How to Help Your Kids Understand the History of Thanksgiving
- Amanda Idleman Contributing Writer
- Updated Oct 18, 2023
Thanksgiving is more than just a chance to eat Turkey and mashed potatoes; it's a holiday with origins in our nation's history. It marks a moment of national gratitude for this land and the ways it is able to help provide for its inhabitants, as well as a chance to honor the indigenous peoples that resided here long before the Europeans came and made it their own.
The Thanksgiving story has many layers to it. The pilgrims made it to America on a quest to find religious freedom. Yet, they suffered on the journey and struggled to survive in this new land. Graciously, Squanto, a Native American whom the English had kidnapped, helped the pilgrims learn how to grow corn, extract syrup from the trees, and fish. He also helped the pilgrims forge an alliance with the Wampanoag people, the local tribe. After the struggling colony's first corn harvest was successful, the Governor organized a celebrating feast and invited their Native American allies to join the meal that lasted for three days!
Thanksgiving is often remembered from the point-of-view of these white, desperate sailors, but the true heroes of the story are the generous, well-provided Native Americans. Moreover, the story of Thanksgiving has many storylines. Many count the first Thanksgiving in America to have happened in Virginia. About a year before the Pilgrims had their first Thanksgiving, it has been recorded that the tradition of a Thanksgiving meal and religious ceremonies happened at Berkeley Plantation in Virginia.
As time went on, Thanksgiving went from a spontaneous event to a national holiday. In 1817, New York was the first state to adopt Thanksgiving as an annual holiday. It took a while for the tradition to catch on across the states. Abraham Lincoln set aside a day for the country's healing in 1863, which was scheduled for the final Thursday in November and has been celebrated on that day ever since. In 1939, Franklin D. Roosevelt attempted to move Thanksgiving but was met with a lot of backlash. As a result, he signed a bill in 1941 that set Thanksgiving as officially occurring on the 4th Thursday in November.
We often boil down the history of this celebration to its simplest and most mainstream form, but there is a lot more to dig into with our families. Consider taking some time to unpack a bit of the story behind this holiday that was originally rooted in the idea that we should pause and give thanks to the Lord with our allies for all he has provided. Here are some fun ways to accomplish learning more together this year:
1. Read Books Together about Thanksgiving
Reading to my kids is a favorite pastime! There are loads of books that help us share all the special parts of this holiday with our kids. One fun suggestion to try is Thanksgiving on Thursday by Mary Pope Osborne. This is a fictional book, but it helps bring to life some of what kids would have seen at the first Thanksgiving. What Was the First Thanksgiving? by Joan Holub starts with the Pilgrims at Plymouth and their Harvest Celebration with the Wampanoag people and tells us how this feast eventually led to the now national holiday.
For somewhat older kids, the History Smashers The Mayflower by Kate Messner gives a lot more detail about what the Pilgrim's journey towards that famous first Thanksgiving feast would have looked like. Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun's Thanksgiving Story by Danielle Greendeer approaches the Thanksgiving story from the perspective of the indigenous people who helped the Pilgrims survive. Squanto's Journey: The Story of the First Thanksgiving by Joseph Bruchac highlights how Squanto helped the weary travelers on the Mayflower survive in this new world.
Countless other books tell the story of Thanksgiving or share how different people celebrate this holiday in their homes across our country and beyond. Go to the library together and discover books that will help you all appreciate the story accompanying this holiday.
2. Watch Thanksgiving Stories Together
There are so many interesting videos that you can explore together to understand the Thanksgiving story better. Weareteachers.com has a list of videos from all over the internet that your family can explore together. They offer suggestions for what ages the videos are best for, helping you select appropriate videos for your family. For your preschoolers, you can start talking about Thanksgiving traditions such as apple pie and use this as a yummy learning experience all the way up to highlight with your teenagers our nation's complicated and often tragic relationship with indigenous peoples and how they played a role in the first Thanksgiving.
3. Create Together
For your hands-on learners, take time to create parts of the Thanksgiving story together. This could be making a craft, learning to draw a part of this history, acting out part of the Thanksgiving story, or cooking some Thanksgiving goodies together. If you're into cooking, you could make a few relatively easy recipes together. For boiled cornbread, you just need lots of corn products, cranberries, sunflower seeds, and maple syrup. There is nothing like eating to help impart history lessons to your kids.
Adding to the corn theme, making beaded corn decorations is a great way to talk about how the Pilgrims had to be taught to grow corn by Squanto to survive. Creating any sort of craft that allows your family to express gratitude is a way to focus on how Thanksgiving, from the beginning, was a special time to give thanks to God for his provision. Get creative together and have some fun with your people!
The beautiful thing about this time in the world is that we are becoming more and more aware of how complex human history is. Every character in the story of the world deserves their place. We all matter in the eyes of God. Alongside that truth, we know that no one except Jesus has walked this earth without sin. Every story we tell includes failure because we have all sinned and fallen short. As we share knowledge with our kids, we must remember that these two things are true and keep reminding them that being open and curious about the world is how we all continue to learn and grow.
