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https://seasonal.theteacherscorner.net/thanksgiving/
Teachers can use this site to come up with educational crafts for their students to create.

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The Thanksgiving pages will provide you with great activities and resources for this day of being thankful. Ideas within this section include: thematic units, easy craft ideas, bulletin boards, coloring sheets, and Internet resources.

Your creativity can help other teachers. Submit your Thanksgiving activity today. Don't forget to include additional resources-documents, web sites, or a photo.

Thanksgiving Day is a harvest festival that is celebrated in the U.S. and Canada (among other countries). Historically, Thanksgiving was intended to give thanks to God, but more recently has become a more secular holiday. In the U.S., Thanksgiving is observed on the fourth Thursday in November (Canada celebrates it on the second Monday in October).

Thanksgiving Day dates: (U.S.)
November 26, 2020
November 25, 2021
November 24, 2022

This indicates resources located on The Teacher's Corner.

Log Cabins Grades Primary
Put those school milk cartons to good use. "To make a Pilgrim or Abraham Lincoln cabin, wash out school milk boxes, dry them and staple them shut again. Paint the boxes brown or cover them with a 2-inch strip of brown paper. The children can glue small straight pretzels that lay like logs all around the box. Next, cover the roof with a piece of brown paper and sprinkle with brown colored coconut. (To color coconut just add food coloring to it and shake it up in a plastic bag.) This makes a fun Thanksgiving project for the little ones."
Idea Submitted by: Vera Crisafulli [email protected] , a kindergarten teacher at Jefferson School in Glendive, Montana. This tip was published in the NEA's Weekly Tip Newsletter.

Thanksgiving Crosswords Grades Any
These crosswords were created entirely using our popularfree crossword maker. Download these PDF's by clicking on them or make your own in seconds!

*Note: All of these thanksgiving crosswords use the same word/clue lists. Download the Keys:Key 1, Key 2, Key 3, Key 4. Make your own at the link above.

My Thankful Place Mat Grades Any
This is an art activity in which you can take a piece of construction paper (fall colors) and let the child glue on leaf shapes and then let them tell you what they are thankful for and you can dictate they're answers onto the leaves. Put they're names in the middle and laminate the place mat for years of use. To give it they're own special touch, they might want to color it.
Activity Submitted by: Anna Daub [email protected]

Squanto Grades Any
Great corn growing activity for students. This is a great idea to allow the little ones to "see" how the corn was planted. Of course, I read this in a magazine.
1. You will need a simple story of Squanto (to the age of the preschool group)
2. A few coloring book style of fish, to cut out (if they are able)
3. Brown construction paper (this is your dirt, or you can tear pieces of brown to "make dirt", then...
4. Glue the fish to the torn glue paper, (or the colored brown crayon on white paper as dirt).
5. Glue on pieces of real Indian corn, on top of the fish.
6. Cover with more torn paper... Of course....adjust to the age...and improvise....could even use the Dirt Dessert with gummy fish, and candy corn....
Submitted by: Beth Garlitz

Thanksgiving Word Searches Grades Any
These word searches were created in their entirety using ourfree word search maker. You can download these premade word searches or make your own in seconds.

Keys:Key 1, Key 2, Key 3, Key 4

Thanksgiving Coloring Pages
Lots of coloring pages that you can print and color!

Thanksgiving Journal Pages and Coloring Sheets
Lots of journal pages and more coloring pages.

Turkey in Disguise Grades Any
A great Thanksgiving Art activity. Make a turkey template. Draw a turkey outline on cardboard, about 12 inches tall. It should face forward, not in profile. Don't draw the tail feathers--you basically want a plucked turkey. I found a cartoon turkey on the Web that was easy to draw freehand. Cut out the cardboard turkey and use as a template to cut out tagboard turkeys for each student. Tell the students that Thanksgiving is coming and their job is to disguise their turkey so it doesn't end up on the Thanksgiving table. Provide construction paper, felt, fabric, yarn, etc. to glue onto their tagboard turkey. I have them glue one tiny feather peaking out from the disguise. Mount the turkeys on the bulletin board near a barn cutout that says "Turkey Hill Farm." Add the title "Turkeys in Disguise."

Kids love the absurdity of this activity. They've disguised their turkeys as American flags, hippies, ballerinas, the Statue of Liberty, French chefs, Santa Claus--it's just a great creative activity!
Submitted by: Eileen Thorpe

Thanksgiving Word Scrambles Grades Any
These word scrambles were created in their entirety using ourfree word scramble maker. You can download these premade word scrambles or make your own in seconds.

