The First Thanksgiving Graphic Novel

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-First-Thanksgiving-Graphic-Novel-and-Coloring-Book-2865424

I'm excited to present our latest product, a
Graphic Novel based on the first Thanksgiving.  It was a labor of love and a stretch of my creativity and I am not ashamed to admit it!  It also took a great deal longer to research than I had originally planned, but included in the novel are many primary sources from the era. 

When it comes to beloved holidays,  there is always a desire to keep the traditional beliefs we grew up with as children.  Sometimes it hurts to peel back the covers and discover that not all those traditions were based on fact.  But, if we are brave enough to do so, there are often these serendipitous discoveries we find that are even more to be treasured than the beliefs we formerly held.

But if there is one idea that trumps all traditions, it is: Veritas!  Truth!



This value of truth was what grounded me through the
creation of this product.  That and a love for history that is rooted in the optimistic.

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The Graphic Novel begins with Tisquantum (whom we know more generally as Squanto).  Most of us have heard that Squanto was captured and enslaved by the English before his assistance of the Pilgrims.  But researching more about Weymouth and how he executed that capture was fascinating. 



Some historians debate whether Squanto was included in this first capture of five young Native Americans.  But Sir Ferdinando Gorges and a shipmate of Weymouth seem to imply by their writings that Tisquantum was included.





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Weymouth used several articles to entice the young braves onto his ship.  One of these was the English pea.  I chose to show it as the vegetable, but the writings suggest that the peas were canned.  Who knew they could can peas all the way back in the 1600's?  (Okay maybe some of you knew that.  I did not).


For years, Tisquantum lived with Gorges in England, and of course, learned his excellent English.  He is finally released for his return to his country...









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...When Captain Thomas Hunt happens.


Now I knew a rough idea of the story of Squanto's capture, but I did not know that Hunt knew Squanto quite well:  At least, Hunt was the captain of the ship that sailed with Tisquantum's Captain, John Smith.

I only show Squanto in chains on this page.  Hunt actually captured over 20 Native Americans, many of which were of the Nausett and Naragansett Tribes, which then decided to have nothing to do with white men (understandably) from there on out.

These tribes were rather antagonistic to the new settlers (whom we call Pilgrims), and knowing their backstory, we can definitely understand their feelings.

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 Because Tisquantum is rescued by the Spanish monks (once he reaches the Spanish coast), he is taught by them in the Christian religion.

Some leave this out of Squanto's story, but I chose to leave it in, for even on his deathbed (a few years after meeting the Pilgrims), he asked William Bradford to pray for him "to the white man's God", and so this time with the monks was significant to Squanto and I felt it was important to include.

I leave Squanto's story here in the Graphic novel, and move on to Remember Allerton, a little Pilgrim girl onboard the Mayflower. 

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I do not refer to these new settlers as Pilgrims, since they themselves only refer to themselves by that name once in their writings (that I could find) and seemed to think of themselves in that light, more in a poetic sense, as those with such a religious culture might.  They were new settlers, or of course, Separatists.  But, in the eyes of a little girl, such titles are not necessary.  Remember simply tells her story.









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When I think of the Mayflower, I think of visiting the tiny replica of the ship in Massachusetts back in 1998, as I had the opportunity to do.

I remember being incredibly shocked at the small space and having an inability to fathom so many people being stuck inside of it for such a long time.

I do not think my pictures adequately convey how small the Mayflower is, so I mention it here.

What a relief it truly must have been to finally see land!  And yet, finding the land must have been disappointing, too.  This brings me to Mrs. Bradford.





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Historians debate what really happened to poor Mrs. Bradford on that fateful day that her husband sailed away to scout out the land.  Suicide for one of the religious Separatists would be something terrible to consider.  But when we understand how dreadful depression can be, we can understand that tragedies like these can come against the best of us.

I do not state that Mrs. Bradford committed suicide in the graphic novel, for we don't know this for sure.  She simply falls overboard and they never heard cries for assistance.  But through the eyes of a child, the continued deaths of the adults onboard are still devastating.  I try to portray Remember's story as gently as I can, while still covering the pain of what she saw:  her mother, a sibling, and more than half of the adults on the voyage die.

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When Samoset arrives in the settlement, it is a turning point for all.  A turning point for the best.

I found references that said that Samoset entered dressed only in a loincloth, which had to be staggering to the Europeans, who were still struggling with the harsh New England springtime.  After all, I visited in New England myself in March, and I wore sweaters and long pants!

