Summer is the perfect time for outdoor festivities, especially if you’re in Sweden during the time of the summer solstice. This lesson focuses on one of Sweden’s most popular holidays, Midsummer, and the history and traditions behind the celebration.

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Type: Listening, Vocabulary

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Level: Upper Intermediate+

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Lesson Aims: Learners will practice listening for gist and detail, as well as develop their vocabularies with the richness of idiomatic expression.

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Approximate Timing: 45 – 60 min.

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Note to the Teacher: According to Wikipedia, Midsummer, also known as St. John’s Day, is the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, and more specifically the Northern European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice or take place on a day between June 21 and June 25 and the preceding evening. In Sweden, this is such an important festivity that there have been serious discussions to make the Midsummer’s Eve into the National Day of Sweden, replacing the current holiday on June 6.

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The text is from the Swedish culture website, http://sweden.se. While it’s definitely informative, it’s also quite humorous and a bit tongue-in-cheek!

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Direct link to the listening/video is here

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Download the lesson materials and lesson plan here: Summer Solstice and Swedish Midsummer