Thanksgiving 2025 Teaching Resources
Celebrating Thanksgiving 2025 with activities for kids, crafts, classroom decor and more — created by teachers for teachers like you.
This collection of teacher resources for elementary and middle school is packed with everything you need to teach about and prepare for the November holiday.
While some turkey activities are focused on those fun days right before the long holiday weekend, much of this resource collection is curriculum-aligned to help students meet Common Core and state-level standards. Each resource has undergone a rigorous review by the expert teachers on the Teach Starter team to ensure they're student-ready.
Looking for some help to get ready for Thanksgiving in the classroom? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Is Thanksgiving? A Kid-Friendly Definition
We know, we know. Everyone knows what Thanksgiving is ... technically. But do you have a definition that you can use to describe the holiday to your class?
That's where we come in! Here is a simple way to explain what Thanksgiving is to kids:
Thanksgiving is a holiday when families and friends come together to give thanks for all the good things in their lives.
When Is Thanksgiving 2025?
Here in the US, Thanksgiving is always celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. That means Thanksgiving will be celebrated on Thursday, November 27, 2025.
Is Thanksgiving a Federal Holiday?
Thanksgiving is a federal holiday — in fact, it's one of the nation's oldest holidays!
Thanksgiving was the first officially declared federal holiday under the Constitution back in the days of President George Washington. This is why American schools are all closed on this Thursday (and typically the Friday after as well).
How Do You Teach Kids About the Real Thanksgiving?
Teaching your students about Thanksgiving this year and want to make sure you're being socially responsible and accurate? Here are a few tips from the teachers on the Teach Starter team to make sure your Thanksgiving lesson planning reflects that!
- Use books and stories that share the Native American perspective on the holiday. November is also National Native American Heritage Month, and it's a great time to talk about the many contributions of Native Americans.
- Don't be afraid to do a little mythbusting! Teaching students about some of the myths of the First Thanksgiving, but balancing it with facts about what really happened can help educate students about digital literacy and asking good questions.
- Do not ask students to dress up as Native Americans. A person's culture is not a costume.
How Do You Celebrate Thanksgiving in the Classroom?
Like most holidays, we recognize that how you celebrate Thanksgiving in the classroom will vary widely based on the grade — or even the subject — you're teaching this school year. Our teacher team has put together a few ideas to get you started planning for the holiday — from creating thankful trees to drafting a classroom cookbook!
Here are a few favorite Thanksgiving activities to try:
- Try a Thanksgiving escape room as a whole class activity.
- Make thankful wreaths to explore the many things students have to be thankful for.
- Match Thanksgiving CVC words
- Help disguise a Turkey.
Thanksgiving Teacher Resources
What else do we have in store for you?
- Thanksgiving crafts for kids? Check!
- Thanksgiving classroom decor? Check!
- Disguise a turkey activities? Check!
- Thanksgiving writing prompts? Check!
- Thanksgiving math activities? Check!
- So many more editable Thanksgiving resources for teachers? Check, check, check!
- Thanksgiving 2025 Worksheets
- Thanksgiving 2025 Templates
- Thanksgiving 2025 Games
- Thanksgiving 2025 Craft Activities
- Thanksgiving 2025 Writing Templates
- Thanksgiving 2025 Task Cards
- Thanksgiving 2025 Puzzles
- Thanksgiving 2025 Interactive Activities
- Thanksgiving 2025 Labels Signs Decorations
- Thanksgiving 2025 Mini Book
- Thanksgiving 2025 Bulletin Board Displays
- Thanksgiving 2025 Color by Code
- Thanksgiving 2025 Cut and Paste Worksheets
- Thanksgiving 2025 Dice Games
- Thanksgiving 2025 Coloring Pages
- Thanksgiving 2025 Escape Room Games
- Thanksgiving 2025 Projects
- Thanksgiving 2025 Word Walls
- Thanksgiving 2025 Word Searches
- Thanksgiving 2025 Mazes
- Thanksgiving 2025 Bookmarks
- Thanksgiving 2025 Matchup Games
- Thanksgiving 2025 Crossword Puzzles
- Thanksgiving 2025 Sorting Activities
- Thanksgiving 2025 Instructional Slide Decks
- Thanksgiving 2025 Card Games
- Thanksgiving 2025 Classroom Door Decorations
- Thanksgiving 2025 Connect the Dots
- Thanksgiving 2025 for Pre-K
- Thanksgiving 2025 for Kindergarten
- Thanksgiving 2025 for 1st Grade
- Thanksgiving 2025 for 2nd Grade
- Thanksgiving 2025 for 3rd Grade
- Thanksgiving 2025 for 4th Grade
- Thanksgiving 2025 for 5th Grade
- Thanksgiving 2025 for 6th Grade
- Thanksgiving 2025 for 7th Grade