There is a legend (I couldn't find a historical reference), that Samoset entered the new settlement with two arrows, pointing forward and backwards.  The legend suggests that he was asking the pilgrims a question with this symbolism: namely, are you enemies or are you friends?

I included this in the image, but I do not refer specifically to it in the story.

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And so with Samoset comes Squanto, and with him the change in the fortunes of the Settlers.

He taught them more than I show here, but these would be the mainstays that would mean the Pilgrims could now survive and even thrive in this new world.

And the symbols used throughout the graphic novel (the feather for Tisquantum's story and the doll for Remember's) are now shown together for the first time.







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The actual primary sources that we have for the original Thanksgiving feast are included within the novel itself.  We have two that we are aware of:  Edward Winslow's letter to a friend and William Bradford's general covering of the Harvest season, many years later. 

On this page, we include Edward Winslow's letter excerpt which remains the most detailed we have of that first Thanksgiving.

There is actually more to Squanto's story that I do not share here as it does not pertain to the Thanksgiving Feast, but it is important to note.  Squanto is a figure of controversy as he later began to look out for his own interests in his dealings with his own people in the negotiations he held between them and the Pilgrims.  There is some debate whether he may have been poisoned by Massasoit's people because he simply had become untrustworthy to the great Chief.

Bradford does not mention poison, but he does mention Squanto's failings, and it was only through the intervention of Bradford that Squanto was allowed his safety, although he died shortly after 1621.
 Again, it does not pertain to the Thanksgiving feast, so this is not mentioned in our story.  


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What we do share, in  the back are an additional four pages of historical notes.

I include the Native American perspective of the Feast because it is important to remember that two incredibly diverse cultures were involved in that first feast and one culture's perspective has traditionally not been seen as important to the story.

I wanted desperately to find in my research that Bradford had indeed invited the Indians to the feast.  There really is no record of such happening.  It's possible, of course.  Several years later, Bradford invites Massasoit to a wedding that takes place in Plimoth.
  But it is as equally likely that the settlers didn't even think to invite the Native Americans to their Harvest feast and Massasoit's tribe discovered the feast going on and invited themselves, so to speak.

This doesn't mean the first Thanksgiving wasn't still an incredibly wonderful event.  Truth is, there were few times in that era of history where two such diverse people groups would ever sit down to eat together.  This is a time period where kindness was rather dim.  Just take a look at the standard methods of punishment in Elizabethan England for this time period. 

For the era, I still look on the First Thanksgiving as an anomaly in history, probably only possible with these two groups:  one, a religious sect that demanded kindness as part of its belief systems (even though admittedly they were hoping to practice proselytizing this new people group) and two, the tribe of Massasoit, who was a leader spoken of with awe and appreciation by both Native Americans and the leaders of Plimoth in various letters.

To Purchase this "First Thanksgiving Graphic Novel" or see it in more detail, you may go to our TeachersPayTeachers online store.  







A Back to School Medley of Products and Introductions


As these hot summer days draw us nearer to the end of August, we're approaching the beginning of the new school year (where did the summer go!!??), which seems a perfect time to recap some of our recent products. 

Calendar Time!

 If you've been watching our TPT store or this blog, you've seen some great Calendar and Bulletin Board additions we recently added that will work brilliantly for you as you plan out your classroom decor.  The theme is Bohemian, so think lots of bright colors and fun patterns excellent for lower elementary.     


Another fabulous product line, so often needed for the beginning of school, are our latest Craft packets.  If any of you have a Solar system theme going, our little Astronaut Craft (with room for student photo) will be perfect!  Check those out on our "A Crafts" Blog that shares about them in more detail.





A is for Astronauts!




And with that, all of us at Glimmercat Education would like to wish all our friends an incredible Back to School Year!




The Importance of Explicit Instruction in Learning to Read: Beyond Immersion in Literature

 


The notion that immersing children in beautiful literature is what teaches them to read is a commonly held belief among many parents and educators. While there is no denying the importance of exposing children to literature, this statement oversimplifies the complex process of learning to read. Reading is a biologically secondary skill that must be explicitly taught, not just “picked up” through immersion in daily experiences.

While immersion in literature can help build an understanding of the purpose of reading and can spark a child's imagination, it does not directly teach them to read. Learning to read involves understanding the phonetic structure of language, decoding written words, and comprehending meaning. These are skills that must be taught through direct instruction, not just through exposure to literature.

