Thanksgiving and the Holiday Season

One of my favorite holidays is Thanksgiving. As you already know fall is my favorite time of year I love all the colors, the weather, and making preparations for the upcoming holiday season. I also love it because my birthday is on December 2nd so I have always had plenty of reasons to celebrate throughout the months of November, December, and January! I am definitely addicted to shopping so the holidays provide me with a somewhat constructive outlet for my shopping. To me Thanksgiving is a time to remember all that we have to be thankful for like family, friends, a job, food, a home, and a million other things we take for granted on a daily basis. I love the traditions of the holiday season and time spent with my loved ones. And of course, I love all the delicious food! I cannot wait to eat tons of homemade turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, turnips, dinner rolls, and pumpkin pie!

An interesting lesson I observed in a first grade classroom related to the holiday season was the teacher asked the students to draw a picture of what came to mind when they thought about holidays. Many different pictures were drawn, some students drew their families around a table, another drew himself and his family baking coookies for Santa, or decorating their homes. There were pictures of Thanksgiving, Hannukah, Christmas, and other holidays. Next the students were asked to write sentences about how they used their 5 senses during the holiday season. For example, "I can see a Christmas tree. I can touch presents. I can smell cookies. I taste delicious turkey. I hear holiday music." The class brainstormed things they could see, touch, smell, taste, and hear and then wrote sentences that applied to their picture and the holidays they celebrate. I thought this was an excellent way to review the 5 senses, discuss upcoming holidays, and celebrate diversity within the classroom.

Vocabulary:

1. preparations (noun) - things you to do to prepare for something
2. upcoming (adj) - happening soon or in the near future
3. addicted (adj) - devoted to, preoccupied or obsessed with (can be unhealthy)
4. constructive (adj) - positive
5. outlet (noun) - a means of expressing or satisfying
6. tradition (noun) - something that is handed down and done repeatedly
7. delicious (adj) - tasting good or yummy
8. observed (verb) - watched or saw
9. diversity (noun)- difference, coming from different backgrounds or cultures

Make task cards using the above vocabulary words and practice learning their definitions with a partner.

Grammar Point: Writing sentences

Following the format from above write 5 sentences about how you use your senses during the holiday season with your family.

• I can see ____________ ________________.
• I can hear ____________ ________________.
• I can touch ____________ ________________.
• I can taste ____________ ________________.
• I can smell ____________ ________________.

Remember sentences start with a capital letter and end with a period. Try to use at least one adjective in each of your sentence. For example, "I can taste yummy cookies." Feel free to draw a picture as well.