Let the kids play in toy tepees.
Teach preschoolers about the Pilgrims and American Indians through interactive and entertaining activities. Use repetition to reinforce the history of Pilgrims and Indians. Most important, keep the activities short, allow the kids to move during the activity and encourage discussion. Answer any questions the children have about Pilgrims or Indians.
Read and Color
Preschoolers have short attention spans, so pick a short book about Pilgrims and Indians and read to them while they color. Books like "One Little, Two Little, Three Little Pilgrims," by B.G. Hennessy, "Richard Scarry's "The First Thanksgiving of Low Leaf Worm," and "The First Thanksgiving: A Lift-the-Flap Book," by Nancy Davis are short picture books revolving around Pilgrims and Indians. Print free coloring pages featuring Pilgrims and Indians from websites such as Kaboose, TLS Books, Kids Free Coloring and First School.
Four Days of Pilgrims and Indians
Set aside four days for the preschoolers to learn about Pilgrims and Indians. The first day, introduce the Pilgrims' arrival in America. Give the girls bonnets to wear, and the boys, belt buckles. Set up a few cardboard houses for the "Pilgrims" to play in. Tell the kids about Pilgrim life. On day two, create tepees by draping sheets over tables, or purchase toy tepees for kids to play in. Give kids headbands with feathers made of construction paper to wear. Discuss a day in the American Indian's life. On the third day, let the kids play dress-up and pretend to be Pilgrims or Indians. Serve a meal on day four, and encourage kids to use their hands to eat it. The History News Network points out that "they didn't have forks back then."
Make Food
Bake cornbread pudding with the kids. Combine 1 egg, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 can of corn and 1 box of corn muffin mix. Put a dollop of butter in the bottom of each muffin cup. Let the preschoolers spoon some of the mixture into the muffin tins. While the muffins bake, explain the importance of corn in both Pilgrim and Indian lives. As the children eat their cornbread pudding, list the many items eaten today that contain corn or corn products, such as cereal and candy.
Memory Games
Help children remember what Indians, Pilgrims, tepees and the Mayflower looked like by creating games of memory. Print and cut out two of the same drawings of Pilgrims, Indians, tepees and the Mayflower. Flip the pictures over so the blank side of the paper is showing. Instruct the kids to flip over two pieces of paper. If the images are the same, the pictures can be set to the side. If they are different, they must be turned over so the blank side is showing again. Continue play until all of the images have been paired. Another option is to make one giant game and play it as a group. Whenever a pair is found, the entire class yells out the name of the image.
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