Sara Says

Thanksgiving Activities

Books Lesson Plans & Activities Vocabulary Links

Check out the Sara Says collection of popular Thanksgiving books. They are for children to learn more about Thanksgiving and discovering what giving thanks is truly about. If you are looking for Thanksgiving lesson plans, activities, vocabulary to learn, and a thematic Pilgrim unit please click here.

How Many Days to America? by Eve Bunting More about this book
This book could be read year round, but ties in easily around Thanksgiving. After the police come, a family is forced to flee their Caribbean island and set sail for America in a small fishing boat. They arrive and celebrate a certain holiday.
Gracias, The Thanksgiving Turkey By Joy Cowley More about this book
Trouble ensues when young Miguel, a Puerto Rican boy living in New York City, receives a turkey to fatten up for Thanksgiving dinner from his Papa, but instead develops an attachment to it.
Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey More about this book
The day before Thanksgiving finds eight boys and girls of various races taking a field trip to a turkey farm. Although Farmer Mack Nuggett seems kind at first, the children eventually discover his horrible plan to kill the turkeys for Thanksgiving dinners. Smuggling the turkeys home with them, the children save the birds, who join eight families for vegetarian dinners.
Thanksgiving at the Tappletons by Eileen Spinelli More about this book
When calamity stalks every step of the preparations for the Tappletons' Thanksgiving dinner, they realize that there is more to Thanksgiving than turkey and trimmings.
Thanksgiving is for Giving Thanks By Margaret Sutherland More about this book
A child lists all the things for which he is thankful, especially at Thanksgiving.
I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie by Alison Jackson More about this book
Children will love this hilarious take-off on the popular poem "I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly."

Thanksgiving and Pilgrim Unit/Theme
Grades 1- 4

This thematic unit helps introduce students to the people Americans call the Pilgrims, and their place in history.. The students will emerge with an understanding that the Pilgrims were people who came to this country from Europe in search of religious freedom: a new and a special land where they could worship God in their own way. They will discover the Pilgrim adventures - dangers, discoveries, and new friends.

Vocabulary to Learn:

Activities

1. Word Association: Write the words "Pilgrims" on the board.
   Divide the students into cooperative groups.
   Ask the students to list on a piece of paper all the words that come into their minds when they hear the word "Pilgrims." Can be done with "Thanksgiving" also. Read a formal definition of both words and discuss with the students.
2. Illustrate some of the vocabulary words individually or in small groups as a way to teach the whole class about these new words.
3. Instruct students to write an opinion paper about one of these scenarios: "I would like to have lived with the Pilgrims, because^Å" or "I would not like to have lived with the Pilgrims, because..."
4. Locate a map of Plymouth and locate the physical features that made Plymouth a desirable place to settle. A topographic map and photos will also be helpful. A large world map can also be used to illustrate the scope of the voyage. As students read about different parts of the Mayflower journey, a ship or Pilgrim symbol fashioned from paper can be tacked to corresponding points on the map, then moved along the map as stories progress.
5. Wish You Were Here - In this activity, students create Pilgrim postcards to "send" to a friend in Europe. On the front of the card, students can illustrate one aspect of settling in Plymouth. On the back of the postcard, students write a brief message. As for the stamp, ask students to design their own, with a Pilgrim image they choose (examples include, the Mayflower, a Pilgrim hat, maize, Plymouth Rock, a character from one of the texts).
6. Wish You Were Here, Again - In this writing assignment, students pretend they are Pilgrims and write a brief letter to a friend in England detailing the choice of Plymouth as the site of the colony, and why he/she is thankful to be there. They can consult similar kinds of entries in their texts for models.
7. Students can create a kind of tri-fold travel brochure inviting settlers to Plymouth. Why would you want to visit Plymouth? Students can talk about the attractions, climate, and weather to try to convince others that it would be a great place to visit.
8. Captain's Table - We associate the Pilgrims with the first Thanksgiving, but what about dining aboard the Mayflower, during the voyage across the ocean? Make a "yummy" Mayflower meal. Provide your class with beef jerky, a cracker, a piece of cheese and some water. What do they think about their Mayflower meal?

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