Thanksgiving – revised
Many Thanksgiving stories are too long for preschoolers, but there are a few that can work with our age group. Mix them with books on cooking and family dinners and you can have a great Thanksgiving storytime. For crafts, there are several choices. Make placemats by cutting out magazine pictures of food and gluing the pictures to construction paper. Or make paper turkeys to decorate the table: familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts/season/specialfeature/thanksgiving_crafts_ms/
Anderson, Derek. OVER THE RIVER: A TURKEY’S TALE. Based on the traditional song, this tells the story of a boy hunting for his dinner.
Falwell, Catherine. FEAST FOR 10. An African-American family prepares dinner in this memorable counting book.
Goode, Diane. THANKSGIVING IS HERE! Everyone gathers at grandmother’s for Thanksgiving.
Jackson, Alison. I KNOW AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A PIE. A spoof of the song “I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly,” where the title character swallows variations elements of Thanksgiving dinner.
Pilkey, Dav. TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE THANKSGIVING. A class visit to a turkey farm inspires the kids to save the turkeys and have a vegetarian Thanksgiving.
Spinelli, Eileen. THE PERFECT THANKSGIVING. Two families celebrate Thanksgiving in their own way.
Also see the previous Thanksgiving storytime ideas page from August 2000.
Penny Peck,
San Leandro Public Library
October, 2009