Keys:Key 1, Key 2, Key 3, Key 4

Thanksgiving Dinner Grades 4
A great lesson to apply real-world math skills and Thanksgiving. A lesson I like to do with my 4th graders is gather food ads from the local grocery store chains around Thanksgiving. First, you can give them a budget and a set number of guests and have them plan a meal. This uses many math skills (especially multiplication, where the prices of turkey are given in per lb.). Also, you can have them compare the meals in two different grocery stores. This is truly real world connections.
Lesson Plan Submitted by: Virginia Richards, Shallowford Falls Elementary school in Marietta, Georgia [email protected]

Thanksgiving Feast Grades Any
A fun feast idea for any age of student. Each year my Kindergarten children churn butter using an antique churn and whipping cream. While the children are churning they are also practicing their counting to 100. My churn is an English crank-type so it is easy for the children to sit on the floor and turn the handle. A parent volunteer usually holds the base of the churn steady as each child takes a turn churning and counting 100 revolutions. Whipping cream is used as the only ingredient for the homemade butter. As the butter is being churned, we also stir up a large batch of cornbread, which we bake in the classroom in a toaster oven. The cornbread smells delicious as it bakes.

After the butter is churned and the cornbread has cooled, the children eat the products dressed in their Indian and pilgrim costumes that they have made during the unit. The children use popsicle sticks to spread the butter onto their cornbread and stand up around the table, since little furniture and few utensils would have been had by the first settlers. Water or apple juice could also be served.
Idea Submitted by: Gary [email protected]

Thanksgiving Ideas Grades Intermediate
A collection of nontraditional Thanksgiving ideas and activities for your students.
Ideas Submitted by: Valley Blanton [email protected], a fifth grade teacher at Lake Park Elementary School in Georgia. This tip was published in the NEA's Weekly Tip Newsletter.

Turkey Hand & Poem Grades K-3
Turn that cute turkey hand idea into something new! Have students make a turkey with their hands and decorate it. On the same paper, have them copy this poem:
This isn't just a turkey,
As anyone can see.
I made it with my hand,
Which is a part of me.
It comes with lots of love.
Especially to say,
I hope you have a very happy
Thanksgiving Day!
Submitted by: [email protected]

Thanksgiving Poems Grades Any
Share these poems with your students.

Thanksgiving Songs Grades Any
A collection of songs set to popular tunes.

Also see our other November Lesson Plans, Thematic Units and Activities

Thanksgiving Interactive Grades Any
"In this fun, award-winning activity, you take on the role of a "history detective" to investigate what really happened at the famous 1621 celebration."

Thanksgiving; The Mayflower Grades 1-4
Vocabulary development for the holiday of Thanksgiving; social studies concept of the settling of the New World.

Thanksgiving Weather & History
A weather almanac of the winter of 1620-'21.

Debbie's Unit Factory - Thanksgiving Links Grades Any
Quality Theme Units for Teachers and Homeschoolers - Find arts, crafts, and teaching ideas.

Indian Kids Grades Any
A history of Indian culture.

Thanksgiving Coloring Sheets Grades Any
(These files will download when you click on them.)

Thanksgiving Story Grades K-2
A Rebus story -- Print out in color and share!!

EMAIL us your favorite Thanksgiving activity.

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The Thanksgiving pages will provide you with great activities and resources for this day of being thankful. Ideas within this section include: thematic units, easy craft ideas, bulletin boards, coloring sheets, and Internet resources. Your creativity can help other teachers. Submit your Thanksgiving activity today.

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Education.com provides worksheets, stories, and other activities for teachers to choose from. The grade levels range from pre-k to high school

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2nd Grade Thanksgiving Worksheets & Free Printables | Education.com

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Second grade Thanksgiving worksheets and printables keep your seven- or eight-year-old entertained before dinner. Try our second grade Thanksgiving worksheets.

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BrainPOP has a section specifically for Thanksgiving that allows the students to watch videos, play games, and take quizzes.

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Scholastic is a useful website for educators to develop lesson plans and activities. This page is a step by step instruction on how to talk about the first Thanksgiving for Preschoolers, Kindergarten, First, and Second grade. It also provides activities to enhance learning
https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plans/teaching-content/thanksgiving-lessons-grades-prek-2/

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This is a really good site because you can select the grade level you are teaching and there are different crafts and activities you can choose from. For instance, theres Thanksgiving poems and songs, coloring printouts, crafts, recipes, and then links for more sites to go to.

