Great resource re: Teaching about "Thanksgiving"

[kama'aina mama]

http://www.2020tech.com/thanks/temp.html#story

Several people have asked about how to discuss this "holiday" with children in a way that respects the indigenous people and their perspectives. This might help.

[Clarinet]

Thank you. I've printed it out to read with my daughter later.

[queencarr]

I really like this--thank you. I think I will send a copy of the link to Jimmy's teacher as well.

[messy mama]

Thank you!!

[LavenderMae]

Thanks!!!!!!!!!

[kama'aina mama]

There's a lot of good stuff there, huh?

[hubris]

Wow. Very good read, thank you. I'm going to print it and give it to my husband. It's a little dry to read straight out to my 3 y/o but I'm looking for a good Thanksgiving picture book that I can then supplement the story with the info from the site you linked. (recommendations welcome)

[fremontmama]

Thanks mama, that's a good story. I printed it out.

[oyemicanto]

Thank you so much! This is so wonderfully presented - I will be using it as the main focus of our home activities next week. It is especially nice because I was born and raised in massachusetts and can't recall a single instance in my schooling where the Wampanoags were mentioned at Thanksgiving. It was basically coloring in pictures of happy smiling Pilgrims and the occasional smiling "Indian" (as my teachers called them). I always felt lied to and cheated as a child - like I was some sort of idiot who couldn't grasp the idea that there were people who lived here before the Pilgrims and who obviously had their own culture, et cetera...

anyway, thanks!

[beanma]

there are some great book recommendations on this thread -- http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=556458 . i recommend "Giving thanks : the 1621 harvest feast" by by Kate Waters. it's photographs of a reenactment at plimoth plantation and it has a 13 yr old wampanoag boy and a 6 yr old "english" boy. pretty easy to read text though maybe a 3rd grade level.

hth

[kama'aina mama]

If you click around at that site there is other good info and stuff for older kids too, I just direct linked to the stuff for younger kids because I remembered thee had been several people asking aabout that.

[Verity]

Thank you so much for posting that.

It might help my dd understand why I felt uncomfortable with the idea of her dressing as an "Indian" for Halloween. (She chose another costume, but I don't think I presented my case very well.)

[violafemme]

thanks so much for that

[Potty Diva]

This year one of the local schools (that a student attends, he is in first grade) need to do research on the first thanksgiving, then will then present their findings in class.

I'm wondering what version th teacher s interested in? And what (if anything) would she do if a student presented the "true" recep of the first thanksgiving...stop them?

[MamaWindmill]

I've seen that, and I really like it. There is some controversy over it, though - this guy seems to think some of the facts are not correct. It's interesting, though, that some of his (the guy saying the Fourth World stuff is false) source material was written by white Europeans of the time - so I wonder if it's occurred to him that their versions are probably deliberately or unintentionally biased and false?

[kama'aina mama]

Wow. Thank you Windmill! The original is useful to me in terms of helping me frame the story for a young child but I certainly don't want to perpetuate any myths as fact.

[sadie_sabot]

ah, thank you for posting this. there is a link, I'll try to dig it up, to a whole noher version of events, which has the settlers killing the indians and that being the cause of the 'thanksgiving" I'll try to find it. In any case, though, telling the fullest version of the truth that we can access is important.

[Potty Diva]

This is a goof one and I plan on getting the Lies Across America and the Lies my teacher Told me books (Mark has read the teacher one and LOVED it)
http://www.trinicenter.com/historica...anksgiving.htm

[Anuska]

I'm currently reading "Mayflower" by Nathaniel Philbrick....and he goes in depth into the relationships between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans (in 1620's) and the first Thanksgiving. Its really fascinating.

Thanks for posting that.

[TiredX2]

Thanks!