Are you looking for an idea to motivate your students to grow an “attitude of gratitude” during this season of Thanksgiving? Why not assist them in creating their own personalized letter of thanksgiving written to someone special in their lives? Not only will you create a Thanksgiving to remember, but you will ensure that your students know about the lost art of letter writing. That’s a win-win! Here’s the plan:

1. Motivate

Read your students a short story about being thankful. (Students might enjoy: “The Things I’m Grateful For,” by Arnie Lightning.)

2. Brainstorm

Ask your students to think about someone in their lives that they think would enjoy receiving a Thanksgiving Thank You.
Help them brainstorm some ideas as a springboard for their letters such as:

Thank you for being there when:

Thank you for making me feel special when:

Thank you for the time you took to:

Thank you for thinking of me when you:

3. Letter Structure

Review the format of a friendly letter with your students.
Make sure to include a visual that will guide those who are still mastering this important skill.

Parts of a Friendly Letter with Shurley English.png

4. Rough Draft

Depending on the ability level of your students, assist them as they create their rough drafts.
You may need to model for some of your students by creating your own letter on your whiteboard or on chart paper.

Tip: The Shurley English Writing Folder is a wonderful resource that you may want to use to support students as they work through the Writing Process.

5. Revise

Next have your students revise with a partner to improve the content of their letter with:

Better word choice and

Strengthened sentence structure.

6. Edit

With a partner, have your students check their letters for any mistakes in the conventions of English:

capitalization,

usage,

punctuation,

spelling, and

grammar.

7. Final Copy

Have your students use their revised and edited rough draft to write their final copy.

8. Publish

Have students address an envelope to the recipient of their letter. Provide them with a visual of what information is needed.
Mail the Thanksgiving Thank You notes.

Addressing and Envelope with Shurley English.png

As a follow up, ask students to share any responses they received after sending the notes. Thankfulness is a character trait we all can develop, no matter what our age!