Celebrating Thanksgiving in the Classroom
Thanksgiving falls on the fourth Thursday of November each year. The run-up to the Thanksgiving break is a great opportunity to celebrate and learn about this holiday with your class, and it can be so much fun to engage in some Thanksgiving activities for students.
The main goal of teaching about Thanksgiving should be to help students develop an understanding of the history of the holiday and reinforce the important social-emotional concepts of gratitude, thankfulness, and empathy.
Explore the rich historical and cultural aspects of this American holiday with our Thanksgiving lesson plans, printables, and activities for students. You can incorporate Thanksgiving activities across the curriculum with reading, math, science, and social studies. There are arts & crafts projects with which your students can demonstrate their creativity, math worksheets so they can show their critical thinking skills, and activities for your students to show their vocabulary and reading capabilities.
For helpful suggestions and advice about teaching the history of the holiday in a way that is respectful to native peoples, check out Classroom Ideas for Teaching about Thanksgiving written by veteran teacher Crystalee Calderwood.
Fun Thanksgiving Activities for Students
Incorporate Thanksgiving across your classroom with easy, fun, and creative activities for students to enjoy. Students can choose from a range of fun math, social studies, and ELA Thanksgiving activities with our choice boards, or get stuck into a Thanksgiving mini-project.
Our Thanksgiving-themed activity packets for elementary and middle school grades are also a great way to introduce fun Thanksgiving activities that also incorporate reading, writing, and math skills, and everything you need is included in the packet, so you can simply print and go!
Thanksgiving Activities and Choice Boards
Use these student choice activities and projects to bolster math, writing, social studies, and reading skills while celebrating the holiday with gratitude.- Plan the Parade! Thanksgiving Math and Reading Mini-Project
- "I Am Thankful" Thanksgiving Gratitude Activity for Elementary Grades
- "I Am Grateful" Thanksgiving Gratitude Activities for Middle School
- Thanksgiving Social Studies Choice Board for Elementary Grades
- Thanksgiving Math Choice Board for Elementary Grades
- Thanksgiving Gratitude Writing Activity for High School
- Math Thanksgiving Choice Board
- ELA Thanksgiving Choice Board
Printable Thanksgiving Activities for Students
Teach your students about Thanksgiving with these printables and worksheets. Includes paper weaving, a mini-book with art projects, and improving math skills by creating a spreadsheet of favorite Thanksgiving foods.- Thanks Around the World
- Paper Weaving Instructions
- Colonial New England Food & Cooking
- The First Thanksgiving Book
- Thanksgiving Dinner
- Your Favorite Foods at Thanksgiving
- Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of the Macy's Day Parade Educator's Guide
- More Popular Thanksgiving Printables
Thankgiving Lesson Plans
Our Lesson Plans will help students understand Thanksgiving with activities such as creating a landmark commemorating different points of view, and much more.- Pilgrim Unit (7 lessons)
- Paper Weavings
- Colonial New England Food & Cooking
- The Wampanoag: A Thanksgiving Lesson
- Planning for the Voyage - Pilgrim Study Unit (Lesson 1 of 7)
- Thanksgiving: Multiple Perspectives
- Make a Dried Bouquet
- More Thanksgiving Lesson Plans
Social Studies & Thanksgiving Connected
Explore Thanksgiving connections using these social studies resources. Includes videos on how Thanksgiving became a national holiday, learning using Pilgrim Fact Cards, and background information.- Paper Weavings
- History of Thanksgiving
- Pilgrim Fact Cards
- The Wampanoag: A Thanksgiving Lesson
- Sarah Morton's Day, Samuel Eaton's Day, & Tapenum's Day
- Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message
- Thanksgiving: Multiple Perspectives
- More Popular Social Studies Activities
Studying Colonial Times
Integrating information about Colonial times into your lessons will extend your students' understanding of Thanksgiving with a lesson that compares the first Thanksgiving dinner to dinner now, as well as a reading passage from Colonial times.Math Thanksgiving Activities for Students
- Popular Colonial Times Printables
- Create a Colonial America Social Media Feed Mini-Project
- Paper Weavings
- Colonial New England Food & Cooking
- Of Plymouth Plantation Excerpt
- Thanksgiving: Multiple Perspectives
- Make a Dried Bouquet
- Thanksgiving Menu: Then & Now
- Exploring Colonial America Project-Based Learning Unit
- More Colonial Times Resources
- Interconnect math skills with these Thanksgiving activities. Includes creating a spreadsheet after researching turkey consumption, and practicing other math skills such as solving word problems and using logic.
Thanksgiving Activity Packets
Use these themed activity packets to help students celebrate Thanksgiving with social studies, language arts, math, and more.- Thanksgiving Themed Activities Packet for Elementary Students
- Thanksgiving Themed Math Packet for Elementary Students
- Thanksgiving Themed Math Packet for Middle School Students
- Thanksgiving Activity Packet (K-6)
Art Activities for Thanksgiving
Incorporate Thanksgiving activities into art class by creating placemats to take home, making a dried bouquet of flowers or paper weaving.- Paper Weavings
- Classroom Tree Bulletin Board
- Make a Dried Bouquet
- Thanksgiving Placemats
- Turkey Coloring Page
- Thanksgiving Day Draw
- Headband Pattern
- More Thanksgiving Art Activities
Reading & Language Arts Activities for Thanksgiving
Choose from these activities to help students expand their knowledge. Includes a reading passage using compare and contrast, enrichment activities, web resources, and practicing writing skills by creating a dialogue and journal entries.- Thanksgiving ELA Choice Board
- Crockpots and Crafts: Thanksgiving Edition
- Sarah Morton's Day, Samuel Eaton's Day, & Tapenum's Day
- Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message
- A Pilgrim Conversation
- "I'm Thankful for..." List
- A Pilgrim Conversation Rubric
- Giving Thanks Writing Activity
- Daily Journal Topics: Thanksgiving
- More Reading & Language Arts Activities
Thanksgiving Foods & Recipes
Use these resources to expand your teaching strategies and lessons on Thanksgiving with background information on Colonial recipes, as well as information on the first Thanksgiving dinner.- Cranberry Facts
- Colonial New England Food & Cooking
- Make a Dried Bouquet
- Thanksgiving Menu: Then & Now
- Fruity Maple Glazed Ham
- Juice Nutrition 101
- Dried-Pepper Hangings Instruction Sheet
- More Food Resources for Thanksgiving
Teaching Native American Heritage
These resources will increase students' knowledge about Native Americans and enhance your teaching strategies through background information and activities. You can also explore more resources for Native American Heritage Month throughout the whole month of November.- Popular Native American Printables
- Native American Music Resources
- Sarah Morton's Day, Samuel Eaton's Day, & Tapenum's Day
- Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message
- Thanksgiving: Multiple Perspectives
- Popular Native American Language Arts Activities
- The First Thanksgiving - Pilgrim Study Unit (Lesson 5 of 7)
- More Native American Resources
Learning About the Pilgrims
Students will enjoy Learning About the Pilgrims with these resources containing background information, writing activities comparing Pilgrim children to today's children, and games.- Pilgrim Children - Pilgrim Study Unit (Lesson 7 of 7)
- Pin the Hat on the Pilgrim
- Today's Pilgrim Worksheet
- The First Winter - Pilgrim Study Unit (Lesson 4 of 7)
- Set Design for "Pilgrims of Plymouth"
- Life in Plymouth - Pilgrim Study Unit (lesson 6 of 7)
- Aboard the Mayflower - Pilgrim Study Unit (Lesson 2 of 7)
- More Pilgrim Resources
