Thanksgiving can be a wonderful holiday.  Families and friends may gather for a feast of favorite holiday dishes and think about the things for which they are thankful. 

However, November can be a month where children of all ages are kept very busy doing projects that do not teach anything meaningful about the holiday.  Some Thanksgiving projects may give children "disrespectful and stereotypical messages about Native Americans."

Rather than have children glue feathers on paper turkeys, which may not have been on the menu of the first Thanksgiving, you might try these ideas: 

* Say "thank you" all the time to the children and adults in your program.

*Point out how great it is that everyone has a delicious snack or meal.

*Tell the children and their parents that you are thankful that they came to the program that day.

*Keep a "Gratitude Chart" to list anything the children and adults say they are thankful for.

Thanksgiving food:

* Make applesauce, the sugar-free king.

* Take apart a pumpkin and roast the seeds (be careful as seeds can be a choking hazard).  If the children can't eat the seeds, they can feel the change from very gooey to very dry.

* Plant popcorn and grow your own corn plants.  HINT - soak the kernels overnight to soften them.

* Ask parents to share their special family recipes.

* Host a pot-luck dinner and share the dishes from every culture.

The story of Thanksgiving:

For older children, the Thanksgiving story can be told as an example of one group of people helping another group with big problems - the Pilgrims would not have survived without the help of the local Wampanoag tribe.   DO NOT have children dress up as Native Americans or build a teepee in which the Wampanoags did not actually live.

Many early childhood and after school programs in Westchester serve children and families who have recently immigrated here.  This holiday is an opportunity to counter misinformation and negative attitudes children may have about today's "pilgrims". 

Please check out this wonderful curriculum from the National Association for the Education of Young Children for more ideas:    

Anti-Bias Education

Holidays are not always happy:

Remember too that holidays can be full of stress and sadness for many children and parents, and not the "Hallmark card" holiday we sometimes imagine. Families struggling financially are under particular pressure, but there are resources available in Westchester:

The Food Bank for Westchester: 914-923-1100 or their website at Food Bank

The Westchester Coalition for the Hungry and Homeless: 914-682-2737 or their website at Westchester Coalition.