If you’re an American celebrating Thanksgiving, you will probably sit down for a big meal with family and friends. You will be celebrating a holiday known as Thanksgiving. Each of us has an idea about the real story of Thanksgiving. However, is what we’ve been taught the real story? Whenever we are presented with a story from history, we hear details and register their meaning with other things we’ve been taught. Therefore, there is some debate over the real story behind Thanksgiving. Let’s look at this holiday’s history and discover what it has in common with a Nursery Rhyme.

Thanksgiving story short (and informative)

After working in both Christian and public schools, I found it interesting how different history books addressed this holiday. Granted, they were writing a short story for young children. However, some Christian texts taught that the pilgrims resembled evangelical Christians and were the heroes of this holiday. In this teaching, the pilgrims endured a harsh winter but were still thankful to God. They wanted to celebrate thanks and invited their new friends, the native Americans, to join them. This was a very short description that leaves a lot of details out. Likewise, those details change the story quite a bit.

Thanksgiving story preschool

In some public preschools, it is taught that the Native Americans were the heroes, saving the pilgrims and teaching them to plant corn and squash. The pilgrims wanted to thank their new friends. Therefore, they held a feast with them. It is a common practice to divide students into two groups who will wear paper pilgrim hats and feather bands for a feast.

What is the real Thanksgiving story?

I know you can see that the basis of what we believe can affect our view of history. You may have thought about Thanksgiving as a religious holiday where we give thanks to God. In addition, you may have grown up celebrating a “Friendsgiving” where the focus was on thanking friends and family. Regardless, it is important to know as much as you can about this holiday, keeping in mind that each historical resource has a bias of some kind.

Thanksgiving Story on YouTube

Let’s start with a Thanksgiving story on YouTube. After all, where else do we go to gain important information? I watched several YouTube videos on Thanksgiving and its history, and here is one that does a pretty good job of explaining things.

As I researched more, I also came across this post from the History channel. Reading this article, I realized a connection between Thanksgiving and a Nursery Rhyme.

What Thanksgiving and a Nursery Rhyme have in common

As we already know, our history lesson leaves out influential people in minority groups. That may be why you’ve never heard of Sarah Josepha Hale. If you have heard of her, it is probably because she wrote Mary Had a Little Lamb. We don’t mind giving her credit for writing a nursery rhyme. However, she was so much more than a nursery rhyme author.

After writing the novel, Northwood: A Tale of New England, she shares about an annual Thanksgiving celebration, and lobbies state and federal officials to make Thanksgiving a national day. She believed the holiday would unite the North and the South amid the Civil War. By 1854, more than 30 states and territories had a Thanksgiving celebration on the books. Then, in September 1863, she wrote a letter to President Abraham Lincoln. This letter, along with the lives lost and the victory claimed in the Battle of Gettysburg, prompted President Lincoln to make the proclamation. Thanksgiving would become a REAL holiday celebrated by all Americans.

Mother of Thanksgiving, Mother Goose, and Mother Nature

If you follow this page, you know that we have a thing for nursery rhymes. We believe that you can learn a lot from them. We love that the “Mother of Thanksgiving” has something in common with Mother Goose and Mother Nature. In our collection of Nursery Rhymes, Mother Goose meets Mother Nature and rewrites the lyrics. These new nursery rhyme lyrics teach children about science and nature. For example, our version of Mary Had a Little Lamb teaches children about the body coverings of animals. Children learn to count and identify mammals, reptiles, and birds. They grow spiritually, socially, and academically through the lessons and activities inside the Teacher’s guide. You can learn more about this resource here.

In conclusion, Thanksgiving and its real story mean many different things to different people. However, it’s fair to say that Thanksgiving should unite us. Whether we are uniting Native Americans and pilgrims or the northern and southern states during a war, we may have different beliefs and experiences surrounding this holiday. However, let’s join together to be thankful.

Thankfulness and the Fruit of the Spirit

The story of The Little Pot is about a potter growing fruit through the vessel he made. Our creator wants to increase the fruit of His Spirit through us, too. Producing love, joy, peace, and patience is a big part of showing thankfulness. Likewise, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control are cultivated. (Galatians 5:22-23).

If you want to learn more about growing the fruit of the Spirit and discover how Little Pot becomes a fruit-bearing vessel, sign up below. In addition, you will be added to our email list, and each Friday, you will receive a short, fruitful email. I hope you will join me.