Over 100 people got on a ship called the Mayflower and they sailed across the wide ocean to America. The ocean was very wavy and rocking (sway) of the ship made some of the people sick. Others were sick because there were not enough fresh fruits and vegetables to eat. Everyone was tired and cold and hungry but they were very excited about the new land. The passengers on the ship were called Pilgrims.

Then finally after eight weeks the Pilgrims saw land. They were very happy (look for land, see it, excitement). They knelt down on the wooden decks of the Mayflower, bowed their heads and thanked God for His help to bring them to America.

After getting off the ship the Pilgrims built houses to live inside and called their new colony Plymouth. The first winter in Plymouth was full of sadness because many of the people became sick and died.

The small group of Pilgrims worked harder and harder. They cut down trees to build stronger and safer houses. The made warm clothes to wear in the cold weather, By this time they made friends with the Indian Chief, Massasoit, and his tribe.

Finally winter was over and it was Spring. The Indians showed the Pilgrims the best places for fishing, They told the Pilgrims how to plant corn. They placed a small fish with the corn seed to make the soil richer. They told the Pilgrims when to plant the corn - "as soon as the oak leaves are as big as a mouse's ear" --and where to find wild fruit and berries.

The Indians gave the Pilgrims corn, seed and beaver skins. In return, the Pilgrims gave their Indian friends bright beads and sharp English knives.

That spring, men, women, and children worked hard in the fields. That year the corn grew high and there was plenty of food for everyone.

The governor of Plymouth called the Pilgrims together and told them they had many reasons to be thankful. They decided to put aside a special day to thank God for the good things He had given them.

The Pilgrims wanted to invite their friends the Indians so they sent a runner to the mountain to tell them of their special day. Then the men went into the forest and brought back deer and wild turkey. The women cooked and cooked. They made pies and bread.

The special day finally arrived. The Indians came and brought five deer as a present. They only cooked one deer and saved the rest for food the next winter. The Pilgrims, Chief Massasoit and ninety Indians sat down to the first Thanksgiving dinner in America.

The Pilgrims said prayers to thank God for their food, their comfortable homes, and warm clothes. They thanked God for their new friends, the Indians, who taught them how to stay alive in the new land. And they thanked God for the country where they were free to go to their own church.

The sun went down but the Indians stayed for three days.

That first Thanksgiving dinner took place more than 380 years ago. And every year on the fourth Thursday of November, Americans give thanks for the food on the table, for family and for friends, and for their country and their freedom. They give thanks, just as the Pilgrims did long, long ago.

Some ideas:

reach for the sky

climb aboard the Mayflower

look for land

get off the ship

cut down trees for houses

sew warm clothes

plant corn and put in fish

walk and gobble like a turkey

run in place and invite Indians to dinner

sit down and eat food

hunt for wild fruit and berries

Everyday when we eat our dinner, our table is very small.

There's room for Daddy, and Mother, and Baby, that is all

but when Thanksgiving comes, you can't believe your eyes.

For that same table stretches until it is this size!

If I were a Pilgrim child

Dressed in white or gray.

I should catch my turkey wild

For Thanksgiving Day.

I should pick my cranberries

Fresh from out a bog.

And make a table of a stump.

And sit upon a log.

An Indian would be my guest.

And wear a crimson feather.

And we should clasp our hands and say

Thanksgiving grace together.

But I was born in modern times.

And shall not have this joy.

My cranberries will be delivered

By the grocery boy.

My turkey will be served upon

A shining silver platter.

It will not have a wild game taste,

Though it will be much fatter.

And, oh, of all the guests that come

Not one of them will wear

Moccasins upon his feet.

Or feathers in his hair.