Winter

1. Winter

2. Winter in the UK • Winter is normally referred to as the months of December, January and February. • However, officially winter begins on December 21st or 22nd (depending on the year) and ends on March 21st or 22nd. • The clocks go back in the UK but because it is further north than Spain this means it usually gets dark before 4pm!

3. Winter Weather • Winter in the UK is normally quite cold. • It is common to get snow in Scotland and the north of England. • Although less common, it does sometimes snow in the south of England too. • The average temperature in England during the day in winter is between 3 and 5 degrees. • In Scotland it is between 1 and 4 degrees.

4. Winter 2010/2011 • Winter 2010/2011 was one of the coldest winters the UK has ever had. • Most record low temperatures were broken and there was severe snowfall across the entire country. • The record coldest temperature was -21.2 degrees. • Most parts of the country had at least 30 centimetres of snow whilst some had up to a metre. • The cold also formed icicles on buildings.

5. The snow was bad because it closed all the airports and trains and buses could not run. • It also meant schools closed and there were food shortages in some areas because food could not be delivered. • However, it was good for winter sports such as skiing, ice skating and ice hockey. • It was also good for snowball fights, building snowmen and making snow angels.

13. Winter Clothes

14. Winter Food • Popular food in winter is hot and filling. • There are many varieties of pies, casseroles and stew. • A common dish is stew and dumplings which is a stew made with beef, potatoes, pearl barley and vegetables such as carrots. Dumplings are made from suet and flour. • Suet is mainly made up of beef fat.

16. To drink, mulled wine is very popular. This is hot red wine with spices such as cloves, cinammon and nutmeg. • For children, hot chocolate is very popular in the UK especially with cream and marshmallows.

18. Chinese New Year • Because London is very culturally diverse there are many different festivals throughout the year. • There are a large population of people from China living in London and Chinese New Year is one of the most vibrant festivals that takes place in London. • It is attended by many people, not just the Chinese.

19. London hosts the biggest celebration of Chinese New Year outside of Asia. • Celebrations centre around Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square and China Town. • There is always a big parade and fireworks as well as lanterns, decorations and the chance to taste Chinese food. • This year Chinese New Year is 23rd – 29th January with the main celebrations being on 29th January.

20. Each Chinese year is represented by one of twelve different animals. • Each animal has different characteristics and it is said to influence the behaviour of those who are born in its year. • This year is the year of the Dragon. If you are born in 2012 your animal is the dragon. • The dragon is also the animal for 1964, 1976, 1988, and 2000. • Other animals are the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and boar.