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Thanksgiving Activities For High School Learners: Podcast, Games, Writing Practice, Puzzles, And Art Projects

April 13, 2024 //  by  Kellie Tanner

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday that is celebrated by numerous people of various backgrounds and religions. It is also a terrific time for reflecting and being grateful for the blessings we have in our lives. Therefore, you should provide activities in the classroom to help students understand and appreciate this amazing holiday.

Incorporating Thanksgiving activities into high school lesson plans can often prove to be a challenging task, so we are providing you with a list of 15 thought-provoking activities that will keep your high school students engaged and learning.

1. Listen to a Podcast

Spend the day before Thanksgiving by allowing your students to listen to one of two podcasts and complete a follow-up activity. For example, have the students complete an activity on gratitude by creating a gratitude chain. They may also complete research to determine whose Native land they are living on.

Learn More: Building Book Love

2. Thanksgiving Mourning 

This activity for middle and high school students provides a different Thanksgiving perspective from Native Americans that will encourage reflection. Students will view Thanksgiving-focused writings and then participate in discussions and writing activities.

Learn More: Learning for Justice

3. You are the Historian Game

This interactive online game allows students of all ages to investigate the first Thanksgiving. It explores the life of the Wampanoag people prior to the European settlement. It also provides great details of the year that led up to the 1621 harvest feast which the modern world refers to as the first Thanksgiving.

Learn More: Plimonth.org

4. Gratitude Writing Activity

This printable Thanksgiving activity is a great writing lesson for high school students to celebrate the holiday and practice their writing skills. This effective activity will help your students develop a gratitude mindset and practice kindness as they write thankful letters to others.

Learn More: Teacher Vision

5. Thanksgiving Activities

This terrific resource provides six classroom activities perfect for high school students. They can explore the history of Thanksgiving, participate in comparison shopping, complete a service-learning project, write a short story, and more.

Learn More: My School Dance

6. Thanksgiving Crossword Puzzle 

Crossword puzzles are fun activities! This Thanksgiving puzzle is a wonderful activity for a wide span of grade levels. Many of your high school students will know the puzzle answers. You may wish to provide online access to those who need additional assistance.

Learn More: Real Life at Home

7. Plymouth Gazette

High school kids will enjoy this easy-to-implement writing project as they get to publish their very own Plymouth Gazette. They can work in small groups to complete different sections of the newspaper from the perspective of Pilgrims in 1621. They can then distribute the papers to other students in the “Plymouth Colony.”

Learn More: Education World

8. Corn Husk Doll

Crafts projects are super engaging, and this is a fun fall activity for high school students! Native American and Colonial American families grew corn, and they used the husks to create dolls. Follow the easy instructions that are provided to help students create their very own corn husk dolls. This will become one of your favorite classroom activities!

Learn More: Teachers First

9. Fabric Wall Art

High school students, as well as middle school students, enjoy art projects . This cute Thanksgiving wall art is made from scraps of fabric and is perfect for decorating during the holiday season. Use the free template and gather a few materials, and you will be ready to get crafty!

Learn More: Craftidly

10. Attitude of Gratitude Activity

Gratitude activities are perfect for middle school students and high school students. They often focus on negatives in their lives as opposed to positives. For this activity, students create gratitude journals and use them to maintain a list of all the things in life for which they are grateful. This shifts from a negative mindset to a positive mindset.

Learn More: 7 Mindsets Portal

11. Thanksgiving and the Wampanoag People 

This is a great lesson to incorporate into the social studies curriculum during Thanksgiving. Students will learn about the modern-day Wampanoag people and examine their current issues in which their tribes continue the fight for their ancestral homelands.

Learn More: Share My Lesson

12. The Great Thanksgiving Listen

Middle and high school students will interview and record a friend, mentor,  or elder to create an oral history project that focuses on the modern-day United States. This is one of the best digital activities in which students and teachers can be included. Add this activity to your lesson plans, and enjoy listening to this collection of stories!

13. The Geography of Thanksgiving Dinner

This favorite activity will allow the high school student to identify common Thanksgiving foods as well as their farm source. They must determine if these common foods can be locally produced, and they must locate the origins of their Thanksgiving dinner. An educational video is also provided by the History Channel.

