The First Thanksgiving Books for Kids {30 Days of Thanks}

Free Easter Class

Read some books to give your children a proper perspective about the first Thanksgiving. A few years ago I shared the following with some of my friends. Each year I look for a new book about the Pilgrims & Mayflower to read aloud. Last year we read Landing of the Pilgrims, a Landmark book.

Homes in the Wilderness - A Pilgrim's Journal of Plymouth Plantation in 1620  ~ HowToHomeschoolMyChild.comWhen I looked through our bookshelf I found an updated version of Mourt’s Relations, called  Homes in the Wilderness: A Pilgrim’s Journal of Plymouth Plantation in 1620, edited by Margaret Wise Brown. We know Brown from our favorite bedtime story – Goodnight Moon. Although this is a modern translation of the journal kept by Governor William Bradford and others of the Mayflower company, it still retains much of the sentence structure and writing styles of the authors.

Homes in the Wilderness describes the landing of the Pilgrims on Cape Cod, their search for a homesite, the first meetings with Indians, and the final building of the settlement at Plymouth.

A few of our favorites when our children were young (& they still enjoy reading them) are below.

thanksgiving books for kids   ~   HowToHomeschoolMyChild.com

These are worth buying. We read them every year. (If this blog encourages you, I’d appreciate clicking on any image below to buy the books. It helps pay for website expenses)

the first thanksgiving - 30 days of thanks - samuel eaton's day
Samuel Eaton’s Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Boy
the first thanksgiving - 30 days of thanks - sarah morton's day
Sarah Morton’s Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Girl
the first thanksgiving - 30 days of thanks - tapenum's day
Tapenum’s Day: A Wampanoag Indian Boy in Pilgrim Times
the first thanksgiving - 30 days of thanks - on the mayflower
On The Mayflower: Voyage of the Ship’s Apprentice & a Passenger Girl

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our family has enjoyed these books for the past 10 years. Ever since our oldest was in Kindergarten, we have read them each year. The photographs remind us of what life was really like in those first few years of the Plymouth colony.

You might enjoy reading a review of these books right here:

My kids (4 and 6) love this book, and want it read to them again and again. It follows a day in the life of young Sarah Morton, a historical character who was a child in early Plymouth Colony. It shows how the people lived then and how their world view differed from ours, yet it entertains at the same time. It can serve as a springboard for discussions on many different topics — history, responsibility, religion, family, grief, hard work, and no doubt others.

day14 - The First Thanksgiving Books to Read with kids - Thanksgiving Activities for Kids   ~   HowToHomeschoolMyChild.com

Thanksgiving Activities for Kids

Choose a great book about life as a Pilgrim and read a little each day as a family. Talk about what life would be like if you lived in the 1620’s.

Here’s another suggestion:

the first thanksgiving - 30 days of thanks - squanto

Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims (by Bulla)

Although you can find them at the library, I highly recommend starting a library of Thanksgiving books for your kids.

How to Homeschool My Child

Question: What are your kids favorite Thanksgiving books? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

NOTE: This post may contain affiliate links.



how to simplify your homeschool
There may be affiliate links used in this post.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *