If You Were At The First Thanksgiving

by Anne Kamma, Bert Dodson (Illustrator)

Written from a child's perspective, an addition to a popular series answers questions about this historic harvest festival, life in the new settlement of Plymouth, and the Pilgrims' friendship with Squanto, Samoset, and the other native people. Original.

Genres: Thanksgiving, History, Picture Books, Nonfiction, Childrens, Holiday

64 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2001

Reviews

[Brittany Gaskins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book asks questions in a kid's perspective and has the answers from the First Thanksgiving. It compares to what we do today and the similarities and differences between the two.

This book was fun to read with my class, they gave input of what they thought before reading the information in the book. They were engaged and curious of what the Pilgrims and Indians did during that time.

Students can create a graphic organizer of the First Thanksgiving and today's celebration of the holiday. They will use this book to recall the similarities and differences. They can research pictures to add to their information as textual support.

[Dave Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading level: 4.9

Summary: This book talks about what life may have been like for pilgrims around the time of the first Thanksgiving.

Characteristics that support the genre: These are people that actually existed hundreds of years ago, but this book is a guess about details of regular life, since there are no photos from that time.

Writing traits:
Voice: The book speak to the reader and makes you feel what life may have been like.
Presentation: The book is presented with many pictures from the era
Organization: The book is organized into many short sections, all a page or two long. Every section is headlined by a question, then the answer is below. There is a table of contents.

Classroom Integration: This book could be presented around Thanksgiving time, teaching about pilgrim life, or with a multicultural unit, as there is some mention of native Indians throughout.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The kids all gave this a higher rating, but I knocked it down a peg just for its dated use of the word “Indian” which I tried to change while reading aloud to “Native American” or “Massasoit.” Aside from that, this was a great book to read as we head into the Thanksgiving season, and we all enjoyed learning about what life was like for the first European settlers at Plymouth in their first year.

[Hope Irvin Marston · Rating 5 out of 5]

This picture book is full of interesting facts about the first Thanksgiving accompanied by soft illustrations to enhance the words. It would be a great book to share with a small g group gathered around the reader.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good book. It had lots of information but was an easy read for the littles. I even learned a few things which is always a plus in kids books. I’m glad we checked out out right before Thanksgiving.

[Kelsey Vant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love how it broke down the complex history of the Thanksgiving so well for kids. My students loved all the detail in the picture also.
Genre: Informational
Grade Level: 2-5

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The material was good, because I love ❤️ stories about the first Thanksgiving. But this was jumping back and forth with the story.

[Rick Christiansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

decent overview of the pg veraion of folklore

[Justin Ferrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informational Non-Fiction, 2001

If You Were at the First Thanksgiving is a nonfiction book that is organized through a series of questions and answers. The questions begin with the background information about the Pilgrims and why they left England for the New World. It the describes their struggles once arriving in America and land that they came to inhabit. The pilgrims then began to interact with the local Native Americans, which was aided by the fact that there were members of the tribe that spoke English. The largest section of the book focuses on the first Thanksgiving itself. Many of these points address how both Pilgrims and Native Americans both lived at this time period.
I think this is a good book that could be read by third through fifth graders or to students in the younger grades. There is a table of contents, but no index, so students can practice using aspects of nonfiction but not all. The format of the book, being separated by different questions, makes it very easy to pick it up and read sections that address what the students need to learn. It also has parts that a specific to the role children played in the colony and at the first Thanksgiving, which could be interesting to elementary students.
How do you think the Pilgrims felt coming to the New World? How do you think the Native Americans felt when strange, new people arrived? How were the two groups similar and how were they different? What factors made the colony a success? How did the Natives help this? How was the first Thanksgiving the same and different from current Thanksgivings? How does your life compare to the Pilgrim children? Would you rather go to the first Thanksgiving or one now? Why? Compare life now to how it was then. Ask questions and what page the answer can be found on. Have students use the table of contents.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're looking for a lot of fun facts regarding the Pilgrim's life and their famous feast, this is the book to go to! It will cover everything from what type of clothes they wore to what chores the children assisted with. And the illustrations on every page will keep your kids from thinking they're getting a history lesson. *wink

Ages: 4 - 9

Cleanliness: There is a picture with a skeleton. There are two pictures with Indians in loincloths; you can see a little of their backside. Mentions what type of underwear Pilgrims would have worn. Mentions beer and whether Pilgrims would have drunk it or not. Mentions dancing (men and women danced separately).

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[Amber Basinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though there is not many pictures, this books provides a lot of accurate information on the Harvest Celebration of 1621. What I like about this book is that it is divided by questions. Students do not have to read the entire book, but can look for a question that they want answered. This book would be useful tool for older elementary grades researching the Harvest Celebration of 1621.

[Julie Slayton]

This book is about the first Thanksgiving. It is a unique book that is from a child's perspective. It displays a lot of accurate information. This would be a great book to use to teach history, perspectives, or about different cultures.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This children's book about the first Thanksgiving appears to be historically accurate. As someone who doesn't take an interest in history, I found the question and answer format engaging, and I learned a bit what early Pilgrim life was probably like.

[Etta Mcquade · Rating 3 out of 5]

The format of asking pertinent questions, such as "Were the Pilgrims strict?," and answering them make this a nice book to share with children. (I even learned a lot.)

[Abraham Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

good childrens book about the first thanksgiving!

[Mary Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

With a young child, take it in small chunks. I like the Q and A format.

[Kendra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This nonfiction about the origins of Thanksgiving includes information specifically about the children of the Mayflower.

[Miri · Rating 4 out of 5]

These books offer many interesting facts for young readers interested in history. Definitely a good choice for Thanksgiving reading.

[Tonia Kruczek]

This is about the first Thanksgiving from a child's perspective. It displays a lot of real facts and shows perspective. This is great to use around Thanksgiving.

[Maren Prestegaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good once through. Interesting for kid and mom both.

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set up in question form, this book is manageble if taken one small chunk at a time.