How to Teach Thanksgiving From a Christian Perspective
It's easy to teach about turkeys, Pilgrims and Indians as part of the Thanksgiving story, but some Christian teachers and parents wonder how to teach children about God as part of the story as well. The religious character of Thanksgiving makes it simple to teach Thanksgiving from a Christian perspective. Religion motivated the Pilgrims, who saw their survival in the New World was nearly miraculous. Use Thanksgiving as an ideal starting point for talking about gratitude to God. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Explain the religious identity of the Pilgrims so the children will know that Christianity was a vital part of the Mayflower's voyage. Emphasize that the Pilgrims left England to start a life where they would not have to compromise their religious beliefs or be mocked about them. Cite the Pilgrims' courage and willingness to sacrifice everything for God as an example for Christians to follow.
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Describe the importance of the Wampanoag Indians' help to the Pilgrims. Explain that God sent the Wampanoag to help the Pilgrims and to teach them how to survive in the New World. Connect the Wampanoag's appearance to the Book of Esther. In the Book of Esther, God put people in the position to save the Israelites without working any overt miracles, just like God gave the Indians the opportunity to help save the Pilgrims.
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Tell the children that the first Thanksgiving was not overtly religious, but that the spiritual Pilgrims saw even a secular celebration as an opportunity to praise God. Explain that the children should thank God for everything they do during the day, even non-religious activities like watching parades or football, just like the Pilgrims did.
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Teach the children Thanksgiving hymns such as "Come, Ye Thankful People, Come" and "O God, Beneath Thy Guiding Hand." Connect the lyrics of these hymns to the Thanksgiving story you've told the children.
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Have older children read Abraham Lincoln's 1863 proclamation instituting the Thanksgiving holiday. This not only explicitly cites God as the reason for celebrating Thanksgiving, but reminds the children to be grateful for things they take for granted, such as freedom, order and the beauty of the landscape.
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Ask children to explicitly thank God for all the things for which they are grateful. Have them list the things that they are thankful for and then pray to God, thanking him for those things. Making lists of things you are thankful for is a traditional Thanksgiving activity, but becomes explicitly Christian when the children know to thank God rather than having general feelings of gratitude.
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Design a community service project so the children can demonstrate their gratitude to God by sharing his gifts with less fortunate individuals. Organize a food drive, help the students make gift baskets for a local shelter or have them write letters of gratitude to troops overseas.
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Tips & Warnings
If you feel uncomfortable telling the Thanksgiving story without touching on the persecution Indians later faced from colonists, use it as a starting point to explain that Christians sometimes fail to live up to God's standards. Ask the students how the Pilgrims could have responded to the Indians in a truly Christian manner. Encourage the students to act like true followers of Christ in all ways, so children in classes 400 years from today will not be able to look back and criticize their behavior.
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