Pre-K students learn Thanksgiving history
DECATUR — Thanksgiving is a time of year when we, as a people, put aside our differences and come together with family and friends and thank the Creator for the many blessings He has bestowed on all of us. It is a time to put aside all the political differences and come together to show that there is still love for others living in this great nation.
For Joyce Turnage and the students at Decatur Pre-K school, it is a time of learning, learning about the Pilgrims and the Native Americans, about the origins of the holiday itself and how the holiday evolved into what it is today, thanks to one American president’s vision.
On October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation making Thanksgiving a day to remember all the many blessings God has given this great nation. In that proclamation, Lincoln decreed that the Thanksgiving holiday be celebrated on the last Thursday of November. So, in the middle of one of the bloodiest wars on home soil, the nation took a break to give thanks for the good things we have received.
Turnage and the other Pre-K classes took time to allow each student to experience the meaning of the observance and give thanks for the bounties they have received throughout 2022.
“We learned about the Wampanoag Indians and Pilgrims by telling the story through different colored beads to make Thanksgiving bracelets,” Turnage recalled. “We made Indian headbands, Pilgrim boy hats and Pilgrim girl bonnets. In preparing our feast, we had to shuck the husks and silks off the corn, make pumpkin pies, homemade bread and homemade butter. We also shared what each one was thankful for.”