How to Re-enact the First Thanksgiving

A re-enactment of the first Thanksgiving can be a great way to commemorate the roots of the Thanksgiving holiday, either with family and friends at a school, church or community gathering. A small group of children can easily put together a Thanksgiving pageant, with just a little advance preparation and adult supervision.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Craft Supplies
• Indian Corn
• Cardboard Boxes
• Gourds
• Cornucopia Baskets
• Cooking Magazines
• Construction Paper
• Poster Board Or Cardboard
• Kids' Costumes
• Cardboard boxes

1. Make costumes for the participants. Black or brown clothes make a good basic costume for the children representing pilgrims, and brown, tan, or yellow leggings and tunics will work well for those playing the parts of Native Americans.

2. Make hats and bonnets for the Pilgrims and headdresses for the natives. Use black construction paper and tape or glue for the hats, and add a white paper band and a black paper buckle to complete the look. Bonnets can be made from white paper or white cloth napkins. Attach feathers (real or made from construction paper) and beads to headbands or hair bands for the headdresses.

3. Glue pictures of Thanksgiving foods onto paper plates to represent the Thanksgiving feast. You can help the children cut out pictures from magazines, or have them draw or color pictures of turkeys, pumpkins, corn, and other holiday foods.

4. Help the children put together a cornucopia, or "horn of plenty" as a centerpiece. You may be able to find a wicker basket in the right shape, but if not, these are easy to make from construction paper. Fill the cornucopia with real or artificial fruits and vegetables, including ornamental gourds and Indian Corn if they are available.

5. Re-create the Mayflower, using cardboard boxes or sheets of poster board. Cut the rough outline of a boat, and then have the children add details with crayons, paints or construction paper shapes. The Pilgrims can "sail" across the ocean by standing behind the ship and carrying it along with them. When they arrive, get the Natives to greet them and welcome them to the New World.

6. Choose one of the older children to make a short speech for the Pilgrims and another to speak for the Natives. For the Pilgrims, the speaker can mention freedom from persecution and the chance to build a community in the New World and learn from those already living there. The child representing the Natives can mention the goal of peaceful coexistence and the opportunity to share the bounties of the New World with the settlers.

7. Get the participants to pass around the "feast," and talk about the significance of the foods, mentioning which ingredients came from the Old World with the settlers and which foods were brought by the Natives.

8. Finish up by asking all the children to say a few words about what they are thankful for in their own lives.

9. Extend the presentation to include prayers, songs (anything from hymns to "Turkey in the Straw"), or a Thanksgiving poem as a "grand finale."

10. Make sure everyone takes a bow.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are feeling really ambitious and have a little extra time to plan, help the children make a papier-mâché turkey. Lay papier-mâché strips over a small balloon for the base of the turkey, and add drumsticks and wings later or just paint them on when the papier-mâché is dry.
• Get a couple of Thanksgiving-related children's books from the library to help you plan the presentation, or do some research online. There are lots of books out there that explain the story of Thanksgiving for children of various ages.
• If some of the children present are extremely shy, don't force them to participate. They may be happy to wear costumes but may prefer not to perform.
• Make sure children are supervised while working on their props and costumes, especially if they are using glue or papier-mâché.