Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer's origin story

ESL Lessons: True Stories

A printable worksheet for story-based English conversation classes.

Difficulty: Elementary A2

PDF: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer's origin story

Warm-up

Do you know Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer? (Yes, he's...)

Vocabulary Match

huge hit •• person
celebrations •• shining
character •• led
glowing •• misty
known •• big success
guided •• parties
foggy •• famous

Vocabulary Answers

huge hitbig success
celebrationsparties
characterperson
glowingshining
knownfamous
guidedled
foggymisty

True Story

Listen and fill in the blanks with words from above.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a famous Christmas ________, loved by many for his bright red nose. He was first thought of by Robert L. May in 1939. May worked at Montgomery Ward, a large store in Chicago.

Each Christmas, the store gave away coloring books for kids. To save money, they decided to create their own book. May, who enjoyed writing, was chosen to write a story. He came up with Rudolph, a reindeer with a unique, ________ nose who felt different from the others. However, Rudolph's difference turned out to be helpful. He ________ Santa Claus on a ________ Christmas night.

The story became very popular. Then, in 1949, May's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, wrote a song about Rudolph. This song was sung by Gene Autry and became a ________. It made Rudolph even more famous. Now, Rudolph is a big part of Christmas ________ and is ________ all around the world.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a famous Christmas character, loved by many for his bright red nose. He was first thought of by Robert L. May in 1939. May worked at Montgomery Ward, a large store in Chicago.

Each Christmas, the store gave away coloring books for kids. To save money, they decided to create their own book. May, who enjoyed writing, was chosen to write a story. He came up with Rudolph, a reindeer with a unique, glowing nose who felt different from the others. However, Rudolph's difference turned out to be helpful. He guided Santa Claus on a foggy Christmas night.

The story became very popular. Then, in 1949, May's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, wrote a song about Rudolph. This song was sung by Gene Autry and became a huge hit. It made Rudolph even more famous. Now, Rudolph is a big part of Christmas celebrations and is known all around the world.

Quiz

  1. Who first thought of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer?
  2. Why did the store Montgomery Ward decide to create their own book?
  3. How did Rudolph's difference turn out to be helpful?

Quiz Answers (examples)

  1. Robert L. May first thought of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
  2. They decided to create their own book to save money.
  3. He guided Santa Claus on a foggy Christmas night.

True or False

  1. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a famous Halloween character. T F
  2. Robert's glowing nose was unique. T F
  3. The song about Rudolph made him even more famous. T F

True or False Answers

  1. False
  2. False
  3. True

Conversation

A:Hey, have you heard about Rudolph?
B:The red-nosed reindeer? Of course, I have!
A:Did you know he was created to save money?
B:Really? I thought he was just a Christmas story.
A:Nope, he was a character in a coloring book first.
B:Wow, that's interesting! He's famous now.

Discussion

  1. Why do you think Rudolph's story became so popular?
  2. Do you know any other famous Christmas characters?
  3. What's your favorite Christmas song?
  4. Do you celebrate Christmas? If so, what do you do?

Further Reading

https://www.si.edu/newsdesk/snapshot/rudolph-red-nosed-reindeer

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