Learn More: National Agriculture in the Classroom

14. Corn and Pumpkin Paper Weavings

This fun craft can be completed among a span of grade levels. To complete the paper weavings, you will need a variety of colored construction paper. This is an activity perfect for Thanksgiving!

Learn More: JDaniel4’s Mom

15. Thanksgiving Scavenger Hunt

Scavenger hunts are lots of fun for kids and adults, and they can be incorporated into any curriculum. Divide the kids into small groups and let them enjoy competing against one another to see which team finds everything first.

Learn More: Confessions of Parenting

8 Fun Thanksgiving Activities For High School Students

As the leaves turn golden and the crisp autumn air sets in, it can only mean one thing – Thanksgiving is just around the corner! While most people associate this holiday with turkey dinners and family reunions, high school students can make the most of this occasion by engaging in some thoughtful and quirky activities. From expressing gratitude in unique ways to indulging in festive crafts, there are plenty of creative ways to celebrate Thanksgiving that are both fun and meaningful. 

So, if you’re looking to make this holiday season extra special, grab your friends and get ready to explore these exciting Thanksgiving activities for high school students! These activities not only provide an opportunity for students to learn about the history and meaning of Thanksgiving but also allow them to express their creativity, practice communication, and collaboration skills, and give back to their community. 

Hence, these also act as history games , creativity, and communication activities . So, let’s grab a slice of pumpkin pie and give thanks for all the wonderful opportunities and blessings that come our way!

Giving thanks and making memories: Fun thanksgiving activities for high school students

1. turkey trot fun run.

Ready, set, gobble! Get your running shoes on and join us for a feather-filled, turkey-tastic fun run. You’ll have a blast running alongside your classmates and the community while supporting a local charity.

To organize a “Turkey Trot” fun run, high school students can form a planning committee to decide on the logistics of the event. This includes the date, time, location, and route of the race. They can also create flyers and posters to promote the event and use social media to spread the word. To raise funds for a local charity, they can design and sell turkey-themed t-shirts and merchandise.

On the day of the event, they should set up a registration table and distribute race bibs and other materials to participants. They should also arrange for water stations and first aid stations along the race route. After the race, they can organize an awards ceremony and provide refreshments for the participants.

2. Cultural Potluck

Let’s spice up this year’s Thanksgiving feast! We invite you to bring a dish that reflects your unique cultural background to our potluck. You’ll get to taste new flavors and learn about each other’s family traditions and customs.

High school students can organize a Thanksgiving potluck by forming a planning committee to decide on the theme, date, time, and location of the event. They should encourage each student to bring a dish that represents their cultural background and share stories about their family traditions and customs.

They can create a sign-up sheet to ensure a variety of dishes and prevent duplicates. They can also decorate the space with cultural artifacts and symbols. To make the event more interactive, they can prepare a game or activity that highlights the diversity of cultures represented.

3. Gratitude Graffiti Wall

 Let’s spread some love and gratitude throughout our school. Join us in creating a colorful graffiti wall where you can share what you’re thankful for with the whole school. Get ready to unleash your creativity and express your gratitude in a fun and artistic way.

High school students can create a gratitude graffiti wall by selecting a prominent space in the school hallway or common area. They should provide colorful markers, chalk, and Post-it notes for students to write down what they’re thankful for. They can also provide prompts or questions to inspire creativity and reflection.

To make the wall more visually appealing, they can add Thanksgiving-themed decorations and illustrations. They can also take photos of the wall and share them on social media to spread the message of gratitude. One can also indulge in these activities during Christmas , to make the holiday season worth remembering. 

4. Mock Trial

The court is in session! We’re putting the Pilgrims and Native Americans on trial, and you get to be the judge and jury. Prepare to debate the true meaning and significance of Thanksgiving while learning about historical figures and events.

High school students can organize a mock trial by selecting a historical figure or event related to Thanksgiving, such as the Pilgrims and Native Americans. They should assign roles to the participants, such as lawyers, judges, witnesses, and jurors.

They can research and prepare arguments and evidence to support their positions and practice their presentation skills. They can also create a script or outline to guide the trial. To make the trial more engaging, they can encourage audience participation and debate the true meaning and significance of Thanksgiving.

