B1 · B2 · Cultures, customs, tradition & religion

Intermediate b1/b2 Tense revision activity: Where Did Christmas Crackers Come From?

blogdeserena
crackers
Photo from Getty

In Britain not pulling a cracker means that something is missing! Both children and adults love them and they add more fun and laughter to Christmas dinner and parties. But where did this tradition come from? I came across this article and found it such a sweet story that I just couldn’t help not using it, so this one is to help you go over past tenses (active and passive ) and some  present tenses too.

The source is Metro.co.uk

Created by blogdeserena

CHRISTMAS QUIZ Where did Christmas Crackers Come From?

Put the verbs in  brackets into a past tense. It may be a simple past, a past continuous, a past perfect or even a passive structure.

Good luck!

Quiz by Serena

Christmas crackers were first  pulled in 1845-1850 and ... (make) by a London sweet maker called Tom Smith.

He  ___ (see) the French ‘Bon Bon’ sweets and  wanted to do something similar.

He also wanted to include a small motto or riddle with the sweet, which is a reason why we still  have them today. Smith  ... (come) back to London and  tried to sell similar types of sweets in England

Despite his idea, he didn't make a lot of sales because they .......... (negative receive)  well.

However, he had a change of tact. One evening while he ...  (sit) in front in front of his log fire he became fascinated by the sounds, sparks and cracks  from the fire.

He then got inspiration from this and ... (think) he could  include sweets and toys in a wrapper ...

that could  .... (pull) apart with the sound of cracking.

When Tom Smith  ... (die), his three sons Tom, Walter and Henry  took over his business.

Walter had a great idea and hats ....(introduce) into the cracker, which is what we see today.

Your score is

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