We all have things we are thankful for, but sometimes we get caught up in the moment and forget how important it is to acknowledge and express that thanks. We could all use some reminding from time to time, and this goes for our students too!
And what better time of the year to explore the importance of giving thanks than in November? By guiding your students through these five Thanksgiving writing prompts and activities, you’ll be teaching them not only to write well, but how to more fully understand and express their own gratitude.
Activity #1: Practice making thank-you cards.
This Thanksgiving writing activity works well for students of any age, but is especially great for younger elementary students as it will help them build a skill and a habit early on that will serve them well throughout their lives. Ask your students to think of three people they are grateful for. These can be anyone they like—friends, family, a celebrity, a historical figure, even someone fictional.
Then, ask them to write each person a thank-you card that explains why they are grateful for them. Have them decorate the cards themselves to add a bit of artsy-craftsy fun to the project, and then send the cards (if possible) to their intended recipients!
PROJECT IDEA
After the cards are written—but before they are sent!—copy them onto classbook kit pages, one for each student’s messages. Then, have them each create their own big “Thank You!” signs and take photos of each student holding up their sign. Pair the photos with the notes to publish a “Big Book of Thanks.”
Activity #2: List 12 things to be thankful for—one for each month of the year.
Putting a slightly unusual spin on the topic, this Thanksgiving writing prompt asks students to think creatively about gratitude. Instead of simply making a list of things to give thanks for, ask them to think of things they are grateful for at specific times of the year. In January, are they grateful for hot cocoa? In July, are they thankful for a friend who lets them cool off in their backyard pool?
It’s a great way to illustrate how November isn’t the only time of the year that you should give thanks—there are things to be grateful for year-round!
PROJECT IDEA
Ask your students to frame each answer in this format, “In [month], I am grateful for…” If you can, assign each student their own month to keep the book from becoming too long. Ask them to draw pictures to accompany each month. Then, organize your students’ responses by month to create a beautiful, professionally published “Gratitude Calendar” classbook that will serve as the perfect reminder that your students don’t have to wait for Thanksgiving to be thankful.
Activity #3: Start a mini gratitude project.
There’s always someone we take for granted, even if we don’t realize it at first. For children, it’s often someone standing right in front of them. Maybe it’s Mom, who’s always there to patch up a scraped knee or bruised elbow, even when her own back is sore from a long day. Maybe it’s Dad, who takes care of the kids when they’re sick after coming home from a long day at work. Or maybe it’s a friend, a relative, or even the school janitor.
Ask your students to write about how they have taken this person for granted, and how they can better show their gratitude in the future. As for their homework, their mission is simple: put their plan for giving thanks into action!
PROJECT IDEA
For an added challenge, ask your students to write this assignment in narrative form. Instead of just explaining what they can do, ask them to tell a story as if they’ve already done it. This will require them not only to think of a solution, but to imagine how their plan will actually play out, and what the result will be. Keep the stories short—no more than one page long—and ask your students to provide illustrations to go with them. Collect the stories and publish them as a beautiful keepsake classbook that will look right at home sitting on your bookshelf beside your classroom copy of The Giving Tree.
Activity #4: Think about Thanksgiving from a fowl point of view.
As a fun complement to learning about Thanksgiving traditions, assign your students the following writing prompt: “Imagine you are a turkey, and you’ve just received a presidential pardon. Write a letter to the President thanking him for his generosity.” Their answers are sure to be interesting, to say the least!
This activity is great for teaching your kids an important lesson about both gratitude and empathy while leaving room for a bit of fun and creative play.
PROJECT IDEA
Ask them to draw portraits of their turkeys to accompany their letters, and collect their writing and art into a Thanksgiving-themed book titled something like, Dear President, Thanks for Everything! Love, Turkey.
Activity #5: Give someone else a reason to be thankful.
Thanksgiving is not just about giving thanks—it’s also about the joy of simply giving. Ask your students to think about some things they can do for someone in need, such as giving a few dollars to charity or volunteering at an animal shelter. For younger elementary students, this might simply be a list exercise, but for older students, you can add depth to this assignment by asking them to choose one idea and write about how they want to bring it to life, and why they want to help that person or group. Then, for extra credit, ask them to carry out their grand plans—after you’ve reviewed and approved them, of course.
PROJECT IDEA
Make this a collaborative project by asking your students to brainstorm ideas together for a project they can do as a class to help those in their community in need, such as hosting a food drive to fight hunger, or collecting toys to send to a nearby children’s hospital. Vote together as a class on which one to pursue. Then, put your plan into motion, taking lots of pictures along the way. After the project is complete, ask your students to write about the experience and how it made them feel. Finally, collect their thoughts and the photographs into one big, collaborative classbook to preserve the memories you made together.
Giving Thanks in the Classroom
Education isn’t always about learning your ABCs and 123s. Some of the most important lessons teachers impart are personal ones. By guiding your students through thought-provoking Thanksgiving writing prompts and activities like those listed above, you’ll be helping them grow—not only as students and writers, but as people—and that is certainly an opportunity to be thankful for.
For more brainstorming ideas as well as free teaching resources—including lesson plans, writing tips and more—be sure to check out our online teacher’s lounge, and sign up today for your free publishing kit!
Image sources: Lead image via Pexels user Trinity Kubassek; Images 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 via Openclipart.com