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Thanksgiving Crafts and Children's Activities

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Thanksgiving crafts, coloring pages, games, printables, worksheets and other activities for children.

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A Cultural Thanksgiving Lesson Your ESL Students Will Gobble Up

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A Cultural Thanksgiving Lesson Your ESL Students Will Gobble Up

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This website includes lessons for different levels of ESL learners. The teacher can pick which level she thinks her immigrant students can learn the most from. It includes different worksheets, videos, and games.

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Picture a group of people who have never heard of Thanksgiving before.

What would you tell them it was about?

It's a tough question to answer... but you're in luck!

This holiday lesson is specially designed to make explaining and exploring Thanksgiving with your ESL class easy and fun.

As teachers, it's always so rewarding when we can use current events to help teach our students. So why not create a thematic lesson for this uniquely North American holiday-Thanksgiving-to teach culture, history and vocabulary to your ESL class?

While Thanksgiving is celebrated in both the United States and in Canada, the holidays take place one month apart and have different histories. The lesson below is better geared towards a celebration of American Thanksgiving, but feel free to adapt it for a Canadian Thanksgiving lesson as well.

This lesson is ideal to use over the course of two days. Start on a Wednesday so that you can decorate your classroom in time for the celebration on Thursday.

Day 1: What Is Thanksgiving?

The first day of this lesson is all about introducing Thanksgiving to your students. Remember: Some of them may have never heard about the holiday, so it's important to present all angles of the celebration. For the most part, on Wednesday you'll be looking at the celebration; on Thursday, you'll be delving further into the history of the holiday.

First, present Thanksgiving. Use images to show different ways of celebrating, and ask students what they know about the holiday. Help students arrive at a definition that adheres to the following idea:
Thanksgiving is an American holiday that celebrates the harvest. It's a day for giving thanks. Most Americans celebrate with a big family meal featuring roast turkey.
For ESL Beginners

Once you've presented the general notion of Thanksgiving, delve further into traditions using a worksheet. This will also allow you to present Thanksgiving vocabulary to your students.

Here are a few of our favorites:

This worksheet uses clip art to show students the definition of different Thanksgiving vocabulary words, which they then find via a word search. If you use this worksheet, try to use it as a jumping-off point for discussion about the definitions of the different words on the sheet, including their importance with regards to the holiday.

Encourage students to explore the vocabulary as much as possible, using images of Thanksgiving feasts to help them to participate orally as well as in their worksheets. Once they have an idea of the elements that should be on the Thanksgiving table, students will be able to more easily move on to the next step of the lesson.

For Intermediate ESL Learners

Try encouraging students to participate in class with this reader, which uses a playacting format to explain some of the traditions of Thanksgiving. After going through the reader, encourage students to give some ideas of what they think Thanksgiving is all about based on what they've read and what they already knew.

Feel free to use a vocabulary sheet, either one from the beginners section or from the "other resources" section below, to reinforce the acquired vocabulary.

You can then ask intermediate students to complete this Thanksgiving acrostic or this Mad Libs-type exercise to practice their new vocabulary words.

For Advanced ESL Students

Present Thanksgiving using this funny farmer vs. turkey video. After having seen the video, ask your students to explain what they think Thanksgiving is about-based on the clip and their own experiences. You could also use pop culture references to introduce the Thanksgiving meal, like scenes from "Friends" or other television shows featuring the holidays ( like these 10).

Once you have gone over the basics, give students this Thanksgiving crossword as an exercise to reinforce the information they have learned.

Decorating the Classroom for Thanksgiving

Finish off the class by creating Thanksgiving decorations for the classroom, which will be used for the celebration tomorrow.

Be sure, as you're decorating, to encourage your students to speak to one another in English. Present the crafts that you have chosen in English, including the tools they will need to complete them. Also propose the right structure so that students can ask for the materials they need as they work.

Thanksgiving Homework

Give students a writing exercise for homework, answering the prompt, "What am I thankful for?" Be sure to take at least 3-5 minutes to introduce the prompt and define the word "thankful" as needed. Be aware that, culturally speaking, the idea of saying what you are thankful for is not something that is immediately apparent for everyone, so take your time with this explanation.

You could make it a bit more interesting for the students by using this Thanksgiving lined paper! This "thankful turkey" worksheet is a fun way to include an art project as well.

