TOPIC OF THE WEEK

THANKSGIVING: A COLLECTION OF ACTIVITIES

THANKSGIVING PLACEMATS

GRADES: 3-8

This lesson gives students an opportunity to consider all the things they can be thankful for, and provides them with a creative way to show it that parents will treasure for years to come.

MATERIALS:

  • poster board cut to 18x20
  • paper plates (regular size)
  • magazines (Parents, Family Circle, etc.)
  • clear contact paper or access to laminating machine
  • colored index cards
  • markers, pens, pencils
  • glue and scissors
  • Thanksgiving stickers (optional)

METHOD:

  1. Tell students that today they will create a placemat for their Thanksgiving table that will remind them of all the gifts they have.
  2. Brainstorm with the class: For who and what can you be thankful? (list responses on board)
  3. If you have not already done so in another class, introduce (briefly) a few types of poetry: acrostic, haiku, cinquain, etc. Be sure to give students examples.
  4. Instruct students to write a poem incorporating all the things they are thankful for.
  5. Have students copy their poem onto the colored index card.
  6. Glue the index card in a corner of the poster board.
  7. Have students find and cut out pictures that represent the things for which they can give thanks. (preferably these are the same things represented in the poem)
  8. Glue these pictures onto the paper plate.
  9. Glue the paper plate onto the poster board. (in the center)
  10. Decorate the rest of the poster board with sayings like, "Give Thanks!", "Thank you!", "Happy Thanksgiving", etc., as well as any other artwork or even stickers students want to add.
  11. Laminate or cover with contact paper so that the placemat may actually be used on Thanksgiving.

    Submitted by,

MICHELE HOLMES
ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA SCHOOL
BALTIMORE, MD
miholmes@loyola.edu
 

AN EASY HOLIDAY RECIPES: EASY NO BAKE PUMPKIN PIE

GRADES: K-8

This is a great idea to use during the fall theme, pumpkin theme, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. It is a good idea to make up a batch ahead of time and let the kids mix up a batch in class. Then they can assemble their own pies. One recipe makes enough for 20-25 kids depending on the size of the scoop.

MATERIALS:

  • 1 large package of vanilla instant pudding
  • 1 small can of pumpkin
  • 2 1/2 cups of milk
  • 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.
  • 1 package of graham crackers or Nilla wafers
  • 1 container of Cool Whip (canned whip cream can also be used.)

METHOD:

  1. Mix the first four ingredients together in a bowl. Put in refrigerator for 2 hours.
  2. Place 1/4 of a graham cracker or 1 Nilla wafer in the bottom of a small cup.
  3. Add one small scoop of pumpkin mixture.
  4. Top with cool whip. Enjoy!

Submitted by,

LISA GUTTRIDGE
CHARLES MACK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
SACRAMENTO, CA
ragleg4@prodigy.net

IMPROVISATIONS: GENERAL GUIDELINES AND SOME THANKSGIVING IDEAS

GRADES: 5-12

MATERIALS:

  • none

METHOD:

  1. Guidelines for Improvisation: When an improvisation involves working with another person or a group, all the participants need to follow the same guidelines. When the numbered guidelines are used, the improvisation will seem as if it were planned and rehearsed.
  2. Before you begin the scene, decide who you are, what you want, and what your relationship is to the other characters. You should draw on your memory of real-life characters and imitate them.
  3. Once you have established a character in your mind, you need to communicate that character to your audience through your dialogue and actions.
  4. Try hard to remain the same person during the improvisation. Stay in character. "Breaking character" occurs when you say or do something that is inconsistent with the role you are creating.
  5. Begin your dialogue with enthusiasm and confidence.
  6. It doesn't really matter who talks first. In scenes with just two characters, you will find it easy to take turns speaking. In larger groups, there will not be a set pattern for the conversation. All of the actors should try hard to participate in the dialogue.
  7. It is very important in improvisation to pay attention, listening carefully to what is being said and following what is happening in the scene. Then you can respond appropriately. To keep the conversation flowing, concentrate on what is being said, not on yourself. When you really listen to what is being said, you will be surprised how easy it is to think of something to say in response.
  8. Remember to keep the dialogue moving, but be careful not to dominate the scene by doing all the talking.
  9. Avoid "dead-end" words or phrases. Responses such as "No," "Okay," "So?" and "Well?" stop the dialogue. These phrases make it difficult for the other players in the scene to continue the conversation or action. And disagreeing with what your partner has said with negative responses such as "That's not right," or "No, she's not" makes it difficult to do much more than argue. Another roadblock is to not respond when your partner makes a statement or asks a question. When a member of the improvisation replies with a response such as "Oh?" "Really?" or "What?" build on it and continue the dialogue.
  10. Avoid questions that can be answered by "yes" or "no." If you must ask questions, it is much better to ask open-ended questions. A question such as "Why did you come home so late?" would give the other players an easy opening into the conversation.
  11. Always look for a way to end the scene. When the natural ending occurs, conclude the scene. Remember, your group is working as an ensemble, so the ending might not be your idea. Part of the fun is finding out what happens to end the scene.

