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Summary and Objective
Students will understand that primary sources provide important information about an event. Students will understand that the Wampanoags shared food and skills with the Pilgrims, helping them survive their first year in Massachusetts.
Teaching Plan
Step 1.
Show the tile of the landing of the Mayflower in 1620. Discuss the images depicted in the tile. What information does the tile give us? What information is not present?
Step 2.
Explain that, after a difficult first year in their new home, the Pilgrims had their first harvest feast, now referred to as the First Thanksgiving. Ask for predictions: What did the Pilgrims eat? What did they do to celebrate?
Step 3.
Visit the First Thanksgiving website. Navigate to the images that show Myths about the First Thanksgiving. Ask if students think the First Thanksgiving looks like any of the pictures. Discuss myths about the First Thanksgiving.
Step 4.
Return to the First Thanksgiving website on the Plymouth Plantation site. Discuss primary sources. Look at Edward Winslow’s letter from 1621 describing the First Thanksgiving. Discuss the information provided in the letter.
Step 5.
Read Giving Thanks: The 1621 Harvest Feast by Kate Waters. Discuss ways of life for the Pilgrims and the Wampanoags. In particular, discuss housing, food, and clothing. What kind of food did the Pilgrims and the Wampanoags eat at the First Thanksgiving?
Step 6.
Read Edward Winslow’s letter again. Present four or five books and ask students to identify photos that are consistent with Edward Winslow’s description.
Step 7.
Divide the class into three groups. One group will draw pictures of the food the Pilgrims brought to the feast, one group will draw pictures of the food that the Wampanoags brought to the feast, another group will draw pictures of food the Wampanoags showed the Pilgrims how to grow or hunt. Students add their pictures to a bulletin board display.
Step 8.
Return to the First Thanksgiving site on the Plymouth Plantation site. Visit the “You are a Historian” section. Discuss the ways in which students used a primary source to get accurate information about the First Thanksgiving. Add a copy of the letter to the bulletin board display.
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