Special Lecture: The Scents and Tastes of Christmas

Members of group: 1. Brian Gannon 2. Amy Joseph 3. Daniel Errity
Date of Lecture: 05/12/2013
Lecture Topic: The Senses of Christmas

Lesson Plan: We���ll begin by introducing the topic then introduce four of the senses, one at a time using various media. We intend to end with ���taste��� and an activity where the students assemble a gingerbread house.

Goals for this lecture: Through this lecture we aim to give the students an idea of the phenomenon Xmas has become in the western world. We will, through interactive activities, describe the various sights, scents, tastes and sounds we invariable associate with the holiday season. We will also demonstrate how companies use these triggers to arouse nostalgia for this traditional celebration to get us to buy their products.

Number of students invited : 15
Location: Seminar Room(2nd floor), Library
Materials needed: overhead projector

In many western countries, the holiday season is longer and more marketed than in Korea. The holiday season usually lasts from the end of November all the way through Christmas day. During this time of year, people from all over the world indulge themselves with Christmas treats and traditional dishes.
In this special lecture, we will talk about the different scents and tastes of many popular Christmas foods from around the world and how the nostalgia evoked from these dishes manipulate people���s moods and actions. Additionally, the students will have the chance to sample the different foods and learn about the most popular Christmas smells and flavors. The students will be able to experience what it���s like to be in a Christmas environment in a western culture through their senses of smell, taste, and sight. They will also have hands on practice in decorating their very own Christmas treat!

Amy grew up in a rural town in southern Minnesota. She went to school at the University of Minnesota where she studied psychology. In her family, the Christmas season was always an eventful time of the year. Her favorite activity during the holidays was baking different kinds of festive treats with her mom and giving them to family and friends. It was the most joyful time of the year for her, and she is excited to show Kyungil some of her favorite things from this holiday!

Brian is from a small town in the west of Ireland. He studied at the University of Ireland, graduating in 2006. He joined the teaching staff here at Kyungil earlier this year.  European traditions, including many Irish, that date back to an era before the birth of the US as a nation traveled with immigrants across then Atlantic. To add to this, through increased globalization, American popular culture has also been influencing European culture through it's its movies, TV shows and multinational corporations. The result has been that the Christmases Brian spent in his small town in the west of Ireland were very similar to the ones spent by Amy, thousands of kilometers away.

Daniel is an Irish media management major who loves Christmas.  He studied and worked in Irish radio and has friends working for the Irish radio station ���Christmas FM���.  Daniel really loves the food he gets to eat over the holidays, so much so that when he visits home at any time of the year, his mother will always cook him a full Christmas dinner to eat with his family.