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We’re about to begin a month-long unit study starting Monday, November 2, in our home centered around thankfulness, and I thought I’d share our plan in case you’d like to join us! You can follow along on Instagram (@jacinda_growinghome) and use the hashtag #thanksgivingunitstudy to chime in with your own thanksgiving discoveries.
Thankfulness shouldn’t be relegated to a holiday; for the Christian who recognizes who they are by nature, and who they are in Christ, it should be a way of life! Unfortunately, we’ve grown so accustomed to material blessings and prosperity in our North American culture, that we often take for granted the preciousness of salvation.
The purpose of this unit study is to rekindle a heart of gratitude to the Lord for all the blessings He has bestowed on us (particularly the gift of salvation), none of which are deserved.
Covering History and Geography, we’ll be reading biographies of Christians who lived in conditions far worse than we could ever imagine, and yet whose hearts were overflowing with thankfulness because they considered their present suffering not worthy to be compared to the glory that would be revealed to them. (Romans 8: 18)
For Science, we’ll be reading books and watching a few different videos that feature technological advancements that have made life tremendously safer and easier for us.
Spelling, Vocabulary, Grammar, and Penmanship will be the focus of our new copywork, Be Ye Thankful, that features a month’s worth of poetry, quotes, and Scripture verses on thankfulness.
We’ll still be working through our traditional Math workbooks through the course of the unit study, but we also plan to incorporate some measuring and fractions in one of the four weekly activities that involve making a meal for someone else in order to understand that it is more blessed to give than to receive! (Acts 20:35)
Art and Music involve making a Thankful Tree, creating a card to express appreciation for someone whose work often goes unnoticed, and memorizing a traditional Thanksgiving hymn with the family.
The beauty of unit studies is that there is no definitive guide to them. Your unit study should be unique to your family. Feel free to use the outline below, but I strongly encourage taking into consideration your own children’s ages and strengths, and swapping out titles for ones that you might find more interesting or age appropriate. If a rabbit trail presents itself, go down the path and see where it leads! That is education. That is homeschooling. That is the joy of learning.
Here are the details of our Free 1-Month Thanksgiving Unit Study Plan.
To keep yourself organized (and any future unit studies organized), I highly recommend downloading a copy of Marcy Crabtree’s unit study-specific planner, Delightful Planning. It allows you to log the books you’ve read and videos you’ve watched, record your rabbit trails and field trips, provides your children with learning journal pages and you with room to brainstorm and plan. (I used it with our impromptu unit study on frogs, and will be using it for this unit study as well.)
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Thanksgiving Unit Study History, Science, and Geography Book List:
(If you can’t order some of these books through your local library, you can usually purchase a used copy on Amazon through the links below fairly inexpensively.)
- The Tinker’s Daughter: A Story Based On The Life of Mary Bunyan by Wendy G. Lawton
Questions to ask: What were some things that happened in Mary’s life that could have made her a thankless person? How does she show her gratitude for her father? Is Mary able to accomplish all she wants to in her own strength, despite her blindness? Is recognizing that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us a way of showing gratitude to the Lord?
- Stories Of The Pilgrims by Margaret B. Pumphery
Questions to ask: The Pilgrims left England because of religious oppression; does that mean they were ungrateful for the land in which they were born? When are we allowed to be ungrateful? What kind of things does God want us to hate? What did the Pilgrims treasure more than anything else, that they found it worth uprooting their families, abandoning friends and relatives, and starting new lives in a country they had never seen before? Are the things the Pilgrims were thankful for, the same things you are thankful for?
- Who Was Helen Keller? by Gare Thompson
Questions to ask: What two things could have made Helen Keller a very ungrateful person? Imagine if you were blind and deaf; would you still have things you could be thankful for? What are they? Which person in Helen Keller’s life do you suppose she was most thankful for? Is there anyone in your life that you are particularly grateful for? Have you expressed your appreciation to them recently?
- Who was Thomas Alva Edison? by Margaret Frith
Questions to ask: What did Thomas Edison invent? Have you ever stopped to think about what life would be like without lightbulbs? Can you think of any machines that require the use of a lightbulb? Trying going for a whole day without turning on a single light; it’s easy to take for granted something we’ve always had the privilege of using, isn’t it?
- Germ Hunter: A Story About Louis Pasteur by Elaine Marie Alphin
Questions to ask: What did Louis Pasteur discover? What can we be thankful for today because of his discovery? Are you ever ungrateful about the schoolwork you need to do? Why should you be thankful for the ability to learn? Can you show your appreciation for your education by using your discoveries to help better the lives of others? How?
- The Industrial Revolution For Kids: The People And Technology That Changed The World by Cheryl Mullenbach
Questions to ask: A lot of things have changed in the world over the past few decades, haven’t they? What inventions of the Industrial Revolution are you most thankful for and benefited by? Are there any technologies developed during this time period that have made no real difference in your personal life? Do they make a difference in the lives of people you love?
- My Rows of Piles and Coins by Tololwa M. Mollel
Questions to ask: What is Saruni saving for that you already own? Are you thankful for your bicycle, or do you take it for granted? What does Saruni want to use his new bicycle for? Is there something that you are thankful for that you can use to bless others with?
Thanksgiving Unit Study Spelling, Grammar, Vocabulary, and Penmanship Copywork:
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Clik here to view.![Be Ye Thankful copywork promo]()
You can read more about the copyworks we’ll be using here.
Thanksgiving Unit Study Videos:
Thanksgiving Unit Study Activities:
Week 1: Make a Thankful Tree. Click to enlarge and print off multiple copies of the leaf template below. Cut out the leaves and have each child write something they are thankful for on each one. (For keepsake purposes, you may wish to write their names and ages on the back of each leaf.) Punch a hole through the ends, slip through some twine or raffia, and hang from a branch to make a “tree.” (Simply Vintage Girl has a lovely example to inspire you!)
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Week 2: Write a thank you card to someone whose work often goes unnoticed or taken for granted (garbage man, mailman, elder, janitor at church, etc.)
Week 3: Do your children ever complain about the meals they receive? Here’s a challenge for them! Serve nothing but rice and/or beans (or plain, dry wraps), and drink nothing but water for just one day. For many children, this meal would be considered a feast! Clean water is a luxury. Enough food to satisfy our hunger is a tremendous blessing. Flavor and variety in our meals should humble us and fill our hearts with gratitude.
Week 4: Is there a single person, or perhaps an elderly couple in your church or neighborhood who might really enjoy some company and a meal with your family? Teach your children that it is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20: 35). Have them make a menu, call or write an invitation to your guests, and participate in the preparation of the meal. You’ll all be left with something to be thankful for!
Additional activity: Memorize the hymn Now Thank We All Our God.
Will you join us? If so, don’t forget to join on Instagram where we’ll begin sharing aspects from the unit study on November 2, D.V. with the hashtag #thanksgivingunitstudy!
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