A part of the Library's American Memory series, this Thanksgiving site concentrates on the historical origins of the holiday and how its celebration has evolved since the original Thanksgiving proclamation. Be sure to check out the Thanksgiving Timeline
In the Classroom: Make this site the basis for a scavenger hunt for Thanksgiving information.
This simple, text-based site includes a narrative about Thanksgiving, recipes, and more. The narrative provides an excellent resource for a unit that examines the first inhabitants of the Plymouth region (the Wampanoag), their culture, and the impact of the arrival of the Pilgrims upon their lives. The site describes the establishment and eventual deterioration of friendships between the early colonists and the Wampanoag. A study guide and discussion questions are included, along with ideas for enrichment. This is more than the usual cute Thanksgiving story and seeks to debunk many myths.
In the Classroom: Use this site as background for your pre-Thanksgiving lessons or create a scavenger hunt using the questions from the More Information for Teachers section. Have students wok in teams to create a booklet or PowerPoint presentation from a different angle: A Virtual Tour of the First Thanksgiving or a Guide for European Settlers to Life Among the Wampanoags.
Investigating the First Thanksgiving - What was it really like?? Plimoth Plantation museum has added a new Flash-based Thanksgiving lesson that will introduce students to the cultures and customs of both the Pilgrim and Wampanoag peoples. This presentation blends information about lots of everyday activities and customs with a look at what the actual "first Thanksgiving" might have looked like. Requires Flash.
In the Classroom: A complete teachers guide gives you ideas for using this resource in the classroom. Use a projector or interactive whiteboard to introduce the site, then assign students to complete the investigation in small groups or with a partner. You can spread the activity over several days at a computer cluster in your classroom or do it all at once in a lab.
This Thanksgiving website provides the teachers and students with some new ideas for Thanksgiving vocabulary. The interactive activity challenges students to figure out several word puzzles. There is also a wordbank and lesson plan ideas. Many of the puzzles are printable.
In the Classroom: Get an interactive whiteboard or projector and challenge your students with these unique word puzzles. The narrators of this interactive site are conversation starters (for example, Sam Mantics is the dean and Cinny Nym is another "vocabulary" narrator). Discuss with your students what these names actually represent (semantics and synonyms). This is a great activity for November vocabulary development.
This informative and interactive website introduces students to the first Thanksgiving. The three main areas of this site include "Voyage of the Mayflower", "Daily Life" and "The Thanksgiving Feast". There are video and audio clips, compare/contrast activities and more. This site required FLASH.
In the Classroom: Get an interactive whiteboard and take your students back to the 1600s! Teachers can utilize the comparing and contrasting activities to help their students have a better understanding of the Pilgrims and the Wampanoags. Check out the "For Teachers" section of this site, Scholastic will be providing a detailed teaching guide in November 2006.
The Census Bureau offers lots of Thanksgiving statistics, from the total weight of all the turkeys raised in the US to the total amount of food consumed on Thanksgiving. You can plan a huge party with this one!
In the Classroom: Choose a statistic your students can estimate then use this site to help develop estimation and number sense--all in a holiday spirit.
This seasonal website was created by a teacher. It offers many enrichment activities all about Fall and Thanksgiving. Some examples of activities include: "Catch the Falling Leaves," "Fun in the Garden," and "Find the Differences." Educational topics include numbers, counting, problem solving, logic, and art. Many of these activities require JAVA and/or FLASH. Get them from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..
In the Classroom: Your class will "eat up” these free resources all related to Fall and Thanksgiving. All of these activities are ready for your interactive whiteboard (or projector).
Provide this link in your fall newsletter as free (educational) activities for students to use during the fall break.
The Mayflower comes alive as you explore the passenger list with accompanying personal history and genealogy. Click on the Pilgrim History link for a history of Thanksgiving and other Mayflower-era topics, including authentic recipes.
In the Classroom: Only a visit to a far away museum could get any better than having the full-text primary sources which are available with a click on the left menu. The Mayflower experience would come to life as students fictitiously become one of the voyagers. Perhaps students could adopt a Mayflower ‘ancestor’ and write how they are alike or unlike. Around Thanksgiving, teachers may want to try some of the original recipes for an authentic Mayflower ‘flavor’ to their lesson plans.
