It’s time to know the truth about the history of the Thanksgiving celebrations. A Theme Page for A2 – B1-level students.
Related Pages: English Conquers the World, Colonisation of North America 8-9
Warm-Up
11 Turkeys Who Won’t Get Eaten This Thanksgiving – YouTube (1:10)https://youtu.be/G9Oqz8RfTQ0You can’t stop them. Funny film clips with turkeys and text on the screen
MS. GOBBLER – I WILL SURVIVE – YouTubehttps://youtu.be/3EW4vgSP-mMThanksgiving Humor – A turkey’s hopeful song with a beat: I will survive!
Listening
The True, Grim Story of the First Thanksgiving : NPR (4:29)http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1524201NPR’s Bob Edwards explains that the real Thanksgiving was much more grim than grade school teachers will allow in the annual pageant. (B1)
Reading
What they didn’t teach you about the first Thanksgiving in school – Voxhttps://www.vox.com/2014/11/25/7279083/thanksgiving-charles-mann-1491The crucial context for the feast, as told in Charles Mann’s book 1491. (B1)
What Does Thanksgiving Mean to Native Americans?https://blog.nativehope.org/what-does-thanksgiving-mean-to-native-americansFor many Native Americans, the topic of Thanksgiving is a controversial one. Here’s a look at some of the reasons why Thanksgiving is a complex holiday, and one that all Americans should approach with greater sensitivity. (B1)
Lesson Plan
Thanksgiving | – | LearnEnglishhttps://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/general-english/magazine-zone/thanksgivingEvery autumn, Canadian and American families gather for a day centred around community, food and giving thanks – the day of Thanksgiving. (B1)
The Wampanoag Side of the First Thanksgiving Storyhttps://newsmaven.io/indiancountrytoday/archive/the-wampanoag-side-of-the-first-thanksgiving-story-TmMLTgQs40aJT_n9T3RMIQ/From the Native perspective: The true story of Thanksgiving (B1)Lesson Plan
Viewing
The Story of Thanksgiving – YouTube (3:10)https://youtu.be/faUYJ9fMiGgAn animated story from the Pilgrims’ arrival till Thanksgiving as told by Plymouth Rock (A2)
The Pilgrims and the Mayflower Compact – YouTube ( 5:57)https://youtu.be/P9kGbz-BfLIIn 1620, the Pilgrims left England in search of religious freedom and a new life for their community. (A2.2-B1)
The First Thanksgiving: What Really Happened – YouTube (6:09)https://youtu.be/ociHVDWxDaYAn educational animation that tells the in-depth story surrounding the first “thanksgiving”. (A2-B1)
A history of how lucky turkeys came to earn presidential pardons – YouTube (4:07)https://youtu.be/9SD8eCIPOW8In between muscling the Build Back Better Act through the U.S. House of Representatives and departing for the holiday, President Joe Biden made time for pardoning two turkeys.
The Natives and the English – Crash Course US History #3 – YouTube (11:26)https://youtu.be/TTYOQ05oDOIIn which John Green teaches you about relations between the early English colonists and the native people they encountered in the New World. (B1)
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