Reading Comprehension · Social Studies
Saint Patrick’s Day
A reading lesson about Saint Patrick’s Day — who Saint Patrick was, Irish traditions, and how the holiday is celebrated in the United States.
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Subject
Reading Comprehension
Grade Level
Grades 3–7
Format
Lesson + Printable PDF
Access
Full Member
Who Was Saint Patrick?
Saint Patrick’s Day is celebrated around the world in honor of one of Ireland’s most famous saints. While Saint Patrick’s Day is a national holiday in Ireland, it is not an official holiday in the United States. Still, many Americans and citizens of other countries celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day, which occurs each year on March 17th.
Saint Patrick was a Christian missionary who was born in Britain and worked in Ireland. March 17th, the date of Saint Patrick’s death, became a feast day of the Catholic calendar in the 17th century. There are a number of legends about the life and work of Saint Patrick. He is said to have banished snakes from Ireland, and he is credited with teaching the Irish people about the Christian concept of the Holy Trinity. In Christian tradition, the three leaves of the shamrock represent the Holy Trinity.
Today, Saint Patrick’s Day is both a celebration of Irish culture and a Christian feast day. It falls during the Christian season of Lent, the forty days leading up to Easter. People often break the Lenten fast on Saint Patrick’s Day when it falls on a Friday.
How Saint Patrick’s Day Is Celebrated
On Saint Patrick’s Day, many people enjoy Irish food and drink like corned beef and cabbage and Irish soda bread. It is also a tradition for people to wear green, the color of Ireland. Sometimes food and drink is dyed green as well. The shamrock, or three-leaf clover, is a common accent or decoration. Many people wear a bunch of shamrocks or a carnation dyed green.
You may see or hear the words Erin go bragh around Saint Patrick’s Day. The phrase means Ireland forever! A number of U.S. cities host parades on Saint Patrick’s Day. The first of these parades was held in Boston in 1737. Today, the largest Saint Patrick’s Day parade in the United States is held in New York City, which first hosted one in 1762.
In Ireland, a Saint Patrick’s Day Festival is now held to draw attention to Ireland and its culture. This tradition began only recently in the 1990s. The first festival was held in 1996 as a day-long celebration. The following year, it was three days long, and by 2006, it had become a five-day affair.
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