This informative website presents the students with information on numerous "Pilgrim" topics. There are authentic pictures and a lot of information. Topics include "Who Were The Pilgrims," "Who Were The Wampanoag," "The Mayflower," "Building a Home," and more!
On the right side of the website, there is a list of other relevant topics (Thanksgiving, Growing Food, What to Wear, Playing and Learning, What's for Dinner, and several others).
In the Classroom: A teacher could use this website for research projects. Incorporate this website into your lessons on pilgrims, the Mayflower, and Thanksgiving. Use this site to help prepare for Colonial Days at your school.
Use these entertaining prompts to start your class blog entries or writing activities for Thanksgiving.aybe even write a script for a Thanksgiving podcast?
Find out what was on the menu for the first Thanksgiving, debunk some common holiday myths, and listen to pilgrim interviews. This informational multi-media site also features a beautifully designed video that details the history of this American institution – perfect for individual viewing. Note: this site "pauses" before opening. Be patient.
View pictures and read lively text about three seasons at the White House: Easter, Christmas and Thanksgiving. Learn about "first pets." This site includes all presidents through President Obama. Traditional holiday fun is presented in such a way that all students, regardless of religious background, will not be offended. Various activities on this site require Windows Media Player, QuickTime, or Real Player. You can get all from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom: Teachers can use a Venn Diagram to illustrate differences/similarities of cross-culture holidays or make comparisons on a personal level. As a creative writing assignment, students could create their own drama using their personal pets and favorite holiday instead.
This is a teacher and professional resource containing lesson plans and links for promoting diversity and addressing racial divides. This site contains excellent lesson plans on diversity, discrimination, multiculturalism, and tolerance. Each plan focuses on a person or event of a specific racial group, or a problem common to all multicultural groups. The plans do not specify a grade level, though many could be adapted for use from middle elementary level to high school. From Japanese internment to celebrating Thanksgiving in an American school, the plans and activities are excellent, varied, and fresh. The lesson plans are VERY detailed and provide objectives, but no correlation to standards. Many of the individual stories are available in MP3 format. You can listen to the stories using Windows Media Player or on any MP3 player, as well. Some of the lesson plans require Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom: Use the lesson plans that are relevant to your class as you study different cultures, history, racial tensions in the U.S. , or even character education. Share the stories on your interactive whiteboard or projector. With older students, have cooperative learning groups explore different lessons. Have the groups create a multi-media presentation sharing their discoveries. Have the groups create an online book using a tool such as Tikatok . You could also use this site as the core of a contemporary topics debate series.
This site celebrates the major works by Native American authors. There are three booklist levels, grades K-4, grades 5-8, and grades 9-12 and above. As part of NEA's Read Across America program, links to tools to help parents and teachers encourage more reading among the young. Books include fiction, essays, poetry, and nonfiction articles.
In the Classroom: Use this site as a reference when picking extra reading materials during a Native American unit or as you approach November and Thanksgiving. Teach students how to find book reviews online after they've selected a book they would like to read. Have students create multi-media book “reports.” Give students choices like a wiki, blog, PowerPoint, or even an online book review using a tool such at Tikatok (reviewed here).
The National Women's History Museum site includes a rich collection of resources. Although the collection is certainly deep on issues related to women's suffrage, there is also information on women in World War II, women and education, women and the Progressive movement, and women spies. There are good photographs of artifacts from the women's movement, and a nice collection of lesson plans, grouped by grade level.
In the Classroom: Of course, the site would be useful to students doing research on the women's movement in general, or on the role of women during several important historical eras. In the "educational resources" section, there is a collection of quotations from women that would be great for creating displays for women's history month. There is also a group of quizzes that could be adapted for classroom use. The section focused on the women of Jamestown includes the stories of Native American women as well as the role of early European settler women and could supplement the usual Thanksgiving lessons on the new American colonies.
Use this small but good-quality collection of free seasonal clip art to spice up your classroom worksheets and handouts. Can be used in school publications and on Web pages.
Social studies, history, and government teachers - be warned - this site may be the best FREE gift you receive this year. To sum it up in one word - WOW! The highlight of this site is ready-to-go lesson plans (with standards) divided by age level (elementary, middle, and high school). These FREE lesson plans are available online via a PDF file or you may order a FREE CD (they say it is a $150 value).