Other Resources for Your Thanksgiving ESL Lesson

Here are a few other great resources to explore Thanksgiving traditions:

Day 2: The History of Thanksgiving

On the second day of the lesson, you'll explore the history of Thanksgiving in greater detail.

History of Thanksgiving Videos

Start out with a video; choose one that will suit the level of your class from the following options:

Be sure to discuss the elements of the video after (or during) viewing as needed.

Thanksgiving ESL Reading Comprehension Activity

Next, encourage students to delve a bit deeper with reading comprehension exercises. For this, you have a few options:

This reading explores the first year that the Pilgrims spent in the New World, and this reading talks about the Wampanoag tribe. You may wish to give one reading to each half of the class if you are working with an advanced group, then have them share their findings with one another.

This history of Thanksgiving is a bit dry, but it presents all the facts clearly, making it a good resource when paired with interesting and thoughtful reading comprehension questions.

Share What You Are Thankful For

Finally, encourage students to express what they are thankful for. Either ask them to read what they wrote for homework or ask them to share orally. Explain that this is a tradition that is usually done around the Thanksgiving dinner table.

If allowed by your school, you could end with a class party, at which point the sharing would take place. For a class party, consider including some traditional Thanksgiving flavors, like cranberry sauce on crackers, pumpkin cookies or small turkey sandwiches.

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday to explore with your ESL students, as in addition to teaching American culture, you get to spend time focusing on gratitude-a value that benefits all!

Oh, and One More Thing...

If you liked these lesson plans, you'll love using FluentU in your classroom. FluentU takes real-world videos-like music videos, cartoons, documentaries and more-and turns them into personalized language learning lessons for you and your students.

It's got a huge collection of authentic English videos that people in the English-speaking world actually watch on the regular. There are tons of great choices there when you're looking for songs for in-class activities.

You'll find music videos, musical numbers from cinema and theater, kids' singalongs, commercial jingles and much, much more.

On FluentU, all the videos are sorted by skill level and are carefully annotated for students. Words come with example sentences and definitions. Students will be able to add them to their own vocabulary lists, and even see how the words are used in other videos.

For example, if a student taps on the word "brought," they'll see this:

Plus, these great videos are all accompanied by interactive features and active learning tools for students, like multimedia flashcards and fun games like "fill in the blank."

It's perfect for in-class activities, group projects and solo homework assignments. Not to mention, it's guaranteed to get your students excited about English!
Bring English immersion to your classroom!
If you liked this post, something tells me that you'll love FluentU, the best way to teach English with real-world videos.

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A Cultural Thanksgiving Lesson Your ESL Students Will Gobble Up

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Picture a group of people who have never heard of Thanksgiving before. What would you tell them it was about? It's a tough question to answer... but you're in luck! This holiday lesson is specially designed to make explaining and exploring Thanksgiving with your ESL class easy and fun.

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The Story of Thanksgiving Read Aloud Book

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The Story of Thanksgiving Read Aloud Book

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This website allows the teacher to choose any particular book and it will read it aloud. These books have pictures to engage the students as well.

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the story of thanksgiving - english preschool books read aloud

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elementary school teacher reading resource

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The Story Of Thanksgiving - Just Books Read Aloud

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The Story Of Thanksgiving - Children's Books Read Aloud - no clutter, no games, no pseudo-tv

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This is a fun game for children to play during the Thanksgiving holiday. In the game, the student is a Captain of a Jamestown colony. The student receives scores and points based on the decisions made and quality of the settlement he has run. At the end, the students compare their colony to Jamestown and see how they lived in the days of the Pilrgims.

http://www.historyglobe.com/jamestown/

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This is really helpful because this site has worksheets that she can print out for the students. Theres a lesson for the first Thanksgiving dinner, a lesson plan for myth or truth about Thanksgiving, and a trivia lesson plan for grades 2nd and up. For each lesson there are instructions on what to do as well as websites and videos that correspond to the lesson. It also has books that are related to the lesson which can be helpful because you can read it to your students also.

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This is really helpful because this site has worksheets that she can print out for the students. Theres a lesson for the first Thanksgiving dinner, a lesson plan for myth or truth about Thanksgiving, and a trivia lesson plan for grades 2nd and up. For each lesson there are instructions on what to do as well as websites and videos that correspond to the lesson. It also has books that are related to the lesson which can be helpful because you can read it to your students also.

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Most kids learn the traditional Thanksgiving lessons in school. They often associate Thanksgiving with Pilgrims, Indians, and of course, food. However, to fully understand what Thanksgiving is about, it is important to understand what happened at the first Thanksgiving and to learn details about the finer points of the holiday.

