St. Patrick's Day (though there is a parade and festival in London), it is a very important religious holiday in Northern Ireland

8. Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day) - Day Before Lent - March/April

Many celebrate this day by eating pancakes

9. Lent - March/April

The first day of lent is 40 days before Easter.

10. Mothering Sunday - 4th Sunday of Lent - March/April

11. Maundy Thursday - Thursday Before Easter - March/April

Maundy Thursday is a day to celebrate Jesus's last supper before his crucifixion 

12. Easter - March/April

13. April Fool's Day - April 1

14. St. George's Day (England's National Day) - April 23

Celebrating with parades, some people celebrate St. George who is said to have defeated a dragon.

15. May Day - May 1

16. Notting Hill Carnival - Last Monday in August

17. Halloween - October 31

18. Bonfire Night (Guy Fawkes Day) - November 5

19. Remembrance Day - November 11

20. St. Andrew's Day - November 30

This is the celebrated national day of Scotland.

21. Advent - December 1-24

On the first 24 days of December, Advent celebrates the coming of Jesus.

22. Christmas - December 25

23. Boxing Day - December 26

Christmas and New Year in Britain

1.Celebrated on the 25 th of December

2.Most families have a Christmas Tree

3.Christmas Trees were first popularised by Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria

4.The most famous Christmas lights in the UK are in Oxford Street in London

5.Children believe that Father Christmas leaves presents in stockings or pillow-cases.

6.Boxing Day is a very old custom that started in the UK

7.The main Christmas meal is roast turkey, vegetables and “all the trimmings”. One vegetable that is often at Christmas are brussel sprouts.

8.The dinner table is decorated with a Christmas Cracker for each person

“ White Christmas”-definition, used by the UK Meteorological Office is that a single snow flake has been falling I the 24 hours of Christmas Day.

In Scotland New Year’s Eve is called Hogmanay. All across the UK there are fireworks to celebrate the New Year

Hi Patricia,

How are you? Christmas is coming! How are you going to celebrate? I will celebrate it at home with family. We will make a lot of Christmas cakes and cookies. And have you made the menu?

Anyway, we will celebrate Christmas in school before holidays. In my class it is very difficult to organize celebrations. There is very little help from our teacher and my class is very disorganized. Also there will be a disco and a competition on Christmas in school.

Last year several girls and boys brought food and pizza! This year I think will do the same. But last year we did not have time to arrange contests. We went to the contest, and then we went to the disco.

It would be nice if you could come to us for Christmas! We will have fun with my class. This year we also participate in the competition, and we have the best idea! Be sure to come!

Well, I must finish. Waiting for an answer!

With love, Eliza

May Day

1.The earliest May Day celebrations appeared in pre-Christian Europe

2.May Day is best known foe its traditions of dancing the Maypole and crowing of the Queen of the May

3.The month of May is named in honour of the goddess Maia. A Greek mountain nymph

4.1 May 1707 was the day the Act of Union came into effect, joining England and Scotland

5.The old Celtic celebration of May Day was called Beltane

6.It was associated with the beginning of Summer

7.May Day is more of a Europe import, from Italy

8.In Elizabethan times, the king and the queen of May Day were called Robin Hood and Maid Marian

9.One popular Mayday custom was the making of a maypole

Morris Dancing is a traditional English form of folk dance. Morris dancers perform their medieval dances to the click clack of their sticks and the sounds of bells, pipes, drums.

Jack in the Green

Villages would disguise one of their number as Jack-in-the-Green. Jack and his followers danced around the town collecting money from passersby for later feasting. He is believed to be a woodland spirit who guarded the greenwoods of England.