The elementary topics range from Colonial America to U.S. Presidents (with a focus on George Washington) to the History of Thanksgiving to The Pledge of Allegiance and MANY others. The middle school topics include the Declaration of Independence, Our National Documents, The Gettysburg Address, Religious Expression in School, and several others. The high school topics vary from the Mayflower, to Federalists 47, the First Amendment, and more. Each grade level also includes lessons on character education.
In addition to the wonderful lesson plans, the site also highlights the four themes of the foundation: Unity, Progress, Freedom, and Responsibility. There are also links to some fantastic social studies sites and a wealth of research information about America. Some of the lesson plans and printables require Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom: Obviously, the lesson plans are useful for all grade levels. Take advantage of these free resources. Many include printable activities for your students to try out. Although the site isn't highly interactive, it does have some great ideas to incorporate into your class to bring history alive.
Make the lesson plans more "technologically advanced" by having students create a wiki or blog entry. Have your high school students complete the lesson on the First Amendment and then have them have a virtual debate about the First Amendment via a class wiki. Have your elementary students complete the lesson on U.S. Presidents and then have each student write a blog entry pretending to be one of the presidents (a great mini-research project). Have your middle school students complete the lesson on the Gettysburg Address and then try to create their own "Address" to talk about the current state of our nation. Have them share their "Address" on a video using YouTube or or TeacherTube (explained here).
This is a collection of craft projects based on toys or articles that Native American or colonial children might have used. There are complete instructions for each item, with illustrations.
In the Classroom: Try using this unit with a study of Thanksgiving, colonial settlements, or Native Americans of the eastern U.S. Share the hands-on crafts and be sure to take digital pictures. Ask students to write explanations of the crafts on your class wiki (with the accompanying pictures)! Or include the link to directions for one of these crafts on your class web page for students to try as a summer activity.
Teacher’s First Edge Review: For moderately adventurous technology users. This site allows users to create online scrapbooks including photos, video clips, and music. Users can “Start with a Theme” or “Start with a Blank Page.” Add stickers, backgrounds, text boxes, and more. Be aware many of the themes are free, but some are for a fee. The ones for a fee say "purchase" at the bottom of the screen. This site requires Flash. You can it both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom: Skills Needed: This site is fairly easy to navigate. Users must be able to access photos (from several websites or personal computers) to use in the scrapblog. View the short introduction tutorial to learn more about site. Learn how to edit photos, add stickers to your pages, add backgrounds, add text, add videos, and more! There is the option to view the scrapblogs on full screen (see the box on the top right side of the screen). If you want to control the speed of the blog, you must have it on full screen. Once on full screen, look for the turtle and hare slider to slow down the speed. When completed, you can share your scrapblog via URL, on many social networking sites, or by printing out the pages. You don't need to register to USE this site, but you do need to register to save or share your scrapblog.
Safety/Security Concerns: an email address is required for sign up to use this service. Check your school policies about accessing/sharing student email on school computers. You may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how.
Classroom Uses: This amazing site has countless possibilities in the classroom. After a field trip, use this site to share the experience with families and as a review for the class. Can't take a field trip? Create a scrapblog of a fictitious "visit" to the historical site, showing what you have learned without even visiting. Rather than having students create traditional "book reports" or reports about famous people or events, use this site to create a multimedia presentation with photos, text, music, and more (include attribution for the Creative Commons images they may use). What would Jefferson have included in a scrapblog about his time in Philadelphia in 1776? Elementary classes could make whole-class scrapblogs about the important people and places in your school or community, using digital pictures you take yourselves. At Thanksgiving, have students make a scrapblog about the things they are grateful for. Share this link on your class website for students to access both in and out of the classroom. This is a perfect site for students to use to make free "homemade gifts" for Mother's Day, Father's Day, or Grandparent's Day.
Here is a sample of a scrapblog created by the TeachersFirst Editors
Teachers First Edge Review: For slightly adventurous technology users. Record a message and embed it into your favorite site or provide a link to share for free. Send to a friend by entering your email and the email of the recipient. Here is an example of a Vocaroo created by the Teacher’s First Review Team, explaining a biology concept for high schoolers. Recording the message is easy and embedding into a site such as a wiki or blog has never been simpler! No login or registration is needed. Although, if you choose to send a message via email, you must choose a password to use at the site. Vocaroos are stored on their server. Created messages can also be downloaded to individual computers. Visit their FAQ's for frequent questions and responses. The Vocaroo recording service requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom: Skills needed: Users need to be able to navigate controls on the website and sound levels on their computer. Copy/pasting embed codes is also a necessary skill for insertion in a website. Email the sound clip very easily.