Unique Printable Lesson Plans

To save the lessons, click on the images to the right to open the PDF files. Once the PDF file opens, download it to your computer or print it out. You will need Adobe reader installed. If you need specific directions for your browser, there is a guide for working with Adobe printables.

The First Thanksgiving Dinner

The First Thanksgiving Dinner is a complete lesson plan for grades one to three. The lesson explains what happened at the first Thanksgiving celebration. Students will:

Learn what events led up to the first dinner.

Use printable plates and food to figure out how a modern Thanksgiving dinner differs from the first dinner.

A complete resource list is included to help you prepare for your discussion of the first Thanksgiving. You'll find links to websites, books to read to the class and video suggestions.

First Thanksgiving Myth or Truth Race

The First Thanksgiving Myth or Truth Race gets your students up and moving and engages them in learning more about what the first Thanksgiving was like. This lesson plan is best suited for grades six and up.

The details are a bit more in-depth than lessons for younger grades, even touching on how the Pilgrims came over on the Mayflower. Other topics include:

Suffering on the voyage to the New World

How the settlers struggled after arriving

What was eaten at the first feast

Lifestyle of the Wampanoag and how they helped the settlers survive

The lesson plan also includes blank cards so that you can create questions tailored to your unit of study.

Zany Turkey Trivia

Grades two and up will have a lot of fun with this turkey trivia lesson plan. This is a great filler lesson when you have a bit of extra time in class, or to leave out for a substitute teacher. Homeschoolers will appreciate the science of learning more about wild turkeys.

In the lesson, students will:

Learn facts they probably didn't know about turkeys, both domestic and wild

Get a handout where they can fill in the blanks as the teacher goes over the main points

This lesson is fun and kids will likely take the information they learn and discuss it over Thanksgiving dinner. For example, a wild turkey can fly as fast as 55 miles per hour (just not very far). These types of fun facts will stick with kids and make them more knowledgeable about this species of bird.

Online Thanksgiving Lessons for Kids

The following sites offer numerous Thanksgiving lessons for kids. Whether you are a classroom teacher, Sunday school instructor, or a parent, you'll find lots of wonderful ideas to use with your kids. While many of these lessons are geared toward the Thanksgiving Day holiday, they can also be modified to use any time of the year.

The Teachers Corner - This site offers tons of lessons, activities, and ideas for you to use with your kids. There are thematic units that offer critical thinking activities, reading comprehension practice, puzzles, lots of worksheets and crafts. You'll find lots of fun things to do for a variety of ages. Don't forget to check out the site's "Pilgrim Life Adventure" Webquest!

A to Z Teacher Stuff - Show your kids why the Pilgrims really did have so much to be thankful for as they survived their first few months and years in their new home. Then, apply those same lessons to your kids' lives today. Compare what they have with what the Pilgrims had. The historical lessons on this site will bring history alive for your kids. They are educational, yet fun! Teach your kids about the Wampanoag Indians, the settlers of Jamestown, and life at Plymouth Plantation. Together, you can learn Thanksgiving songs and poems that reflect on the true nature of the holiday.

Christian Crafter - With lessons like "Thank You, God, for My Ears" and "Thank You, God, for My Eyes," your kids will soon be counting their blessings. Each lesson has a variety of activities to go along with its theme, such as making musical instruments, creating a storybook, songs, and crafts.

Artist Helping Children - This site offers a huge directory of crafts for virtually any time of the year. You'll find simple directions for each activity, and many of these can be completed by elementary school and even preschool children with just a little help from an adult.

Learn the True Meaning of Thanksgiving

Yes, kids often fail to stop and count their blessings, but with some great activities centered around this special holiday, they can truly understand the true meaning of Thanksgiving Day. From learning about settlers survival to turkeys to what was served at the first Thanksgiving meal, there's plenty to explore.

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Most kids learn the traditional Thanksgiving lessons in school. They often associate Thanksgiving with Pilgrims, Indians, and of course, food. However, to fully understand what Thanksgiving is about, it is important to understand what happened at the first Thanksgiving and to learn details about the finer points of the holiday.

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During the virtual tour, students can talk to pilgrims, visit pilgrim villages, and tour the Mayflower. This tour takes a closer look at the relationships between the pilgrims and the Wampanoags and look at the historical significance of the pilgrims settlements.

http://www.scholastic.com/scholastic_thanksgiving/