Caillou: Happy Thanksgiving!

Caillou: Happy Thanksgiving is written by Sarah Margaret Johanson and is illustrated by Pierre Brignaud. It's a shorter book that is obviously about Thanksgiving and would be good for kindergarden to first grade. It's an easy read and focuses more on the idea of Thanksgiving as a family holiday rather than a calendar holiday. What I mean by this is that while some childrens books about Thanksgiving attempt to explain why we celebrate it, this book explains how Caillou's family celebrates it. It doesn't go into the history of thanksgiving at alll; only shows that Thanksgiving can me different things to different people.

This book would supplement thanksgiving lessons or crafts really well. It would also be neat to go around your classroom and have each of your students say two things that they are thankful for. After that you could have them write letters to their parents, cousins or other relatives telling them why they are thankful for all the people they have in their lives.

I found a few cute worksheets you can print off for a lesson plan themed around Thanksgiving. :)

Thanksgiving Word Search
Things I am Thankful For...
Thanksgiving Coloring Pages
A Grip of Other Thanksgiving Stuff

Also, since we are on the subject of Thanksgiving I included "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" because it's a classic and it wouldn't be the holidays without Charlie Brown!

Wild and Free: The Story of a Black-Footed Ferret

Wild and Free: The Story of a Black-Footed Ferret is a realistic fiction written by Jo-Ellen Bosson. It is about a female black-footed ferret and her daily life raising four babies, or kits. It follows the female from being born in captivity to being released in the wild. It shows through fantastic illustrations the home, food source, and breeding characteristics of this endangered species. The book is realistic in the fact that the animals take the reader through their daily lives. Its an excellent book for fourth and fifth graders and provides a gateway to a biology lesson dealing with different animals and eco-systems. It can also be useful in relaying the importance of doing what we can to prevent the extinction of animals. Another beneficial aspect of this book is the teaching tools included in the book. It has a glossary of vocabulary words, a glossary and a page where readers can find more information.
 

I found a link that has facts about the black-footed ferret and what sends species like this onto the endangered species list. It would be an appropriate source to bring to your future students. Also included is an informational video on black-footed ferrets.

 The Black-Footed Ferret