I love Thanksgiving! I used to love it because of the food- stuffing, ham, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and all of the other delicious food. Now, I love it because of the steps I’ve outlined in today’s article, “How to Celebrate Thanksgiving Respectfully in School.”
Prior to getting into the heart of this article, I want to add a caveat here and let you know that this article will not be for everyone and that’s okay. Your district or country may not celebrate Thanksgiving or some of the steps may not speak to you, your way of teaching or your school’s policies. Note that these are suggestions for you to adapt and use as you see fit for your specific class and students.
Depending on where you live, your children may only know about one aspect of why we celebrate Thanksgiving. Honestly, I didn’t understand anything beyond the concept of getting together with family to eat until I went to university and learned about voices other than the dominant voice and how it affected them. These lessons are important to teach children.
Whether your school does or doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving, I really hope you teach your children step #1. It can be included into your Language Arts and Health curriculum. It’s not specifically about Thanksgiving but it’s related to it and can help improve your child’s social and emotional regulation.
Let’s get into it.
Actionable Steps:
#1. Teach Gratitude
Gratitude helps children feel a sense of peace, helps with mental health issues over time and allows them to feel a sense of pride in themselves and their accomplishments. The very act of being grateful helps boost a child’s self-esteem and self-confidence.
You can help your children develop a sense of gratitude with these ready-to-use writing prompts: You can also take part in this activity this alongside your children so that they can see and learn from you. Download your gratitude journal by CLICKING HERE and one for your students by clicking on the following image. If money is tight, click on the image below, choose the one that works best for your students and do the same one as them so that you don’t need to get two journals.
For additional tips and strategies, check out the following article, “How to Teach Gratitude in the Classroom or at Home.“
#2. Honor Different Historical Voices
Thanksgiving has different meanings to different people, cultures and tribes. It’s therefore important to ensure that other voices beyond the dominant voice is heard. Many textbooks focus on the dominant voice and don’t adhere to what other people have gone through, such as the Indigenous people.
One way to honor different historical voices is to go to your local library and to get storybooks that talks about Thanksgiving from an Indigenous perspectives. Another way to do this is to have people in your community come to your classroom to share their thoughts and feelings.
#3. Make Thanksgiving Fun
Teach your children some fun Thanksgiving terms in a play-based learning manner where your kids enjoy themselves while developing their vocabulary and understanding of Thanksgiving.
All you have to do is download and print the following activity for each child by clicking the following image and enjoy your time together.
Recap:
Let’s recap really quickly. Today, we looked at the following:
- The importance of celebrating Thanksgiving respectfully.
- Three simple ways to teach children about Thanksgiving: teach gratitude, honor different historical voices, and make Thanksgiving fun.
Free Resources:
If your children are struggling to hand in assignments on time, check out the following video training: 3 Steps to Teach Children How to Overcome Procrastination to Increase Productivity.
Next Steps:
For calm down areas on a budget, for your students who have autism, CLICK HERE.
You’re welcome to join us inside ADHD and Autism Self Regulation by CLICKING HERE or on the fallowing image.
If you found this video beneficial, would you do me a favor? Share this with your family, your friends, your loved ones, your co-workers or someone who you think could benefit from this. Thank you!
I’ll see you next Friday at 5:30pm PST.
Until I see you next time, remember to create, experience & teach from the heart.
Take care,
Charlotte
Disclaimer: I’m a teacher and a parent. I’m not a medical professional, so please don’t take this as medical advice. The advice that I provide in my videos and online are strategies that I have used in my own class or at home that have worked beautifully.