My Thanksgiving Unit Study

Three Young Pilgrims by Cheryl Harness is the perfect way to begin learning about:

Pilgrims (or Saints), Holland, England, Strangers, the Mayflower, Plimouth Plantation

I use this book over several sessions with my young students. This year, I am using it with my kindergartner, Grace. This is my "spine," book if you will. The story follows Mary, Remember, Bartholomew and their parents as they cross the ocean in the Mayflower and begin a new life in America. The story provides an excellent hook on which to hang factual information. What I like best about Three Young Pilgrims are the double page spreads at the back of the book which teach more indepth information. We cover one double page spread a day.

Day One - Read Three Young Pilgrims to the end of the story. Discuss the cramped quarters, rotten food, illness, weather conditions, trusting Jesus in times of trial.

Day Two - Read the "Plymouth," section at the back of Three Young Pilgrims. (Wonderfully illustrated with a timeline of historical events plus a neat diagram of the Plantation.)

Day Three - Read the "Strangers" Section/Three Young Pilgrims. This details the non-Christians, who sailed to America for adventure and land ownership. We learn them by name and how they came to come aboard the Mayflower. Here we also learn a little bit more about the ship itself.

Day Four - We put aside Three Young Pilgrims for just a few days. (We might come back to it at the end of this unit to learn about Native Americans.) For now, however, we read, On the Mayflower: Voyage of the Ship's Apprentice & a Passenger Girl by Kate Waters. Here we discover what life was like on the Mayflower told from the perspective of a young boy and girl.

Day Five - We read Sarah Morton's Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Girl by Kate Waters. This story shows how much work there was to do in 1627! Because it is told only from the little girl's perspective and doesn't include any narrative on the parent's daily duties, my daughter thought that the children were slaves! So to help her understand the depth of work by all the inhabitants of Plimouth Plantation, we've chosen to use the following book.

Day Six - This book is a picture book, but it is divided by chapter headings. The Pilgrims of Plimoth is most suitable for children in grades three to six.

For my purpose, to help Grace understand that grown up men and women worked very hard, we simply read the sections titled, "Menfolk," and "Womenfolk."

Day Seven - We Read Samuel Eaton's Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Boy by Kate Waters. Once again, Grace was startled to see the amount of work necessary to eek out a living in 1627. But it also gave us a nice discussion about growing up, persevering despite discomfort, and feeling good about a job well done.



Day Eight: Investigating the First Thanksgiving - This is a must see Macromedia presentation produced by Plimouth.org. Don't miss it!

There is opportunity to learn about the Native Americans in the presentation above, but if you'd like to learn more, check out your local library. I often keep the Native American topic for grades 3-12, when the students can more fully understand the moral issues involved.

I also incorporate as much hands on as Grace is interested in doing. Enchanted Learning has a quite a few Thanksgiving activities. Don't stop at the top fold of the webpage, scroll all the way down to see what's available.

Have fun!

©2008 Y.M.F.