Inside: Ideas from around the web for Thanksgiving in Spanish class. Celebrate Indigenous Peoples, give thanks in Spanish, and chat about Thanksgiving Spanish class activities. Thanksgiving activities and lesson plans for día de acción de gracias in your Spanish classes.
Author – Allison Wienhold
Originally posted 11.7.16. Most recently updated 11.19.25
November can be kind of a rough time as a teacher. In Iowa for high school students, it usually means parent/teacher conferences, goofy schedules for students missing to attend State football & volleyball, daylight savings, and everyone still suffering from DEVOLSON.
It might be the end of a quarter or trimester, which might leave some extra time for activities of your choosing in your Spanish classroom. A perfect time to focus on Native Americans, Thanksgiving vocabulary, or family traditions in Spanish-speaking countries.
Here are some ideas for November in Spanish class.
Thanksgiving Spanish Class Ideas
Thankful Turkey Bulletin Board
Every year in November, my classes made a Thankful Turkey Bulletin Board. It is very easy and you can see the instructions & free resources here.
The Thankful Turkey activity is a great way to get repetitions of the high-frequency phrase “give.” Students write “I give thanks for” on their traced hand with five things they are thankful for. As students are working, the teacher asks individual students “What do you give thanks for?” and then states “s/he gives thanks for.” Finally, the whole class can come together to say “we give thanks for” items in common.
We made a running list on the board of common things that people are thankful for in Spanish, which is a natural and personalized way to bring up family vocabulary and other important things in students’ lives. A fun way to practice language skills in new ways on el pavo.
See the YouTube video below for more information.
Read the full Thankful Turkey Blog post.
Gratitude in Spanish Class
Beyond a Spanish class Thankful Turkey, this blog post has quite a few ideas for Thanksgiving in Spanish class through gratitude. Deeper critical thinking and language practice beyond Thanksgiving-related vocabulary.
>>Blog post with more Ideas for Gratitude in Spanish Class
Thanksgiving in Spanish class – Thanksgiving writing prompt
After personalized questions and answers related to giving thanks from the Thankful Turkey bulletin board above, students could do a little writing about what they are thankful for in Spanish. Writing prompts are the perfect mini-writing assessment to complete right before Thanksgiving or the week of Thanksgiving.
A great opportunity for students to reflect on what they are thankful for and write about it in Spanish. You can find it here with three separate rubric versions.
Spanish Thanksgiving Songs Blog Post
If you are looking for songs that express gratitude in Spanish, read my new blog post Spanish Thanksgiving Songs. It includes mostly authentic songs in Spanish for older Spanish students. Plus there are a couple of Spanish Thanksgiving songs for kids. Lots of input and new vocabulary such as Happy Thanksgiving are included.
>> Read more here >> Spanish Thanksgiving Songs
Música Indígena for Native American Heritage Month
If you want to skip Thanksgiving and instead showcase the diversity of the Indigenous People of the Spanish-speaking world, check out this music resource. In particular, you could use one song per day or a music bracket for Native American Heritage Month in November.
The included diverse music celebrates the Indigenous People of Latin America. These songs for any Spanish class acknowledge the original people of the land that now speak Spanish. The majority of the songs are in Spanish from Indigenous musical artists, plus these slides include songs or parts of songs in Emberá, Kaqchikel, Garífuna, Quechua, Tzotzil, Zapoteco, Mapudungun, Tz’utujil, and Nahuatl. See the Indigenous Peoples in Spanish class blog post for more ideas.
Spanish Thanksgiving Movies Blog Post
Need a culture-filled film for a much-needed break? Check out my new blog post Thanksgiving Movies for Spanish Class. These family-friendly Spanish films have themes of Indigenous Peoples, family, gathering, and gratitude.
>> Read more here >> Thanksgiving Movies for Spanish Class
Positive Plates
Positive Plates is a low-prep activity. It is a great way to bring gratitude and positivity to your classroom in November (or any time of year). You can learn more in this post.
Este descanso – Pre-Thanksgiving Spanish break plans
If you are looking for a one-day no-prep activity to use your “ir a infinitive” future tense in a personalized way, this Find Someone Who to talk about Thanksgiving plans is perfect. This last day before Thanksgiving activity has versions that can be used with any level of Spanish. This interpersonal speaking activity has a variety of differentiation options the day before Thanksgiving or winter break. Or get Spanish Future Winter Break Worksheet on my website.
No Prep POST-Thanksgiving BREAK Activity
A viral activity for the first day after Thanksgiving break. Print before you leave for break, so you can enjoy your time with family. Show up on Monday with plans all ready to go for every class. Grab this post-Thanksgiving Spanish Class Activity here. Or get 1st Day Back from Winter Break Spanish on my website.
No Prep DIGITAL POST BREAK Activity
A couple of years ago we went full virtual the week around Thanksgiving. So I created many options for hybrid, virtual, or socially distanced chat post breaks all in Google Slides. If you think you might be online, or you just want a no-paper option, these digital post-break slides are for you. Or get After Winter Break Spanish Weekend Chat on my website.
**Similar Thanksgiving Resources for French Class
Infographics & Authentic Resources for Thanksgiving in Spanish Class
- 6 Spanish Words for Turkey
- History of Thanksgiving Infographic in Spanish
- Advanced History of Thanksgiving in Spanish Infographic
- Thanksgiving Printable with pictures from Spanish Playground
- Ad in Spanish from Queens, NY
Thanksgiving Bulletin Board Ideas (including my Thankful Turkey)
Thanksgiving resources – Zachary Jones
Zachary Jones has a good collection of authentic resources related to the holiday and giving thanks. A couple of my favorites are below. It is pretty rare to find a song in an authentic song about Thanksgiving, but this song below in both Spanish and English fits the bill! See more Spanish Thanksgiving Songs
Maya y los 3 – Indigenous Peoples
If you need a short appropriate show with a focus on Indigenous Peoples in Spanish class, check out the Netflix show Maya y los tres.
I have a Maya y los tres Spanish Episode 1 Guide, perfect for a 1-day sub-plan in Middle School Spanish.
Plus, grab the free character slides below.
More cultural activities for December
- Lista lunes: Winter Holidays in Spanish class
- Spanish Class Christmas Songs
- Spanish Songs for Hanukkah
- Holiday dance videos – baile viernes navidad
- Plate Sketch Game – Holiday Activity
What are your favorite activities to do around Thanksgiving?
