The Irish love their traditions and are

superstitious.They are really devoted to

Saint Patrick, their Patron Saint celebrated on March 17th all over the world where an Irish community lives.

St. Patrick’s Day is a national holiday and Irish people all over the world celebrate by singing, dancing and looking at huge parades.

People wear green

-the colour associated worldwide

with Irishness-

and shamrocks

Green: is it lucky?In the 19th century,

green became a symbol of Ireland .

Wearing green is patriotic and considered lucky especially on

St. Patrick’s Day.

Ireland is also called the “Emerald Isle” because its countrysyde is so green!

Many pubs serve green beer as

a tradition.Don’t worry, it’s safe

to drink.

To celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, Chicago

dyes the Chicago River green for the day.

In Italy in Pisa, the leaning Tower

becomes green!

In Dublin lots of monuments are green ,too.

But who was St. Patrick?There are many

legends about St. Patrick.

One says that he was

able to drive all the

snakes into the sea. That’s

why there are no snakes in

Ireland now.

St. Patrick used the shamrock to explain the idea of the Holy Trinity as it has three leaves.

According to the legend each of the three leaves of the shamrock

represents: hope, faith and love.

Today the shamrock is Ireland’s official logo

The Irish believe in lucky charms, the most popular of course is the four

leaf clover, which is really a shamrock, the Irish name for clover,

with an extra leaf.

• Many St.Patrick’s Day traditions evolve around luck.

• Think of the phrase “Luck of the Irish”, which can be traced to the 19th century during the US gold rush, where a high number of Irish people found gold and silver.

• Horseshoes are very lucky. But be careful! Put your horseshoe in the shape of a “U”.

• If you put it in the shape of an “n”, all your luck will fall out!

• Both the rainbow and the number 7 are symbols of luck.

• In slot machines, triple seven means you’ve hit the jackpot or your pot of gold!

LUCKY LEPRECHAUNS• In Irish folklore, the

Leprechauns are fairies who mend the shoes of the other fairies.

• They have magical powers and delight in trickery. If you catch a Leprechaun, he must grant 3 wishes. Good luck!

An Irish Blessing

St.Patrick’s Party Ideas• To celebrate St.Patrick’s Day, the

Irish make a lot of treats, like :• Dark chocolate Guinness donuts

• Bark• Special cookies

• Special cakes and pies

Green, the Irish icons and the treats have inspired the students for 3 St.Patrick’s Day Contests:

Celebrating Green (powerpoint presentations)

Artistic Tea towelsSt.Patrick’s Day Treats.

They were meant to be a way to spread creativity and taste a bit of

Ireland!

• Powerpoint presentation by Paola Iorio• School year: 2014-2015