Thanksgiving!

                                                                       

                                                                      Thanksgiving 

          Thanksgiving is approaching and it is one of my favorite times of the year!  I always prepare Thanksgiving dinner every year with my grandma.  This year unfortunately, I am preparing Thanksgiving dinner alone due to my grandma’s passing earlier on in the year.  This holiday is bittersweet for my family and I however, we are trying to make the best of it.  My family and I host Thanksgiving every year including all the other holidays.  One of our family traditions is to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade together and the movie March of the Wooden Soldiers while we set up for the day.  Another family tradition we have is to grab the wishbone at the end of dinner and make a wish while tearing it apart.  No matter how old I get this tradition will never die!  Being s teacher for the first time around this holiday is a great experience in itself.  I get to see how many students know about the holiday, their traditions, which students don’t know about the holiday, and some personal stories students share.  I believe this is a great way to get to know your students better and also to intertwine a fun activity such as; word cloud and word art.  My students absolutely loved the activities and shared such touching stories.  I can’t wait for Christmas to approach and intertwine more great activities with my students while learning more about them! 

Vocabulary:

Thanksgiving- A celebration of giving thanks

Bittersweet- A feeling of happiness and sadness at the same time

Traditions- A handing down of practices and beliefs that are valued by a culture

Parade- A long moving line of people and/or things being displayed

Wishbone- A V-shaped bone that is found in a turkey which is believed to bring good luck 

Intertwine- To become closely linked with something

Vocabulary Cloze Exercise: Put the correct vocabulary words in the blank.

1. My sister and I fight over the ______________ every Thanksgiving dinner!

2. As a teacher it is important to ______________ activities and current events together.

3. While we watch the Thanksgiving Day ______________ I help my mother make breakfast.

4. During the holidays families usually use their  __________ to make recipes and to celebrate   

    the holidays.

5. Sammy felt ___________ when she came in second place during the race and her friend came    

    in first place.   

6. _____________ is a holiday when you celebrate all that you are thankful for.

Grammar Point: This passage has many verbs in the present tense.  List those verbs and any other words that indicate the present tense.

Grammar Exercise:  Write a paragraph explaining how you feel about Thanksgiving.  Be sure to use present tense verbs and any vocabulary words.