Safety/security concerns: Future saving of Vocarros is unsure depending upon server space. Before using with students, you may wish to obtain permission from administration and/or parents. Be sure to check your school’s acceptable use policy. Students should be made aware of acceptable use and consequences of misuse of the service.
Possible uses: Record snippets of information as reminders on your class web site or instructions for students to follow. This is terrific for learning support students or non-readers! Have students describe aspects of classroom learning experiences to share with others, such as what they learned from a science experiment or found out about life in colonial America. Record a quick message for an absentee and email the link to him/her explaining how to catch up on missing work. Create tutorial pieces that students can use as study aids (or have them create them for each other). Use this site in world language classes or for ELL students: have students record and listen to their own pronunciation or send short messages to each other to translate. Have students use this site to practice speeches before the presentation to hear their speed, tone, and words. Use this site for research presentations, instructions for a substitute, or many other possibilities. With younger students, read a short story on Vocaroo, and have student follow along using a picture book. Or have the students read their own stories into Vocaroo and email the readings to their parents! For Mothers Day, why not have students record messages for mom or grandma? Another idea: create a class wiki where parents can "find" the entire selection of Vocaroos for Mother's Day (or another holiday). Record Vocaroos of each student talking about the importance of Moms for Mother's Day or how grateful they are for certain things at Thanksgiving. Embed them all in a class wiki to share with parents. Just email the URL for the collection.
If you choose to have students email one another (or their families), rather than using personal email accounts consider creating a teacher Gmail account and set up subaccounts for up to 20 students to register (by code name or number). Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service.
Popcorn! offers a bowlful of information on that universally-loved food. Not only does it list the history behind the food, but it provides games, trivia, arts and crafts, printables, reading and math lessons, science and health lessons and a booklist dedicated to the topic of...POPCORN! Who knew there were so many children's books based on this simple treat?
This site requires Flash. Some of the lessons and printables require Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom: The site can also be incorporated into social studies and history for the many uses of popcorn by various cultures. For example, include the site in a Thanksgiving unit. Follow the seed to plant information for a life cycle unit in science. Add it to a health curriculum under healthy eating habits and food groups. Do not forget to check out the worksheets and lessons for math and reading.
Use this online tool to create eye-catching newsletters for your classroom, for students to write for their families, or for your student club. Follow the easy step by step directions to pick a fall or winter theme, add text, photos and borders. Most likely, the themes change over the course of the year, so check back again in spring. Save the newsletter on the site or email to share the latest news. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..
In the Classroom: This site would work well for an individual or pairs of students to create a newsletter on a class topic or theme. Be sure to turn off your pop-up blocker so you can “see” all the site content. The content available is seasonal, but the options allow plenty of flexibility. At Thanksgiving, elementary teachers will appreciate this tool as a way students can create Thankful lists. Note that the program does NOT save your work, so allow enough time to complete and print the newsletters in one sitting.
TeachersFirst Edge entry: for moderately adventurous technology users. Voicethread allows you to upload images (from your digital camera, scanner, or even paint program), then allow students to record their own comments and/or narration about the images. Other listeners can "comment" back, as well. TeachersFirst is providing the link to the VoiceThread home page but suggests that you first watch this quick explanation about two types of FREE educator memberships being offered for classroom teachers (one completely free, the other after a one time fee of $10...so "sort of" free). You can click to go to the home page from there. Access to the ed.voicethread site (as opposed to www.voicethread)is restricted to grades K-12 students, educators, and administrators.
VoiceThread explains how to set up a classroom account and has some ideas for classroom use, as well. Ideas from the TeachersFirst Edge review team are listed below, under "In the classroom."
In the Classroom: Skills needed: join the site (free). You will be logged into your account immediately after you fill in the registration form. Watch the "One Minute Voicethread" to get a very quick overview of how easy it is to create a digital story. Set up student identities. You will want to "Browse" some Voicethreads to get an idea how they work. Use first names only. You need to know how to locate and upload saved pictures. You WILL need a microphone, either plugged into your computer or built in. They can be purchased for less than $10 at a discount or electronics store. Once you create a Voicethread, it can be shared by copying the URL and sending it via email or other means, inviting others to comment back. You can also decide whether you wish to allow comments and whether these comments will be moderated by you.