5. Giving Thanks or Giving Up? A Thanksgiving Debate

The Great Thanksgiving Debate is about to begin! In one corner, we have those who argue that Thanksgiving is a beloved tradition that brings families and friends together to give thanks and enjoy a delicious feast. In the other corner, we have those who question whether Thanksgiving is a holiday worth celebrating, given its complicated history and association with the mistreatment of Native Americans. Which side will come out on top? 

It’s up to you and your classmates to research, prepare arguments and engage in a lively debate. Get ready to sharpen your critical thinking, research, and public speaking skills as you engage in this thought-provoking and engaging activity. In this activity, students will be divided into teams and hold a debate on the topic of Thanksgiving. Divide the class into teams and assign each team a position on the topic. One team will argue in favor of celebrating Thanksgiving, while the other will argue against it. Instruct each team to research and prepare arguments to support their position. 

Encourage them to use credible sources and statistics to support their claims. Hold a debate where each team presents their arguments and responds to the opposing team’s points. Encourage respectful and constructive dialogue. After the debate, have students reflect on what they learned and discuss how they can apply these critical thinking and communication skills in other areas of their lives. This type of activities can also be used as improving communication activities as well as cultural diversity activities where they get a chance to speak about their own culture and learn about other traditions and celebrations around the world.

6. Grateful Voices

Thanksgiving is a time of reflection and gratitude, and what better way to showcase this spirit than by capturing it on film? In this activity, students will work together to create a video project that showcases the thankful thoughts and feelings of their community members. By practicing their communication and collaboration skills, students will not only gain technical skills in video production but also strengthen their empathy and appreciation for others.

To start, introduce the project by explaining the power of gratitude and how it can positively impact our lives. Then, divide the class into small groups and assign each group a location in the community to visit and interview people about what they are thankful for. Students can use smartphones or video cameras to record the interviews and then compile them into a final video project. After the videos are complete, hold a screening in the classroom or school-wide assembly for others to see and appreciate the thankful voices from the community.

7. Expressive Harvest

Art is a powerful medium for self-expression and creativity, and this activity encourages students to channel their inner artists and create Thanksgiving-themed artwork. Whether it’s a painting, sculpture, or mixed media piece, students will have the opportunity to showcase their talents and express their gratitude through their artwork. By displaying their work in the classroom or at a school-wide Thanksgiving celebration, students will also have the chance to showcase their creations and share their artistic process with others.

 To begin, show examples of different types of Thanksgiving-themed artwork and explain how art can help us express our emotions and ideas. Provide a variety of art materials such as paint, markers, colored pencils, or clay, and let students create their own unique artwork. Encourage students to think about what they are thankful for and incorporate those ideas into their artwork. Once completed, have a classroom or school-wide exhibition of the art pieces, where students can showcase their creativity and reflect on what they are grateful for.

8. Turkey Trivia

Get your students in the holiday spirit by creating a fun and interactive Thanksgiving trivia game. This game can test their knowledge of Thanksgiving history, traditions, and culture. It can also serve as a great way to break up the monotony of regular class activities and encourage friendly competition among students.

With questions ranging from easy to challenging, this activity can be tailored to the specific interests and abilities of your class. So get ready to learn some new fun facts about Thanksgiving while enjoying some friendly competition with your classmates.

Start by creating a set of Thanksgiving-themed trivia questions related to the history of the holiday, popular traditions, and fun facts. Divide the class into small groups and have them compete in a trivia game, where they answer questions and earn points for correct answers.

To make the game more interactive, use a buzzer system or have students write down their answers on a whiteboard. The group with the most points at the end of the game can win a prize or recognition. This activity can help students learn about the history and significance of Thanksgiving while having fun and promoting teamwork.

Thanksgiving is a time for family, gratitude, and reflection, but it can also be an opportunity for high school students to engage in fun and meaningful activities. Some ideas for Thanksgiving activities for high school students include volunteering at a local food bank or shelter, organizing a food drive at school, participating in a turkey trot or other Thanksgiving-themed race, creating and sharing gratitude journals or thank-you letters with friends and family, and hosting a Friendsgiving celebration with classmates.

These activities can help students develop a greater sense of empathy, foster community engagement, and promote a positive attitude of gratitude. Overall, Thanksgiving provides a great opportunity for high school students to reflect on what they are thankful for and to give back to their communities in meaningful ways.

