I wanted to take a Gaelic class in college but it didn’t quite fit with those pesky requirement classes for my major. I remember no one saw this as quite the tragedy that I did, with many people noting that it wasn’t exactly a common language that would serve me well in a career or when traveling with one big exception: St. Patrick’s Day! It’s fun to see what words from the Emerald Isle have become part of the lexicon surrounding the holiday, like Erin go bragh! (Translation: Ireland Forever!) Here are four fun literacy activities for St. Patrick’s Day.
1. Learn some new Irish words. Dictionary.com is here to help explore some of those terms with a fun, educational look at the origins of traditional Irish words surrounding St. Patrick’s Day. 
“We’re all familiar with leprechauns and the phrase Erin go bragh, but do you know how to order a glass of usquebaugh, find a cluricaun, or speak with a fine Irish brogue?” said Michelle Turner, CEO of Dictionary.com. “Dictionary.com is here to help, starting off with our Word of the Day on March 17th – brogue, which is defined as an Irish accent, or any strong regional accent.”
Try speaking with a thick brogue when pronouncing the following Irish terms:
- Craic – [krak] Fun and entertainment, especially good conversation and company. Often preceded by the, as in, Come for the beer, lads, and stay for the craic!
- Usquebaugh – [uhs-kwi-baw, -bah] Whiskey; comes from the Gaelic phrase uisce beatha meaning “water of life.”
- Ceilidh – [key-lee] A party or gathering where singing and storytelling are the usual forms of entertainment. The term derives from the Old Irish word céile meaning “companion.”
- Leprechaun – [lep-ruh-kawn, -kon] Comes from the Old Irish luchorpán, which is derived from words lu meaning “small” and corp meaning “body.”
- Limerick – [lim-er-ik] Some etymologists trace the word limerick to a popular old jig called “Will You Come Up to Limerick?” referencing the Irish city Limerick. It is rumored that at social gatherings, attendees would sing this song and improvise verses between refrains.
2. Write some limericks. Limericks are funny, often nonsensical poems and writing them can be a fun way to celebrate. Several St. Patrick’s Day parties I’ve attended ask guests to write them and they get funnier as the party goes on. Even if you aren’t drinking green beer, it’s a great literacy activity to do with your kids.
Limericks are five lines long and follow a strict rhyme scheme of AABBA. The first, second and fifth lines all rhyme and have the same number of syllables, typically 8 or 9. The third and fourth lines rhyme and usually have 5 or 6 syllables. Limericks also start with “There once was a …”
A limerick worksheet looks like this:
There once was a ________ A (8-9 syllables)
______________________ A (8-9 syllables)
___________ B (5-6 syllables)
___________ B (5-6 syllables)
______________________ A (8-9 syllables)
Give it a shot, and let us know how it goes!
3. Instead of hunting for the pot of gold, hunt for words. Word searches can be fun literacy activities and feel a little like looking for the pot of gold. You can find 22 different St. Patrick’s Day word finds, from easy to hard, here.
4. Go green and expand your vocabulary. Another St. Patrick’s Day literacy activity could be checking out Dictionary.com’s 15 Shades of Green slideshow here, a fun way to explore color and expand your children’s vocabulary at the same time.
You may also like: Facts about St. Patrick for St. Patrick’s Day
Prior post: Pi Day facts
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