Thanksgiving Canvas Banner

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. – William Arthur Ward

For Thanksgiving we focused on themes of sharing and caring, community and compassion for each other. We practiced saying ‘thank you’, discussed how we can make each other feel good and tried to remember who helped us with something recently. We also talked about how good it feels to give and receive help, wondered about what we are thankful for and decided to preserve and share all our precious moments and memories of gratefulness on a canvas banner inspired by Meri Cherry’s Nature Wall Hanging.

For all the details on how you can introduce Thanksgiving, more Thanksgiving activities and how you and your children can prepare a most amazing Thanksgiving Feast head over to Celebrating Thanksgiving.

Process:

Find a list of all the supplies and step-by-step instructions here. Before inviting the children to draw and paint what they are thankful for discuss the following questions to gather some ideas which will also make the topic less abstract:

“What do you say ‘thank you’ for?”,

“What makes you feel happy and/or what is something someone else did that made you happy?”,

“What is something someone else helped you with recently?”,

“What would you really miss in your live?”

The answers are so precious I have to share them with you!

I’m thankful for my pet dog and my friend Berit!

I’m thankful for the sunshine and all different things in it!

I’m thankful for my house and family!

I’m thankful for my friend Tomas!

I’m thankful for my mommy and snowmen!

I’m thankful for the Thanksgiving Turkey, the grass and the sun!

I’m thankful for the Indian House (… upon asking further he imagined everyone celebrated the good harvest and Thanksgiving Feast at a Indian House and he likes that everyone shared because that’s what good friends do!)