Sananda Bhattacharya, Chief Editor of TheHighSchooler, is dedicated to enhancing operations and growth. With degrees in Literature and Asian Studies from Presidency University, Kolkata, she leverages her educational and innovative background to shape TheHighSchooler into a pivotal resource hub. Providing valuable insights, practical activities, and guidance on school life, graduation, scholarships, and more, Sananda’s leadership enriches the journey of high school students.

Explore a plethora of invaluable resources and insights tailored for high schoolers at TheHighSchooler, under the guidance of Sananda Bhattacharya’s expertise. You can follow her on Linkedin

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14 Thanksgiving Activities for High School Students (Get Engagement)

By: Author Amanda L. Grossman

Posted on Last updated: August 27, 2024

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Find silly and educational ways to keep your teens engaged with these Thanksgiving activities for high school students.

Looking for Thanksgiving activities for high school students?

Let me help you bring this Thanksgiving season into your classroom with some fun and educational ideas.

Thanksgiving Activities for High School Students

Pick one of these Thanksgiving activities for high school students to weave into your day for some fun, increased engagement, and learning.

1. Create a Teen Pilgrim Magazine

Make any unit of study on Pilgrims so much more relatable by taking it down to the teen level.

Have students write an essay or do some sort of project (like create a Pilgrim teen magazine with a group) where they’re talking about the issues facing teen Pilgrims.  

What does a day in the life of a Pilgrim Teen look like?

Some questions to help guide their project:  

• What do pilgrim teens face each day that would frustrate them (build out a pretend schedule to help)?
• What chores and household responsibilities would teens have?
• How much free time would a Pilgrim teen have?
• What did they have to eat?
• Was there school, or did they age out of it?
• What did their clothes look like?
• What were their personal freedoms, and what were they not allowed to do? Compare this to teens today. How have things changed?
• What did they play with or do to entertain themselves?

Lots of freedom here for your teens to pair some research with some hunches and create an interesting essay or Pilgrim Teen Magazine.

2. Complete an In-Class Volunteer Project

There are lots of volunteer opportunities students can do in the classroom.

I’ve written a whole article on 27 different volunteer-from-home activities , many of which can be adapted for the classroom.

Hint: here are 12 activities to teach giving to students.

3. Set Up Thanksgiving Minute-to-Win-it Game Stations

There are a gazillion ideas out there for Thanksgiving minute-to-win-it games, and I’ll highlight a few below that could work for your classroom:

• Chopsticks Turkey Pecking Game
• Cranberry Cliffhanger
• Turkey Feather Drop

Find all these and more in this article on Thanksgiving Minute to Win it Games for Teenagers .

Hint: this would make a great classroom reward – here are several more examples of classroom reward systems from real teachers.

4. Play The Giving Game with Another Classroom

Pair up with another classroom. Work with students in a brainstorming session to come up with ideas for how to “give” this classroom something.

It doesn’t have to cost anything – it could be creating a mural outside of their classroom with compliments and kind thoughts.

It could be setting up a classroom or school-wide Thanksgiving scavenger hunt.

Give each other the deadline of the last day before Thanksgiving break to get the act done.

Bonus Activity: I love it when we gain a bigger perspective outside of our “norm”. Help your students do just that by showing them this 12:33 minute video about British high schoolers trying traditional Thanksgiving foods for the first time . It's really great!

5. Play Thanksgiving Price is Right

Write down “typical” Thanksgiving ingredients, and price them either online or in person.

Ingredients could be things like:

• Turkey (price per pound)
• Can of cranberry sauce
• Frozen or canned corn
• Box of stuffing
• Can of pumpkin

Divide your class into teams (as many as you’d like), and let them take 2-3 minutes for each item of food to come up with their group guess on what it costs.

Reveal what the food actually costs, and give a point to the team who got closest to that cost without going over.

6. Do a Gratefulness Mural to Display in the Hall

Let your students come together to plan how to do a gratefulness mural with some mural paper .

Each student can contribute something to it. Whether it’s something that makes each student grateful and the mural becomes one big collage of art, or it’s the class coming together and painting something huge that depicts being grateful.

Then, display it in the hallway leading up to your classroom (or wherever you’ve got permission).

