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Preschool Sunday School Thanksgiving Craft Ideas

Sarcalogos — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:16:57 +0000

Making Thanksgiving crafts is a great way to bring your preschool Sunday school class together and teach the values that Thanksgiving stands for. You can choose to make beautiful color pages to display on the wall, or make pilgrims from tissue paper rolls. There are tons of fun crafts available. Consider that any project you choose for a preschool class should not include small parts or require sharp objects. There are many categories of Thanksgiving crafts as well. You can choose from decorations for the wall or window, table decorations, or just crafts to display throughout the house.

If you want to focus on table decorations, you might use place setting cards, napkin rings, or even place mats. You could choose to make a different craft each week so students would have a complete setting by the big day. Some great crafts used in years past were the photo napkin ring and the turkey place mat. These items can be laminated and saved as keepsakes or used for a few years. It is always fun to pull out crafts from years back and show kids what they did.

Another fun idea is to make a life size Pilgrim. Let the children trace themselves on paper and then decorate the cutout with construction paper to be Indians or Pilgrims. You can make hats, clothes, belts, and even moccasins out of different color construction paper for a true Thanksgiving effect. Make a whole village on the wall for decoration with the children’s look alike. Include a tee pee and you have a mural of Thanksgiving fun.

Turkey crafts are probably the most popular, for this holiday season. There are turkeys made from paper plate, leaves, and even toilet paper rolls. You can use leaves to make the feathers of this fun animal or use multicolor feathers you can find at the local craft store. One fun craft idea is to use children’s hands for a cut out template. In this fun craft, you can trace and cut out the child’s hand to use as the turkey body, draw in eyes, and add feet to make the turkey complete.

There are many other fun crafts for kids to enjoy as well. Consider making a Thanksgiving wreath for the front door. You can use a paper plate and cover it with leaves; real or fake it does not matter. Or make a pretty tissue box for the bathroom covered in colored thanksgiving pictures.

Search the Internet or crafts books, and you are sure to find fun for children for all ages. There are even books to buy that list hundreds of fun Sunday school Thanksgiving crafts. Whichever craft you choose, you are sure to have fun and find plenty to be thankful for.

Denise Oliveri is the owner of Preschool Sunday School Central – http://www.psscentral.com . The site provides preschool Sunday School teachers with valuable resources to help with Bible lesson planning. Join our eBook Club today for a new eBook each month.

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com/

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When Was Thanksgiving Named A Real Holiday?

Sarcalogos — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:27:00 +0000

Every year, towards the end of November, Americans gather together to have a traditional holiday meal for the Thanksgiving holiday. It is a lovely tradition and one that almost everyone follows, since it brings people together.

We can share the day and express what it is we are all thankful for during this special holiday. But when we refer to it as a holiday, it begs the question: When did Thanksgiving become a real holiday?

Well, Thanksgiving started out as a feast that the Pilgrims decided to have in order to celebrate the first harvest that they took out of the ground in the new world.

They wanted to follow a Biblical style of life and they decided to emulate Abel. As you remember in the story of Cain and Abel, Abel offered the first fruits as a sacrifice but his brother killed him because of his jealousy. This was the sacrifice of the Pilgrims: to offer this meal as Thanksgiving to God. The turkey is actually likely to have been influenced by Queen Elizabeth.

The story goes that Elizabeth was busy eating a goose when she heard the news that the Spanish armada which was on its way to attack the British fleet had sunk. She was so happy that she ordered a second goose be slaughtered and eaten in thanksgiving. Since geese were in short supply in the new world, the Pilgrims substituted turkey.

The tradition caught on and people began to celebrate Thanksgiving every year. However, it was never declared an official holiday. It was simply known that it happened at the end of November. In fact, the date was not set until centuries after the first Thanksgiving feast occurred.

“Okay,” you say, “but when was thanksgiving made into a real holiday?” I’m getting there, don’t worry.

President Lincoln set a tradition that the feast would take place on the fourth Thursday of the month of November. And every year, the presidents that followed him officially declared that the fourth day of the month was going to be Thanksgiving.

Then, President Franklin D. Roosevelt decided that Thanksgiving would be on the 30th of the month. The states split over his decision. It wasn’t a real holiday yet and so about half of them followed FDR and the other half decided to hold it on the more traditional fourth Thursday of November.

At this point, Congress stepped in to settle the debate once and for and make Thanksgiving a real holiday. They decided that Thanksgiving would always be on the fourth Thursday of the month of November, regardless of whether it was the last Thursday of the month or not.

When President Roosevelt signed the law in 1941, Thanksgiving finally became a real holiday.

About the Author:
Richard Cunningham invites you to learn more about Thanksgiving at http://www.purposeofthanksgiving.com.

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The Frugal Thanksgiving: 5 Ways to Save

Sarcalogos — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:03:01 +0000

With all the food preparations and travel arrangements, Thanksgiving isn’t cheap. Save some money on this year’s festivities with the help of the following tips.

1. Watch the turkey sales.

Because the turkey is the most expensive part of the Thanksgiving meal, it makes sense to try to save money on it. Starting around Halloween, start keeping an eye on the price of turkey at your local supermarket so you know when to buy. Watch for sales, coupons or special free gifts from your supermarket. Some stores even offer a free turkey with a certain amount of groceries purchased on one trip. Take advantage of these deals to get your costs under $2 per pound.

2. Carefully weigh made-from-scratch foods against convenience foods.

It’s a well-known fact that most convenience foods (canned, pre-packaged foods) are more expensive than foods that you can make from scratch. The biggest problem most people have with making dishes from scratch is the recipes and the prep time. Fortunately, there are hundreds of resources online that can teach you everything from making perfect mashed potatoes to making your own cranberry sauce. You can also make several items ahead of time, such as green bean casserole, and heat them up on the big day.

3. Decide on one “splurge” item.

If you’re making everything from scratch, you might be too tired to enjoy the meal. Do yourself a favor and look for a good deal on an important store bought item, besides the turkey. Pie, cranberry sauce or stuffing are all good choices to help relieve some of the pressure off the cooking without breaking the bank.

4. Have everyone pitch in.

Just because you’re hosting Thanksgiving dinner doesn’t mean that you have to be responsible for the entire cost of the meal. Having a Thanksgiving potluck is very customary these days. Assign each person or family group something to bring and then concentrate your energy and your budget on the turkey.

5. Don’t forget the train or bus line.

If you’re traveling a distance to see family for Thanksgiving, driving may not be your best option. With gas prices still hovering around $3/gallon, you may be able to find a better deal on the train or bus line. Calculate how many miles are between your home and your destination. Then figure out how many miles to the gallon your car gets, and how much the price of gas is per gallon. Compare this figure to the local bus or train line to see if you can get a good deal with public transportation. As an added benefit, you’ll have time to relax on you trip instead of fighting with traffic.

With planning, a new perspective and some research, you can spend a lot less this Thanksgiving. Look into cooking items from scratch and plan your travel expenses wisely to save the most money.

About the Author:
Jamie Jefferson writes for Momscape.com. Get the latest coupons and specials for Momscape’s favorite discount stores: http://www.momscape.com/coupon-codes/target.htm - including Overstock coupons: http://www.momscape.com/coupon-codes/overstock.htm

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