The Very First Thanksgiving Day
by Rhonda Gowler Greene
Paintings by Susan Gaber
Comprehension Guide
Pre-reading:
What do you know about Thanksgiving? What types of things do you eat at Thanksgiving? How do you think early Thanksgiving holidays were different from the ones we have today?
Knowledge:
1. List the foods that were eaten on the first Thanksgiving.
2. Identify the “harbor marked by a huge stone.” What was that stone called?
Comprehension:
1. Describe the illustrations in the book.
2. Retell the first Thanksgiving in your own words.
Application:
1. The author says, “Where first steps were taken to chart the unknown.” Who do you know she is referring to? Who in the story is she NOT referring to?
2. Why is it important that the Indians knew how to live through long winters to this story?
Analysis:
1. How are the Indians and the Pilgrims alike? How are they different?
2. Examine the author and illustrators notes. What interesting facts did you learn about the time period?
3. What does that tell you about writing a picture book? Is it easy? Why or why not?
Synthesis:
1. Imagine you could go back to the first Thanksgiving. Who would you sit with? What would you ask?
2. How would you feel if you were a young Pilgrim child in a land so far away from the rest of your family (grandparents, cousins, etc.)?
Evaluation:
1. Which illustration is your favorite? Why?
2. Predict what the two girls who are running off on the last page will play.
Multiple Intelligence Projects
The Very First Thanksgiving Day
by Rhonda Gowler Greene
Paintings by Susan Gaber
Verbal/ Linguistic
Write a story using the same format of The Very First Thanksgiving about another holiday that your family celebrates. Start with: This is the Very First _____________. Your story doesn’t have to rhyme though, but try to use details that are accurate.
Logical/ Mathematical
Take a survey of your classmates and discover what everyone’s favorite holiday is. Graph the results. (Worksheet below)
Visual/ Spatial
Create a cornhusk doll, and decorate so it looks like it belongs in the story. Here is a link to specific directions with illustrations:
http://www.teachersfirst.com/summer/cornhusk.htm
Body/ Kinesthetic
Act out the entire book but do not talk! Use only gestures, miming and sign language to communicate the events of the story.
Musical/ Rhythmic
Sing these songs for Thanksgiving:
http://www.songs4teachers.com/thanks1.pdf
or
Listen to classical music (instrumental) and choose a section that you think fits the mood of The Very First Thanksgiving Day. Pretend that it will be read aloud and this will be the background music.
Interpersonal
Because the Native American Indians and the Pilgrims obviously didn’t share the same language, communication was often a barrier. As a class, brainstorm things about Thanksgiving and put them on slips of paper. Start out with single words, and work up to phrases. Then, in pairs, try to figure out what the other person is talking about using no English whatsoever!!
Intrapersonal
Pretend you are a Pilgrim child in America. Create a postcard for your grandparents living in England, and describe the day to them. Be sure to illustrate the front, and write the title of the book and the author’s name too.
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Favorite Holiday Graph
Directions: color in one block for each student
