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Engaging Thanksgiving Classroom Activities for Upper Elementary Students


Who else is ready for Thanksgiving break! 🙋‍♀️. You've been teaching, testing, enriching, and intervening. Those days leading up to Thanksgiving are tough because you have to keep the structure of your day, but you also have to acknowledge the excitement of the holiday. Here are 4 ways to keep things simple for you but engaging for them.





1. Virtual field trip to Plimoth Plantation

Take your class on a "field trip" to Plymouth, Massachusetts. Plimoth.org hosts engaging videos that teach students about life in the 1600s. The Pilgrim video takes you on a guided tour of the fort, the homes, and shows the daily life of the colonists. While watching the videos, students can take notes on homes, jobs, and food. Afterwards, they can compare and contrast the two communities.


The Wampanoag video shows daily life of the Wampanoag Homesite. Click here or click the picture to access the video.


The Pilgrim video takes you on a guided tour of the fort, the homes, and shows the daily life of the colonists. Click here or click the image to reach the video.



2. Thanksgiving Poems

Whether you're teaching in the classroom or teaching virtually, these Thanksgiving poems will get you in the mood for Thanksgiving. I love using fun poems for the days leading up to a holiday. It keeps the structure of my whole group Reading lessons, but we still have fun discussion and analyzing their meaning of words and phrases. I also like having print and go graphic organizers and comprehension questions at my fingertips. Click here for Thanksgiving poems






3. Thanksgiving Math Centers

If you're anything like me, your brain is fried and you are ready for a break! These math worksheets are the perfect print-and-go or upload-and-go resource for the days leading up to Thanksgiving break. https://bit.ly/38IubGV



4. Thanksgiving Escape Room

My friend and co-teacher created a super fun Thanksgiving Escape Room. My students LOVE this. They have so much fun working in teams to solve the challenges. Click on the link below to check out the preview. The Great Turkey Escape Room





Whatever you decide to do, have some fun with it. More importantly, have an incredible Thanksgiving Break!!
























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