7. Set up Pilgrim Taste-Testing Stations

Here’s a list of actual Pilgrim recipes , plus (mostly) how to recreate them.

Create these dishes, and then set the food out at various taste-testing stations. Rotate students through the stations, and have them taste various foods.

Things like:

• Boiled Bread
• Curd Fritters
• Turkey Sobaheg
• Stewed Pompion

You can also create a taste test judge sheet, where students vote for their favorites.

Psst: you can add in a Pilgrim’s game of Nine Men’s Morris and party like it was 1621!

8. Write an Essay on Feelings about Black Friday

Black Friday has, arguably, taken over Thanksgiving Day in ways that some people don’t like (and some people – namely, the ones standing in line after Thanksgiving dinner to score those great “deals” – don’t mind).

Do a mini-project where students research the two sides to the argument on whether or not Black Friday should stay as it is.

They can think about and answer questions (in an essay, or another way) such as:

• How did Black Friday used to look (decades ago), and how has it changed? What’s the history of Black Friday?
• What do they think about people who have to work on Thanksgiving Day due to stores rolling out their deals earlier and earlier each year?
• Does your opinion change when you learn that these workers can earn more money in holiday pay to work on Thanksgiving Day? Why or why not?
• And what about workers who have to work on Thanksgiving Day no matter if Black Friday is the next day or not (police officers, nurses, the President of the United States, etc.)?

9. Do a Lesson Plan on Sourcing Thanksgiving Food from farm-to-table

Here’s a really neat agricultural literacy lesson plan for grades 9-12 that will make your students think differently about their meals.

As a class, you guys will brainstorm both the meals typically served at Thanksgiving, and the ingredients that go into the meals.

Then, students will work on a series of questions and tasks, such as crossing off all ingredients on the list not sourced within 100 miles of their school.

They’ll fill out “The Geography of My Thanksgiving Dinner” worksheet (and there are lots of other activities, too).

10. Learn about Cranberries, Sweet Potatoes, and Turkey Production

Here’s a free worksheet and lesson plan on where in the U.S. sweet potatoes and cranberries are grown, and which states produce the most turkeys.

Psst: snag a few more ideas with these Thanksgiving activities for teens .

11. Look at the Economics Behind Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is a great foundation for an economics lesson plan.

You can use t h is information to come up with discussion points and to show students where to research how much this holiday stimulates the economy (plus in what ways).

They’ll learn things like:

• Average dinner cost
• All the different effects of Thanksgiving on the economy (like air travel, gas, and increased food shopping)
• Why turkey prices drop around Thanksgiving, not increase

Psst: Like these? Here are 14 Christmas activities for high school students , so that you can prep ahead of time.

12. Do a 14-Day Gratitude Journal Practice

Use the two weeks leading up to Thanksgiving break to start a gratitude journal practice with your students.

You could give each student a fresh notebook to use for this so that they might continue the practice on their own after the two weeks are up.

On the first day, explain what gratitude is. Also, explain some of the benefits we gain from being grateful and doing a gratitude practice .

There are gratitude journals for teens , and then there are lots of free gratitude journal prompts you could use with your class.

Here are a few:

• 35 Gratitude Journal Prompts
• 155 Gratitude Journal Prompts
• 110 Daily Gratitude Journal Prompts

13. Do Thanksgiving Mad Libs

Let your students have fun in groups, with a partner, or as a whole class doing the classic game of Mad Libs.

You'll find this hilarious “A Day in the Life of a Teen Pilgrim”, here .

Here are 2 other free, Thanksgiving-themed ones:

• Thanksgiving Mad Libs Printable
• Thanksgiving Mad Lib Printable

14. Pair Up with an Elementary Class for Thanksgiving Reading Buddies

You could work together with an elementary class and have each of your students pick out a Thanksgiving book to read to a student.

Great reinforcement for helping others out – plus I think each person (the child AND the teen) will get something out of this.

Well, those are the Thanksgiving activities for high school students I've got for you. I'd love to hear in the comments below what you tried and what worked best for your classes. Also, share any ideas you've got to help other teachers out!

