Every year there's that ONE holiday toy that captures the hearts of kids and sends parents off to the store to grab the last one. This mini unit covers the history of Christmas toys through four decades (some of which you will remember!). The unit is divided into three parts and relies heavily on student research. The parts can be done at your own pace over the course of a week or over several weeks.

Part One

-Includes two reading passages, one about the history of holiday gift giving and one about the rise of the toy industry.

-Research Project: Students are given four worksheets, one for each of the decades (1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s), and they must research toy trends for each decade

Part Two

-All of part two is in the included PowerPoint. This covers holiday advertising, starting with the early days of ads, through the department store catalog, and into modern television commercials.

-There are three links to toy commercials from the 70s, 80s, and 90s to watch with students

Part Three

-In part three, students will conduct an interview with an older friend or family member about their own holiday toy memories

-Final Project: Students pick one of three final projects to complete. Each project relates back to a different part of the unit.

This unit is geared towards a classroom, but is easily adapted to a homeschooler...in fact, I originally created it for mine! Every research activity is done solo and the PowerPoint can easily be used just for one or a handful of kiddos. This is also easily adaptable, in case you want to change anything for your students, but is no-prep, ready to go, as it is!

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Looking for other activities for older kids?

Winter Activities for Older Kids - No Prep

Christmas Around the World - Who is/What is Cards

Middle School Vocabulary Worksheet {plain and themed versions}

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