Thanksgiving is just days away! Fun mood, celebration spirit and anticipation of awesome Thanksgiving dinners are already in the air, as we approach the holidays. Are you planning something special for your students?
We put together 6 ideas for celebrating Thanksgiving with your class – have fun and learn along the way!
Math activity: plan a Thanksgiving feast
Task your students with planning a Thanksgiving feast, turning it into a fun math activity. They get to plan the menu, then pick one of the items and create a shopping list of ingredients they will need to make their recipe.
Have them adjust amounts to the number of servings they will need to make based on the number of people attending. Based on grocery store advertisements, ask them to calculate how much it will cost to make their recipe. This activity is suitable for upper elementary grades or even middle schoolers.
Play Thanksgiving-themed kahoots
What better way to celebrate than with our new collection of curriculum-aligned, Thanksgiving-themed kahoots, as well as fun trivia! These kahoots impart Thanksgiving knowledge but with a math twist! This collection has been designed for both elementary and middle schoolers in mind.
Share a pilgrim’s story from your family
Many of us had pilgrims in our families. Ask your elementary-age students to find out who the “pilgrim” was in their family to first arrive in a different country. This research will need some homework: encourage learners to write about their journey to the country, their beginnings and why they decided to settle there. In addition to that, if some of the learners are up for practicing their drawing skills, suggest they sketch a portrait of their ancestor in their traditional costume.
Go back in time visually
Go back in history with your elementary school students! Offer quick facts about the beginnings of Thanksgiving and how the how the holiday evolved over the years. Use this slideshow from the Scholastic website or a video from the History channel to give students a visual look into the past.
Make a thankful list
For this activity, elementary level students can think about a few things/people they are thankful about and write those on various colored leaves made from construction paper. Then, place those leaves on a paper tree which the students can take home.
Indulge in Thanksgiving crafts
If you’re looking for more creative Thanksgiving activities and projects to try with your lower elementary grade students, go to Pinterest for inspiration! It’s a goldmine of ideas for any holiday, including Thanksgiving. For example, there are several craft and project ideas for kids, like … footprint turkeys (kids’ footprints can be the body of the turkey and kids can stick colored paper for feathers!), thanksgiving placemats, paper plate turkeys and many more.
Happy Thanksgiving, Kahoot!’ers!