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18 Thanksgiving activities that are perfect for the classroom

In this guide

• 1. Visual analysis
• 2. Chromatography pumpkin
• 3. Thanksgiving story time
• 4. Thanksgiving dance-off
• 5. Gratitude quilt
• 6. Thanksgiving counting
• 7. Thanksgiving data
• 8. Save the turkey egg drop
• 9. Thanksgiving kindness chain
• 10. Thanksgiving debate
• 11. The true history of Thanksgiving
• 12. Turkey trot
• 13. Thanksgiving creative writing
• 14. Turkey wing dissection
• 15. Thanksgiving cookbook
• 16. Thanksgiving podcast
• 17. Turkey trot
• 18. Gratitude challenge

Thanksgiving marks the official start of the holiday season, but more importantly, it is the perfect time to stop for a moment and reflect on the past year as well as who and what we are thankful for. These Thanksgiving activities foster kindness, gratitude, and community and are arranged into Elementary, Middle, and High School levels.

Thanksgiving activities for elementary school students

​​These activities can be used as standalone activities but are best used throughout the lead up to Thanksgiving to really build the holiday spirit in your classroom.

1) Visual analysis

Social studies

Aim: To use a still image as a prompt for a creative writing piece about Thanksgiving.

What you’ll need :

• The video The Pilgrims .
• Device for showing videos.
• Method of writing a story (digital or paper).
• After showing the full video- choose a still from the video The Pilgrims to display.
• Ask students to write a story or create a dialogue using the image as inspiration. The creation should be historically accurate.
• Alternatively you can ask students to do a more formal historical analysis of the visual image you have chosen. The Reading Like a Historian website is a great place to find resources to support the teaching of visual images.

2) Chromatography pumpkin

Aim: To use the chromatography process to create a pumpkin on a filter.

What you’ll need:

• Coffee filters.
• Cups of water.
• Ability to project a video.
• Show students chromatography and how it is used in science.
• Discuss what was covered in the video to ensure understanding.
• Start by drawing desired colors on the filter.
• Dip the edge of the filter into a shallow cup of water, allowing the water to absorb and spread throughout the filter.
• Once dry, add additional features, such as pumpkin lines or jack-o-lantern features (like eyes and a mouth).

3) Thanksgiving story time

English Language Arts

Aim: Use a Thanksgiving story or video as inspiration to write or draw a unique story.

• A Thanksgiving themed story.
• A Thanksgiving themed video .
• Read Thanksgiving themed books such as Turkey Trouble or The Great Turkey Race. You can also watch Thanksgiving themed video to introduce the theme.
• Discuss the meaning of the book and/or the video and discuss any new or difficult vocabulary with the students.
• Draw pictures inspired by the book or video to share with classmates.(These can be used to decorate the classroom and begin to build the festive feel in the classroom.)
• Write their own Thanksgiving story inspired by the book or video. 
• Create their own digital story about Thanksgiving.

4) Thanksgiving dance-off

Physical education

Aim: Engage in physical activity by dancing to a Thanksgiving Hokey Pokey.

• Device to play music or video.
• Turkey Hokey Pokey .
• Play Turkey Hokey Pokey .
• Encourage students to show off their favorite dance moves. 
• This activity not only encourages movement but could be used as an energetic brain. break to invigorate the students in between other more formal lessons.

5) Gratitude quilt

Social-emotional learning

Aim: Create a class quilt that details what each student is grateful for.

• Squares of colored paper.
• Markers or crayons.
• Tape or wall adhesive.
• Discuss thanksgiving with the class and the central meanings of the holiday.
• Ask each student to share something they are grateful for.
• Students choose a piece of colored paper and create a quilt square showing what they are grateful for.
• Place the squares on the wall in a quilt pattern as a display.

6) Thanksgiving counting

Aim: Use a singalong to practice counting skills.

• Five Little Turkeys Song .
• Thanksgiving themed objects.
• Play the song for the class.
• Have students sing along the second time the song is played. Provide thanksgiving objects for them to use when counting, such as candy corn. 
• Extend the activity by asking students to create their own Thanksgiving math counting song.

You can also check out our curated topic page including history and sing-alongs for your elementary students.

Thanksgiving activities for middle school students

These Thanksgiving activities promote critical thinking; students will be challenged to work together, be creative, and problem solve.

7) Thanksgiving data

Aim: Collect class data about Thanksgiving foods to create a data display.

