Alternatives to teaching about Thanksgiving

Are you looking for some alternatives to teaching about Thanksgiving in November? Are you bored of doing the same old Thanksgiving dinner play? But you still want your students to be engaged, learning, and in sync with their peers? Here are some great ideas for alternatives to teaching about Thanksgiving in a special education setting.

Turkeys

Have you considered doing a non-fiction unit on turkeys? Turkeys are an important industry here in the United States, especially in November and December. This science lesson is a perfect alternative to teaching about Thanksgiving. There are so many great videos you can find on YouTube, and there are plenty of available facts and statistics your students can learn.

I have a free worksheet you can grab over on my YouTube channel that has students sort various types of farms (crops vs livestock). Of course, turkeys are one of them 🙂 CLICK HERE to download it in the description below the video.

There is also a free turkey activity in my free resource library. Just look under the science section. If you have the password CLICK HERE. If you need to get the password, then CLICK HERE.

Finally, I have a unit all about turkeys that is in both print and digital format. CLICK HERE

Pumpkins

Pumpkins are another great science lesson you can add as an alternative teaching idea. There is so much you can learn about these amazing fruit (yes fruit). You can incorporate math, science, and even life skills like cooking.

I have a free counting book on pumpkins you can grab. CLICK HERE

I also have a unit on pumpkins. CLICK HERE

Generosity

I always think of Thanksgiving as a time that brings out the best in people. We participate in canned food drives or we may even volunteer at a soup kitchen. Teaching students what it means to be generous is a great theme for November.

I have a great social skills unit on generosity. CLICK HERE to check it out.

Gratitude

This is my FAVORITE alternative teaching topic for November. We can never stress enough the importance of being thankful. In fact, I wrote an entire blog post about how my special ed team focused on gratitude each November and came together for some great activities. Read more about how we did that HERE. Plus you can grab some great free downloads as well.

This is a perfect time, to once again remind you of my FREE Gratitude Challenge. (don’t mind the 2020 label, it is generic for any year) You can grab it HERE.

---

So, that is it. Some alternative ideas to teaching about Thanksgiving in November.

• Turkeys
• Pumpkins
• Generosity
• Gratitude

I hope everyone has the best November (and Thanksgiving) ever!!