Sending children to school is not just about exposing them to daily experiences. It is about providing them with a structured and comprehensive education that includes explicit instruction in reading, writing, and other foundational skills. While daily experiences can create opportunities for children to experience environmental print, develop print concepts, and see a purpose in reading, these experiences are not the same as being taught to read.


It is important to recognize the value of children's literature for its entertainment, engagement, and ability to transport readers to other times and places. Children's authors write books with the intention of entertaining and enthralling young readers, not as instructional texts. Attempting to repurpose literature as instructional texts is an ill-informed folly that ignores the unique value and purpose of literature.

While immersing children in beautiful literature is an important aspect of a child's education, it is not the same as being taught to read. Learning to read is a biologically secondary skill that must be explicitly taught through direct instruction. We must stop conflating immersion in literature with the process of learning to read and recognize the unique value and purpose of literature in a child's education.

Elephants, Envelopes, Eggs & an Elf! Crafts for Letter E



How do you choose which vowel sounds to focus on when you create a letter of the week format for young children?  I try to make sure that one sound is introduced: only one.  And it is always the short sound.  There will always be time later to introduce the knowledge that every vowel has a second sound.  That's what makes the vowels stand out! 


But I admit, this can make crafting tricky!  There aren't THAT many items that begin with the short e sound as you might first imagine.  And we want things that young children can actually relate with.  Things that are already a part of their world. 

I also always try to include one animal in the batch of crafts for letters.  Children love animals.  They learning about them and they love stories involving them.  And there is, of course, no better animal for letter E than the ever popular Elephant! 


Our Elephant Craft is a basic cut and paste.  You can see the example of the finished craft in the bottom right hand corner.  We also have a black and white version which is perfect for following up the story of Elmer.  You know the Elmer story, right?  By David McKee? If you don't, take a listen:


Elmer is such a great story, and one of my young students colored a VERY colorful elephant after she listened to Elmer.


This little elephant alone is enough to run over and pick up our new E craft packet

But let's check out the other crafts, too.  I want to show you our fun little mailbox that is so good for pretend playing with Envelopes.


Learning more about mail and envelopes is a perfect study for Letter E.  And so I also include our booklist for letter E, which has some fabulous suggestions for kids to learn more about mail.


Also included in our Craft packet is a marvelous Egg craft that involves crushing eggshells.  Small children love the tactile experience of feeling eggshells crunch under their hands.  If desired, you can even paint the shells before you crunch them, like we did below:


But regardless, the end result is this adorable little spring chick:


Lastly, our Elf Craft Sheet is fabulous.  Here's the colored version:

But we love it best when the children get to personalize their little elves, and color them up on their own. 



Learn more about this fabulous collection of crafts for E (the short sound), here in our store.

Dandelions, Dogs, Dinosaurs and Ducks: Crafts for Letter D


When I am looking a little something extra for little bodies to do, my preference always leans toward the haptic activity.  I was such a haptic learner when I was a child:  anything I could pick up, grasp, touch, and feel was much more likely to be something I retained.  And I find as I teach, that probably most small children fall into that category at the Kinder levels.


This Dandelion craft seen above, is exactly that kind of activity.  Sure, we have the black and white version so the children can color it first, but the real fun begins as soon as they stick on the play-dough (or clay or Styrofoam ball) and start filling the thing full of Q-tips that have been cut into halves or thirds.  That is the best.

I love to follow up a craft with a great story, and yes, thanks to my Children's Librarian background, I even have a great story about Dandelions.  It is The Dandelion Seed by Joseph Anthony and you can check it out on this read-aloud.


Thus begins our four new letter D crafts in our brand new D Craft packet which you can purchase in our store!


But let me give you a glimpse of the other three included crafts, too.  First, you can't let letter D go by without doing something with Dinosaurs.  Our Dinosaur craft uses shape identifiers (square, circles, triangles) to allow children to put the dinosaur shapes exactly where they're supposed to go.


Another fun craft that we offer in our D Crafts packet is a duck craft.  This little critter takes a lot of cutting and folding: perfect activities for those little ones who still need to practice this kind of hand-eye coordination.


And last but not least, we also include a little Dog craft, using a toilet paper tube.  This is one of those projects that your little ones will go home, holding proudly, and maybe include in their pretend play.




As you know, if you follow my blog, I can hardly let a craft go by, without recommending some great read-alouds to go with it.   So, in our letter D craft packet, I include a letter D Booklist.  You will probably find some books you are familiar with, but hopefully, I have given you a few new ones to check out, too:



Each of our crafts has a place for children to write their names (or have an adult write the name) so that student works are easily identifiable.