• Data collection method (digital or paper).
• Representing Data in Statistics . 
• Have the class brainstorm a list of Thanksgiving foods.
• Show the ClickView video Representing Data in Statistics to provide background for students on ways they can represent their data.
• Collect class data on each student’s favorite food from the list. This can be done using an online data collection tool, or on paper using tally marks.
• Have students represent the collected data using a method of their choosing (i.e. graph, data table, etc.).

8) Save the turkey egg drop

Aim: Build a device to protect a raw egg from breaking when dropped from various heights.

• Recycled materials (boxes, cartons, bottles, etc.).
• Glue, tape, or other adhesives.
• Have students build a device out of recycled material that will protect a raw egg when dropped. They can build it how they want and use adhesive to keep everything together.
• Decorate the egg as a turkey, then put it inside the device.
• Drop the device from various heights to see if the turkey egg survives the drop without cracking.
• This activity can be extended by making it also into a math problem, whereby students can identify patterns between speed and breakage, including creating graphs .

9) Thanksgiving kindness chain

Aim: Create an artistic chain of ways to promote kindness.

• Blank strips of paper.
• Glue or a stapler.
• The meaning.
• Why it’s important to spread kindness. 
• Begin thinking about ways we can think of being kind to others-  not just at Thanksgiving.
• Write down a way they could spread kindness to others at Thanksgiving on a strip of paper.
• Create the chain of kindness with the links to be displayed around the room using the glue or stapler.
• After the activity, create a class pledge to commit to being kind the entire year, not just at Thanksgiving . At different times throughout the year ask students to add additional ideas to blank strips of paper. These strips of paper will then be added to the chain.

10) Thanksgiving debate

Aim: Debate about a Thanksgiving-related topic to practice public speaking skills.

• Debate prompts (see steps below).
• Debating and Public Speaking .
• Show Debating and Public Speaking  
• “Should Thanksgiving be a national holiday?” or 
• “Should there be a required food at every Thanksgiving meal?”
• Divide students into three groups: for, against, and judges.
• Give teams time to research and formulate arguments. During this time the judges will create a rubric or set of criteria to judge the arguments presented.
• Each team will present their arguments.
• The judges will determine who has the most convincing arguments and explain why.

Of course this activity can be more formalized or changed to a class discussion instead.

11) The true history of Thanksgiving 

Aim: Take the perspective of a historical person to write a unique take on Thanksgiving.

• Device to play a video.
• This activity explores the events leading up to the first Thanksgiving.
• Show Thanksgiving , which shows the events of Thanksgiving from both the Native American and Pilgrim point of view.
• Contextualizing the past and the reasons why learning about history can be problematic.
• Have students write about Thanksgiving from the perspective of a real or fictional person from history. They may need to do additional research to understand and create their character. Resources such as Talk Like a Pilgrim are also useful to help them develop their authentic historical character.

If you’re curious about how to incorporate more media into your social studies classes, check out the professional development series Using Digital Media to Teach Social Studies .

12) Turkey trot

Aim: Participate in a fun run with a Thanksgiving theme.

• Area for running.
• (optional) turkey costumes and/or hats.
• Prizes for the top 3 finishers.
• Turkey trots are typically held on Thanksgiving Day. They are recreational running events such as a one mile or 5K run.
• For middle school, have students run the mile. They can dress in turkey costumes if they’d like, to model the name Turkey Trot.
• Provide prizes for the top 3 finishers. Prizes may include Thanksgiving-themed items or food.

Finally, here are some additional great videos to include in your planning for your middle school students.

Thanksgiving activities for high school students

These Thanksgiving activities promote critical thinking through multi-step processes while integrating the spirit of the holiday.

13) Thanksgiving creative writing

Aim: Write a creative story about Thanksgiving, including characters, setting, and theme.

• Slips of paper with story element options (see below).
• Device or paper/pen to write a story.
• Characters: Pilgrims, Native Americans, turkeys, etc.
• Setting: a house, a tent, a school, etc.
• Theme: gratitude, spite, power, redemption, etc.
• Students are to draw a character, setting, and theme at random.
• Students will then write a creative Thanksgiving story using the character, setting, and theme they received. The story should have a conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, and a resolution. Check out some ideas in our Creative Process video.
• Have students read their creative stories to their groups or the class. You could also publish their work in a class volume, turn into a children’s book or read aloud as a book-on-tape.

