Thanksgiving is a time of reflection, gratitude, and—if you’re a high school English teacher—an opportunity to sneak in some meaningful learning before the holiday break. If you’re looking for Thanksgiving grammar activities that will keep your students engaged and learning right up until turkey time, you’re in the right place.
In this post, I’ll cover some fun and standards-aligned activities that focus on grammar while tapping into the Thanksgiving spirit.
All of these activities can be used to fill time on days when assemblies have made a mess of the schedule, absences are high, or you’re avoiding starting a new unit before the long weekend!
Need more November teaching ideas? Check out this post!
Why Use Thanksgiving Grammar Activities?
Seasonal activities can help bring fresh energy into the classroom. Incorporating holiday themes like Thanksgiving into your grammar lessons grabs your students’ attention.
It also gives them context they can relate to. Whether you’re teaching sentence structure, punctuation, or parts of speech, a Thanksgiving twist will make it more memorable and enjoyable.
Plus, I don’t know about you, but adding some seasonal fun makes me happy, too!
Here are some Thanksgiving grammar activities that are perfect for high school English classes.
Thanksgiving Grammar Activities # 1: Thanksgiving Grammar Mad Libs
If your students need some review on the basic parts of speech, consider Mad Libs!
Mad Libs are a timeless and entertaining way to reinforce grammar concepts. Create or find a Thanksgiving-themed Mad Lib where students fill in parts of speech to generate a silly Thanksgiving story. It’s a great way to review grammar basics while providing a bit of holiday humor.
Here are some free ones available online.
How To Use
Before you pass out the Mad Lib, briefly review the parts of speech and ask students for examples. This quick refresher will set them up for success and ensure the activity remains instructional, not just fun.
Pair students up or let them find partners for this activity. You could also do one Mad Lib as a whole class (letting students take turns to give you words for the blanks) as a quick way to wrap up the end of class.
Thanksgiving Grammar Activities #2: Thanksgiving Sentence and Sentence Structure
For a more advanced grammar lesson, challenge your students to write Thanksgiving-themed sentences. Require students to use specific sentence structures like compound and complex sentences.
They could reflect on family, school, or personal achievements. To up the ante, ask them to incorporate specific grammar elements like semicolons, conjunctions, or appositives into their sentences.
How To Use
If need be, begin by reviewing the different types of sentences. Then, give students your requirements. (For example, maybe they need to write a complex sentence about what they’re going to eat for Thanksgiving and a compound-complex sentence about what they’re thankful for.)
After writing, students can peer-review each other’s sentences, checking for proper use of grammar structures. This activity promotes both creativity and critical thinking, helping students refine their writing skills in a festive way.
Thanksgiving Grammar Activities #3: Thanksgiving Grammar Review Worksheets
Reinforce grammar rules with a set of Thanksgiving-themed grammar review worksheets. These can include exercises focused on punctuation, subject-verb agreement, sentence fragments, and run-ons–all framed in the context of Thanksgiving traditions and celebrations.
You can find Thanksgiving grammar worksheets all over, but I recommend grabbing my Fall-themed Grammar Review Worksheets.
It includes six different grammar review worksheets. There is one Thanksgiving-themed sheet on comma splices. You could also use the two included fall-themed worksheets covering subjects/predicates and clauses.
There are also three Halloween-themed worksheets included that review verbals, its/it’s, and general punctuation errors.
How To Use
Use these worksheets as time-fillers on weirdly scheduled assembly days. The also make great homework during the week leading up to Thanksgiving break. You can make them collaborative by having students work in pairs or small groups to encourage peer learning.
Thanksgiving Grammar Activities #4: Writing a Gratitude Letter
Have your students write a gratitude letter to someone important in their lives—a family member, friend, or mentor—while focusing on specific grammar elements.
You can emphasize sentence structure, proper punctuation, and correct verb tenses while they reflect on why they are thankful for that person.
How To Use
This activity can be done in class or as a homework assignment.
After students complete their letters, consider having them share excerpts. You could even have students hand-deliver the letters, adding a personal, meaningful touch to the activity while reinforcing grammar rules in their writing.
Having students write letters to a real person provides some stakes and that authentic audience is sure to motivate them to produce better writing!
Check out this blog post about teaching letter writing for more tips!
Conclusion
By using these Thanksgiving-themed activities, you’ll be able to maintain a productive classroom atmosphere while tapping into the excitement of the holiday season. Happy Thanksgiving and happy teaching!