Thanksgiving in Room 19

This week we had our second annual Thanksgiving Feast.
Last year, this was one of those over-ambitious projects that popped into my brain...generally what happens with these is I mention it and my staff stares at me like I have 5 heads :) But somehow, we always pull it off.

One of the ongoing themes we have in my room is community. We have actual community themes we learn about, beginning with self and family and expanding to neighborhoods, community helpers, and our town. In addition, however, we also foster the idea of community with everything we do in our classroom. It is really important, especially for my group, to feel like they belong and to understand what it means to be part of a group.

I decided on the idea of a Thanksgiving dinner last year after using some of Jenna Rayburn's adaptive books (find them here) with my students and realizing they did not even know what a turkey was, let alone understand the concept of Thanksgiving dinner. Many of my ideas stem from things we might consider just a part of life, but might be a little more challenging for kids who have not experienced them. This was no exception!

We began planning for our feast a week in advance. As a class, we used books to find pictures of things you would find at a Thanksgiving dinner. Everyone got their own set of vocabulary picture cards to keep in their word wallets (that will be another post!) that they practiced throughout the week. We also used another one of Jenna Rayburn's resources to talk about social skills at Thanksgiving. Using a social story was a great way to talk about what to expect and how to act.

The Preparation
We spend one and a half days preparing for our meal-it is a rule that everyone has to help cook. I am SO lucky to have a wonderful group of adults who all contribute to our feast by bringing in ingredients, spices, cookware, or whatever else we need! We might get more excited than the kids! I basically set up stations throughout the room-each table has a different dish, complete with picture directions (sometimes they have to be put in order, sometimes they are already labeled), the ingredients with corresponding pictures in front of them, and all the other materials needed (bowls, pans, etc). We are really lucky to have a stove/oven in our school (and a staff that doesn't mind my kids occasionally invading the staff room to cook!), so the ONLY prep that is done beforehand are things that would need someone to monitor at the stove. This is usually only the boiling of potatoes and squash. Literally, we cook a turkey at school.
These are some of the tables ready to go!

At the same time, we are setting up our room. This is a GREAT way to imbed even more skills! We work on 1:1 correspondence by deciding how many chairs we need for the amount of people we have coming, setting the table using picture cues, name recognition, copying from a model when we make placemats, and so much more! This was our table this year. 

The Feast
We usually have our feast two days before Thanksgiving (way too crazy to try on a half day!) Over the past two years, we have invited many people to our feast, including our principal and assistant principal, general ed classmates, teachers, and our custodian! Our assistant principal was SO looking forward to it this year she offered to supply the juice. It really helps everyone make a connection to my kids and for my kids to form connections in a meaningful way with important people in our school.
I tried something different this year and let kids "earn" the first plate based on their behavior the same day. It really helped some of my friends who have trouble with this stay on track throughout the day!! Everyone else has to wait their turn.
Sidenote: I am a big proponent of waiting as a skill!! It is so overlooked but SO important! I am always thinking about real-life situations, and try to imagine myself in a family's shoes. If I can help them be able to go out to eat as a family or to stand in a check-out line with their child because I have practiced the skill of waiting with that child, I feel like I have done my job. If I can help a student be able to succeed in a supported work environment where they are not instantly handed their materials, then I feel like I have done my job. :)
We all eat together and have to stay at the table until everyone is finished (again-more waiting!!). The kids do surprisingly well with this and enjoy watching their friends eat just as much as doing it themselves. I do let my early finishers work on their packet at the table, too.

The Aftermath
When they are done, students have to indicate this either by signing, speaking, or using a picture or switch. They bring their plates to the garbage and push in their chairs. We were lucky to have a LOT of adult help with washing dishes this year, because let's be honest, that's the worst part! 
We use a checklist based off of Jenna Rayburn's interactive book, Do You Like It? (see the link above!) This works on yes/no concepts and reinforces vocabulary, recall, and questioning.
I try to get around to each student individually to ask them about their favorite part, but next year I hope to do it in a group! 
We pack up any extras and make plates to deliver to people in our school who were unable to make it to the feast. Below is an email our school custodian sent-the kids LOVED how much he enjoyed it!! 

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of the year, and Thanksgiving in Room 19 is maybe the best part for me.