14) Turkey wing dissection

Aim: Dissect a turkey wing to analyze its bones and muscles.

• Turkey wings.
• Dissection tools.
• Provide a turkey wing to each group. 
• Direct students to the dissection series of videos to learn proper techniques for dissection.
• Groups of students will dissect their turkey wing to analyze the muscles and bones within the wing.
• Students can watch our skeletal system series and muscles series to make comparison between the turkey wing and the human body.

15) Thanksgiving cookbook

Aim: This activity focuses on ratios and proportions to create a classroom Thanksgiving cookbook. 

• Materials to write a recipe (digital or paper).
• Show The First American Cookbook .
• Have students choose a course for their Thanksgiving meal recipe (dessert, appetizer, etc.). They will then create their own unique recipe with correct ratios and proportions as well as cooking times. Have them highlight or underline each ratio within their recipe (for example, 2:1 for 2 cups of flour to 1 cup of water).
• Students should choose one ingredient and explain what would happen to the recipe if the ratio of that ingredient was askew in comparison with the other ingredients. 
• To extend this activity students could create a cooking schedule to ensure their Thanksgiving meals come out on time and in the right order. They should include things like preparation and cooking times in their schedule.

16) Thanksgiving podcast

Aim: Use video information to create a podcast about the history of Thanksgiving.

• Devices to record podcasts.
• Show the videos Thanksgiving , Thanksgiving (Miniclips) , and The Pilgrims .
• After each video, ensure students’ clarity of the topics covered and/or have them take notes as they watch. 
• Ask students to work in groups to create a podcast to demonstrate their understanding of the history of Thanksgiving, based on the videos. Free tools like Audacity can be used for students to create their podcasts. If this is new to you, check out this great blog by the National Education Association here to help you integrate podcasts into your teaching.
• Have students choose a few of their peers’ podcasts to listen to, followed by giving feedback to each other about whether the podcasts they listened to were historically accurate.

17) Turkey trot

• (optional) turkey costumes or hats.
• For high school, have students run the 5K, which equates to just over 3 miles. They can dress in turkey costumes if they’d like, to model the name Turkey Trot.

18) Gratitude challenge

Aim: Reflect on things to be grateful for prior to Thanksgiving. 

• Post-it notes.
• Large butcher paper for a turkey outline.
• Writing utensils.
• What’s something you own that you’re grateful for, and why?
• Who is someone at school that you’re grateful for, and why?
• What is a song or movie or tv show that you’re grateful for, and why?
• What is a food you’re grateful for, and why?
• What is a life experience that’s been hard for you, but you’re grateful for, and why?
• The day before Thanksgiving, have students choose a few of their statements to write on post-it notes, then stick them onto a giant turkey outline.
• Have students read some of their peers’ gratitude notes.

These fun can be incorporated into the classroom during November and leading up to Thanksgiving. They teach important lessons about gratitude and kindness while building connections and fostering empathy. I hope you find something for your students whether they are primary, middle, or high school level.

• Uschsstaffuser. (2022, September 15). Watch our latest webinar! The History & Mythology of the “First Thanksgiving” United States Capitol Historical Society. https://capitolhistory.org/symposia/history-mythology-first-thanksgiving/
• Native Knowledge 360°—Rethinking Thanksgiving Celebrations: Native Perspectives on Thanksgiving . (n.d.). https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/informational/rethinking-thanksgiving
• Zapata, C. (2024, January 31). Thanksgiving 2023 – Tradition, Origins & Meaning | HISTORY. HISTORY . https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving
• Thanksgiving: Exploring Perspectives | Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility . (2013, November 22). https://www.morningsidecenter.org/teachable-moment/lessons/thanksgiving-exploring-perspectives
• Breiseth, L. (2023, November 20). Making Space for gratitude: 15 ideas for schools during challenging times . Colorín Colorado. https://www.colorincolorado.org/gratitud

Annette Geiger

Language Coach / Content Creator

Annette has been teaching English as a Second Language since 2005. She has also created course content for educational publishers around the world. Today, she tutors primary age school children as well as language and soft skills for adult learners.

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