Tuesday Tales - Thanksgiving Is Here!

Halloween is over but there is no end to the reading fun in the next two months of holidays. There are so many great books that help enrich your child's language.
Today's selection gets everyone in the mood for Thanksgiving. "Thanksgiving Is Here!" by Diane Goode is a wonderful picture book. It actually is a picture book. There are very few words. The story is told through the illustrations and there is much to talk about as you look through this book.

Barnes & Noble website says this about the book:

"As soon as Maggie's grandma and grandpa get the turkey in the oven, bright and early on Thanksgiving morning, the guests arrive and the commotion begins: glamorous aunts, crying babies, acrobatic cousins, strange dogs, mysterious gifts, romance, friendships, "yackety-yak"ing and, of course, lots of wonderful food and fun.
You'll find a new story every time you read this joyous celebration of Thanksgiving!"

There is really a lot of activity to talk about in this book. Here are some of the conversations that I have had with my children:

1. Talk about all of the family relationships. Preschool children are just beginning to understand that their grandma is their mom or dad's parent. This is a new awakening for them. They also begin to understand mom actually has a sister or brother!! By 4 or 5 children should begin to label family members by uncle, aunt, and cousin. They should also begin to label family by their relationship to their own family.

2. If you have grandparents that live far away, keep personal photo albums around with their pictures and refer to them often. Children can learn who these people are and begin to label their relationship.

3. In this book the family has to do a lot to prepare the home for the huge Thanksgiving meal. Label the actions including food preparers, table setters, furniture movers and entertainers.

4. Compare the food prepared in the story with the food your family traditionally eats for Thanksgiving. What is a common food on your table and how is it prepared. Consider preparing one of the foods in a cooking project before Thanksgiving such as mashed potatoes or green beans, or pie.

5. For younger children talk about all of the objects needed to set the table for a meal and help them set the table for the next family meal. Do they know where to place the knife, fork and spoon?

6. Did you notice the strangely wrapped gift that was placed above the oven? What could it be? Have your children make guesses about the gift and watch for the big reveal at the end of the story.

7. There are many actions to talk about using past tense grammar markers. What did the family do after they ate? Ex: Cleared the table, washed the dishes, dried the dishes, fed the baby, slept on the couch, read the paper, comforted the baby, read a book, took a walk, chased the dog.

8. At last it was time for dessert and my, everyone is enjoying the sweets. Notice all of the action in this picture. What is your favorite Thanksgiving dessert. Play the "Going To Grandma's" game only substitute desserts.

Ex: After Thanksgiving dinner I am going to eat...pumpkin pie. Take turns going around the circle with each person giving and idea. You have to say what each person said along the way. This is great even for little ones for auditory memory.

I hope you are having fun preparing for Thanksgiving at your house!

Abundance is...sharing thankfulness with family and friends.