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Suggestions for Using the Podcasts

1 Listen to the podcast without reading the text.
2 Listen to the podcast for a second time and quickly write a few notes about what you hear.
3 Read the text with the podcast as you listen for the third time.
4 Read aloud with the podcast.
5 Try to explain what you have heard in your own words.

Plum Pudding

Anna decided to make some plum pudding to celebrate the Christmas season and to surprise her family. Plum puddings had been an important part of the Christmas dinner at her grandmother's house. About an hour after everyone had finished enjoying the traditional turkey dinner her grandmother would slip into the pantry. She would take cotton wrap off the pudding and slide the dense cake out of the pudding bowl. She would turn it over onto one of her best china plates and pour some brandy over the cake. She would call for someone to turn out the lights and then she would light the cake with a long wooden match. Everyone was delighted to see the yellow and blue flames flickering over the top of the pudding. Afterward she would serve a small slice of the rich cake with a dollop of butter sauce. Anna's grandmother had come to Canada from England in the 1920's and she had brought her recipe for plum pudding with her. Anna remembered watching her make the puddings when she was a little girl. She remembered the kitchen table covered with bowls of currants and raisins and prunes and dates. She remembered the wonderful fragrance that had filled the whole house while her grandmother had been steaming the puddings in the oven . And she remembered the way that her grandmother had wrapped the puddings up carefully to store them until Christmas. However, she wished that she had paid closer attention to what her beloved grandmother had been doing because she had never made the pudding herself. Her grandmother had passed away many years before at the age of 94. Anna got out the fruit which she had mixed with brandy the week before. The mixture had been sitting in the cold basement for a week. As Anna creamed the butter and brown sugar and added the eggs and folded in the breadcrumbs and the fruit, she remembered her grandmother's strong hands at work. She could almost hear her voice telling her to make sure there was enough water in the pan as the puddings steamed for hours in the oven. Anna knew that she had done everything right when she began to smell the same wonderful fragrance in her own kitchen.

Ready to Go

Finally the snow had started falling. "Perhaps there would be a white Christmas after all," thought Min as she gazed out of her window. The snow was swirling wildly around outside. Min was feeling a little tired because the wind had been howling all night long. It had been rattling the doors and windows and had woken her up more than once during the long stormy night. As she looked outside at the icy road she was thankful that she had taken her car to the garage to have her snow tires put on before the storm hit. She heard her young son, Wil,l calling her from his room, "Mom, you were right. It's snowing!" He was delighted. He had been waiting impatiently for the snow. Min smiled. She had had a little help making her prediction. The previous day the weather forecast had called for freezing temperatures, low visibility and heavy snow. It was going to take a little longer to get to work and school so she got out of her cosy bed, put on a pot of coffee and made some warm porridge for breakfast. She liked to make hot oatmeal on winter mornings. Will liked to eat it too, with a little milk and some brown sugar on top. Shortly before 8 o'clock they were getting ready to go outside. Min helped Will put on his shiny blue snow pants and jacket over his sweater and jeans. Then she zipped up his jacket and he put on his hat and mittens. Min put his neck warmer around his neck. It could be pulled up over his cheeks to protect his skin from frostbite. Min knew that frostbite could happen very quickly on unprotected skin in such cold windy weather. She had seen frostbite on the cheek of one of Will's friends last winter. It looked like a little white patch on his red cheeks. She remembered that if you get frostbitten you shouldn't rub the skin. You should just let it come back to room temperature gradually. But it is best to avoid it by covering up your skin. Will put on his hat and Min pulled up hood. Then she tied it up. She started to laugh. By the time they were ready to leave Will had disappeared. In other words, he was so bundled up that the only part of her son that could be seen was his eyes. He was ready to go!
To read about how to dress in winter in Canada go to: http://www.settlement.org/sys/faqs_detail.asp?faq_id=4000753
To watch a video on how to dress children for school in winter weather go to: http://www.settlementdownloads.org/downloads/video/winter/dressing_for_winter.html

Food Drive

It was Thursday evening. Mira was sitting on the couch with a cushion behind her back and a book in her hands. All day Mira had been looking forward to the end of her hectic day. The work day was over. She had made a tasty pasta dish for her family for dinner. The kids had done the dishes while she was tidying up the kitchen. Now the house was quiet. Her husband, Joe, was puttering around at his workbench in the basement. Woodworking is his hobby. Her older daughter, Kate, was doing her homework in her room. And her younger daughter, Hanna, was checking her e-mail. Mira was reading the last chapter of her book. It was a real page-turner. She had hardly been able to put it down at night when she had to go to bed. In other words, it was so interesting that she didn't want to stop reading it. She was anxious to find out how it would end. She was so absorbed in her book that she was startled when she heard a knock at the door. Reluctantly, she put down her book and answered the door. Two girls were standing on the front porch. "We're students from Central High School," said one of the girls, "We're collecting non-perishable goods for the food bank. Do you have anything you would like to donate?" Mira smiled and asked the girls to step inside to wait while she went into the kitchen. She got some cans of tuna, a hearty pea soup and some pasta sauce. She also got a couple of packages of pasta and a box of crackers. She had a new can of coffee so she took that too. The volunteers thanked Mira for her donation and Mira thanked them for doing the food drive especially on such a cold night. As Mira returned to her book she thought about how fortunate she was to have plenty of food in her cupboards. Recently she had been hearing a lot about how the number of people using food banks has been increasing. In her community there are many charitable groups trying to help people who are jobless or unable to support themselves. Churches provide community meals. There are breakfast programs in schools and people collecting toys and warm clothing to make the Christmas season easier for people who are struggling to get by.