Thanksgiving Foods

Thanksgiving Food Collage
Supply the children with the circulars for various grocery stores.  Have them cut out their favorite Thanksgiving foods and glue them onto a paper plate or a piece of paper for a place mat.

Chocolate Pudding Finger Paint
Mix instant chocolate pudding according to the directions and paint on wax paper. Great for children who like to eat their art.

Thanksgiving Foods
Ask the children what their favorite thanksgiving foods are.  You can post them as class favorites, or you can list each child's favorites.

Create a Graph
Select a few Thanksgiving foods to make and have the children try the foods.  Then they should vote on which they like the best.  Create a graph and talk about the results.

Thanksgiving Cookbook
This activity is more than worth it's time in laughs. I have done it two years in a row and everyone laughs. Take the children aside one by one and ask them, "What is your favorite Thanksgiving food?" Then ask them "How do you make that?" Write down word for word their responses. You may find it helpful to videotape the responses so you can get it all down. Then compile all of the responses in your classroom recipe book. You may make copies for the parents to take home or make one copy so that the parents may enjoy it. If you do the video, you may want to just show the video at a Thanksgiving party for the parents.
One of my favorite responses:
Thanksgiving Turkey by Emily
First you get in the car and go to the farm and get a turkey. You pick a big one.

Thanksgiving Day
Pretend to have a feast just like Thanksgiving. Pretend to eat all the foods that you would have at Thanksgiving.

Make Butter
You need:
heavy whipping cream
dash of salt
baby food jars (one for each student)

Place a small amount of heavy whipping cream and a dash of salt into each baby food jar. Place a lid on each jar. Have the children shake the jar until cream turns to butter. You can serve the butter on crackers or bread.

Thankful for Friends Fruit Salad
Have each child in the classroom bring in a bowl of their favorite fruit.  The fruit should be washed and cut before serving.  Place each fruit in a small bowl with a serving spoon.  Have the children create their own fruit salad by taking a little of their favorite fruits and placing it in their own bowl.

Pumpkin Pies
You need:
silver muffin papers
instant vanilla pudding (or pre-made)
vanilla wafers
whipped cream (optional).

Prepare the instant pudding according to the directions.  Add some pumpkin spice to the pudding. distribute one muffin paper to each child. Have the children place one vanilla wafer in the muffin paper. Have the children spoon some pumpkin flavored vanilla pudding on top of the vanilla wafer. Have the children crush a second vanilla wafer and sprinkle on top of the pudding. Add whipped cream.

Noodle Coloring
To color noodles or rice for art and other projects, use 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol for every cup of noodles. Add 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol to a 16 oz cup. Add a few drops of food coloring to the alcohol (about 10 will do, depending on how bright you want the noodles or rice). Place one cup of uncooked noodles or rice into the mixture and make sure it is fully coated. Spoon the noodles or rice onto a paper towel on a counter or table to dry. After dry, the children can use for projects. Repeat with other colors.

Check out all of our noodle ideas here: Noodles

Sand and Water Table Ideas:
add colored rice or noodles with measuring cups and other tools
add corn meal
add dried corn
add seeds or bird feed

Sensory Table
Provide the children with pumpkins, gourds, sweet potatoes, apples, carrots, and other food items to explore with a magnifying glass.  Talk about how these foods grow.

Sticker Games

Place 2 identical stickers on the left and right sides of an index card. Cut the index in half, cut in a jig-jag form. Use a highlighter to highlight the edges. Do this with many different stickers. Have the child match the stickers, and line up the two halves of the index card.

Place pairs of identical stickers on the left and right sides of an index card.  Cut the index card in half using a straight cut.  Use the cards to play memory.

Place each sticker on an index card that has been cut in half.  Have the children sort the cards into groups.  Ask the children how they sorted the cards.