You can find all these crafts shown here,  and our other fun Letter Craft packets in our store

Caterpillars, Cows, Cats & Crabs: Crafts for Letter C


Letter C is the time when you can really start creating with little ones if you are following through with a kind of letter of the week format.  They are now beginning to expect that their time with you results in an amazing creation that they have somehow personalized into their very own.  Followed up by a story or some sort of learning time that highlights this new thing they have made with their own hands. 

We can't disappoint them now!  We have created this fabulous Letter C Craft Packet to cover four letter C crafts that will come in so handy for students of later aged preschool through the 1st grade. 

Let's begin with our Crab Craft:


This little guy utilizes either a stamp pad or fingers dabbed in paint for his legs.  The only trick will be ensuring that the paint from student fingers only ends up on our specially made beach image, and not anywhere else.  (A box of handy wipes after paint use does the trick!)

I have such a fun story to recommend for this Crab Craft creation.  It is Bill Peet's Kermit the Hermit.  It is a longer story, and will be best for students who are age 5 and older, but the imagery is engaging and the little blue crab gains our empathy early on.   If you have younger kiddos, I'd recommend Eric Carle's A House for Hermit Crab.

Next, let's look at our Cow Craft: 


This sleepy-eyed fellow is a perfect follow up to any of Doreen Cronin's Click Clack Stories.  One of our favorites is Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type.  The version of this read aloud that I found for you here, would work excellent for classroom viewing:



If you would prefer a Duck Craft as a follow-up to this fun story, I would also recommend our Letter D craft packet, which has a fabulous duck craft included!

All of our craft packets include both a black and white version and a color version for easy printing of your preference. 


We couldn't let the Letter C go by without creating a craft that included our favorite character, our very own Glimmercat.  But to those who aren't familiar with her, this craft can be simply a fun cartoon cat, white with gray spots.  This one turns out best if students use a slightly thicker paper: a light card-stock would be best!


As you have noticed, we like to recommend great children's stories for read-alouds with our crafts, and also included in our Letter C craft packet is our recommended Book List for these crafts. 


And last but not least, let's look at our Caterpillar Craft: 


Every Letter C Craft packet should have a good quality caterpillar craft included because caterpillars are so fun to learn about and discover.  My students have always loved making patterns with their pom-poms as they glue them onto their spaces, and cutting out the Caterpillar eyes and feet gives them some delightful hand-eye coordination to work on.

Check out one of the above suggested books for Caterpillars (Waiting for Wings and Ten Little Caterpillars)  for some great follow-up read alouds. 

Be sure to check out our Letter C Craft Packet in our store!  Happy Crafting!

Butterflies, Bats, Buses and Bears! Crafts for Letter B


Sometimes, you just want to pull out an easy craft to round out that Kindergarten lesson.  Or, maybe you read one of my favorite Mo Willem's children books, "Don't Let the Pigeon Ride the Bus"...



And you were wishing you had one craft more to help make those little ones relate that much more with the pigeon.  I mean who doesn't wish they could drive a bus once, right?


We love this latest packet of our Letter B crafts and we can always come up with suggestions for how to use them, even if you don't need to teach the Letter B anytime soon!

For instance, let's say it's getting close to Halloween and you need a friendly Bat for kids to create...Voila! we have that for you.  Look how cute he is!


Or, it's Spring semester : time to teach about the life cycle of the butterfly, and you'd like to have your kids color in their own butterfly wings on a butterfly craft, but drawing them out sounds a little challenging.



We have you covered!

Since for several years I worked in the public sector as a Children's Librarian, I can't imagine these crafts without a good Children's Book read-aloud to go along with it.   So I've also created, a book list of recommended titles that includes some great stories that are perfect for reading out loud to little ones.



Hopefully, some of these books will be new ones to add to your own library.  Personally, I think you can never have enough good books.


We try to make sure that all of our crafts are doable by little hands and each one has been kid tested and approved.  This more challenging bus craft, shown above, might require a little assistance when it comes to taping it together, but what better way to practice all those excellent hand-eye coordinating skills then letting your students try?

We also make sure that all of our crafts have their black and white counterparts, so you will find a version that can be hand-colored in each of the crafts in our packets. 


Perfect for your Reading Literacy activities after a good bear story, our Bear Craft is a simple cut and paste.


And each craft has a spot for writing student names, so that these precious completed projects will make it home in the backpack they were intended for!

Check out more of our Craft Products in our Store!



You can find our printable B Crafts Packet ready to be purchased and downloaded today!