Thanksgiving Improv Ideas

  • You are a butterball turkey trying to get chosen for Thanksgiving dinner.
  • You are the terminator sent to terminate the turkey.
  • You are trying to talk your parents out of a big "family" dinner so you can go to a skating party.
  • You are at your girlfriend/boyfriend's house for Thanksgiving dinner and bite into a sour cranberry.
  • You drop the stuffing on grandma's wig by accident.
  • You wake up and realize you're living in a Peanuts Thanksgiving special.
  • You get to be in the Thanksgiving day parade but get tangled in the giant Turkey balloon and have to be rescued by 911.
  • Your teacher assigns you to do a report on the meaning of Thanksgiving, and you have to do your oral report first.
  • You are two turkeys trying out for "Miss Turkey" of the year.
  • You're having Thanksgiving dinner when Santa pops down the chimney and thinks it's Christmas.
  • Your mom sends you out to kill Herbert, your pet, for Thanksgiving dinner.
  • You are trying out for a Thanksgiving TV special and have to make up a Thanksgiving song to the tune of the Brady Bunch theme song.
  • At the family dinner, grandpa develops a gaseous problem.
  • You are visiting your child's elementary school for their annual Thanksgiving Day play, and you get flooded in.
  • You are two people fighting over the last turkey in the grocery store. . . the day before Thanksgiving.
  • You are a cook who burns the Thanksgiving dinner and has to convince the family and friends to go out to eat without letting on that you burnt the dinner.
  • You are two kids trying to catch a turkey.
  • You are two children watching the Foley's Thanksgiving day parade (in person) when one of the large balloon characters hits the power lines and catches on fire.
  • You are two people fighting over which game to watch on TV on Thanksgiving day.
  • Two relatives, who are not speaking to each other, get stuck in an elevator on the way to their family Thanksgiving dinner.
  • You are fighting over a freshly baked turkey with your dog.
  • You are eating Thanksgiving day dinner at a friend's house and the food tastes bad.
  • r car breaks down on the way to Thanksgiving dinner.
  • You have to explain Thanksgiving to a person from another country.
  • You are eating Thanksgiving dinner and your grandfather loses his dentures in the vegetables.
  • You are two kids trying to make a pie for Thanksgiving.
  • You are a turkey protesting Thanksgiving.
  • You are two kids attempting to "help" Mom with Thanksgiving dinner.
  • You are a turkey getting plucked.
  • You are sitting beside someone at Thanksgiving dinner who has bad manners.

Submitted by,

DONNA LAMPMAN
ZACHRY MIDDLE SCHOOL
SAN ANTONIO, TX
dlampman@tenet.edu

THE LEGEND OF THE FIVE KERNELS

GRADES: K-8

MATERIALS:

  • cellophane
  • yarn
  • candy corn (enough for your class)

METHOD:

  1. Explain: Food was scarce during the Pilgrims first winter in the New World. Governor John Carver gave each person five kernels of Indian corn once a day. when spring came, the Pilgrims planted some of this corn. The Pilgrims knew they would never face starvation again. From then on, they placed five kernels of corn on each person's plate when there was a time of thanksgiving.
  2. Instruct each student to list five good things in his/her life for which he/she is thankful on a large index card.
  3. Provide each student with a five-inch square of cellophane, an eight inch piece of yarn and five kernels of candy corn.
  4. After placing his/her candy corn kernels in the center of the cellophane, have each student bundle them into a bag and tie it off with yarn.
  5. Have students take their writings and bags of corn home to share with their families on Thanksgiving.

THE TINY MAYFLOWER

GRADES: 3-8

MATERIALS:

  • a ball of string
  • 2 yardsticks
  • a playground area

METHOD:

  1. Explain: The Mayflower probably looked like most other ships of its time, which generally had three masts and two decks. It measured about 90 feet from stern to stern, and was about 25 feet across at its widest point. It weighed about 180 short tons.
  2. Send two student volunteers outside to a play area to create an approximate outline of the Mayflower. Provide the pair with a large ball of string and two yardsticks. Instruct the two students to measure and then lay string on the ground in a 90'x25' rectangle.
  3. When the outline is complete, take the rest of the class to the area and have students step inside the outline to better feel the actual size of the Mayflower. Invite two or three other classes to join your students to more accurately reflect the number of passengers (102) on board the Mayflower.

AUTHENTIC PILGRIM RECIPES--"SWIZZLE" AND "BANNOCK CAKES"

GRADES: K-12

MATERIALS FOR SWIZZLE:

  • 1 quart water
  • 3/4 cup molasses
  • 1/4 cup white vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp. ginger

METHOD:

  1. Mix all of the ingredients in a glass jar.
  2. Put a lid on the jar and shake it well.
  3. Refrigerate overnight and serve cold.
  4. Let each student take a small sip.

MATERIALS FOR BANNOCK CAKES:

  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup stone-ground cornmeal
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons butter

METHOD:

  1. Bring the cup of water to a boil.
  2. Mix the cornmeal and salt with a fork.
  3. Add the boiling water to mixture. Stir until it is smooth.
  4. Then stir in the milk.
  5. Let the batter sit for about five minutes; then beat in the egg.
  6. Melt two tablespoons of butter in a heavy frying pan over medium heat.
  7. Drop the batter from a tablespoon to make little, round cakes.
  8. Cook the cakes for about two minutes.
  9. Turn each cake with a spatula and cook the other side for about one minute.
  10. Place the finished cakes on a serving dish. Serve either hot or cold. Makes approximately 25 four-inch cakes.

Submitted by,

JOLENE HOTT
NORTH PLATTE INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL
EDGERTON, MO
Mjoteach@aol.com

 

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