Of course, you should be sure that you have the RIGHTS to any images you upload. Fair Use does not apply when you put an image on the web!
Safety/security: TeachersFirst recommends that you explain the VoiceThread projects via a note sent home and obtain parent permission to post student work to the web, even anonymously. Then invite parents to share in the results (The VoiceThread classroom page tells you more about this). TeachersFirst does not recommend using actual, identifiable pictures of children. Let them draw a picture or take a digital picture of an object that somehow represents them (middle schoolers will love that idea!). If you allow others to "comment" on student Voicethreads, the experience can be both wonderful and a bit intimidating. Use this opportunity to promote ethical and kind interaction with other students and their projects.
Possible uses: Elementary classes can create or take pictures, then ask each child to talk about the images. Each child can comment on the SAME pictures, creating a collaborative collection of responses. After a field trip or special class event, you can assign groups of students to explain each of the digital pictures you took and how they relate to curriculum topics. In art class, students can critique works of their own or of fellow students. In language arts classes, students can scan and comment on writing pieces as part of a reflective phase of the writing process. Or post an image as a prewriting activity and allow students to respond orally in an idea-generating phase. In social studies, have students provide a picture of a grandparent then narrate what they learned about that grandparent from interviewing him/her. Have students create narrated pictures as gifts (for parents or other care givers) for special occasions, winter holidays, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, etc.. During a science experiment or demo, have a student take pictures of the steps. Then ask students to "narrate" them by commenting on what is happening. The narration assignment could even be a center activity or an assignment on a few classroom computers for students to rotate through. What a great way to review and apply key vocabulary! Be sure they identify their voices if you are using a single class account and want to be able to assess understanding. Other ideas: narrated local history projects (pictures of local sites), audio "museum tours" of artifacts (photos) or war veterans telling their stories along with images of their uniforms or old photos. Speech/language, ESL/ELL or early childhood teachers could use this tool to promote vocabulary development and oral expression.
Hear and see the language of the pilgrims, try recipes, make crafts, read stories, and more with these kids activities from Plimouth Plantation. This site also has printable pages for younger students. Note: the sound files for the Pilgrim talk require FLASH, and you must turn up your computer's volume! You can get Flash from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom: Share this link on your teacher web site for November or try some of the activities in your elementary classroom. The stories would make great read-alouds during Thanksgiving week. Share the stories on your interactive whiteboard or projector.
This WebQuest activity asks students to research The Mayflower, write a journal and create a final project. Some choices for the final project include creating a skit, wearing authentic clothing during an oral presentation and more! This WebQuest is ready to go, well designed and "kid-friendly".
In the Classroom: If a teacher doesn't have time to do the entire WebQuest, they could easily use the parts that are useful in their classroom. This website provides a helpful "Teacher's Page" and creative "Extension Activities". A detailed rubric is provided.
This multi-level lesson plan explores the topic of corn from the agricultural point of view; students learn vocabulary, the growth process, products, and the history of popcorn. The plan includes a variety of children's books about corn and popcorn and appropriate links.
In the Classroom: Include this lesson as part of your study of Thanksgiving or in a science unit on plants. Be sure to include some of the related links on your teacher web page for students to visit at home or during indoor recess.
Nice collection of teacher-created interactive tests, quizzes, exercises and puzzles, spanning multiple skill levels and topics. Includes crossword puzzles to be done online for all ESL levels and by word-type or subject (Ex. Thanksgiving words).
TeachersFirst's Thanksgiving Resources 
Investigating the First Thanksgiving - What was it really like?? Plimoth Plantation museum has added a new Flash-based Thanksgiving lesson that will introduce students to the cultures and customs of both the Pilgrim and Wampanoag peoples. This presentation blends information about lots of everyday activities and customs with a look at what the actual "first Thanksgiving" might have looked like. Requires Flash. 
The Mayflower comes alive as you explore the passenger list with accompanying personal history and genealogy. Click on the Pilgrim History link for a history of Thanksgiving and other Mayflower-era topics, including authentic recipes. 
This informative website presents the students with information on numerous "Pilgrim" topics. There are authentic pictures and a lot of information. Topics include "Who Were The Pilgrims," "Who Were The Wampanoag," "The Mayflower," "Building a Home," and more! 