Thanksgiving Plate

I am always trying to find fun and engaging ideas for my kindergarten students to have during reading centers.    The reading centers that I have in my classroom are writing, library, computer, message, iPad, poetry, letter magnets, word work, pocket chart, be the teacher, and independent reading.  The centers in my classroom are literacy based and I make sure they are developmentally appropriate for my kindergarten students.  They include hands-on activities for learning.   A few weeks ago I picked up this food set:

As soon as I saw that turkey, I instantly thought of an idea for a center for my students!  I knew that I wanted to let them build their own Thanksgiving Day plate of food and then draw and write about the foods they used.     I decided to call this center the "Imagination Center."  My plan is to change it out with ideas where they are playing and learning because PLAY is LEARNING. (My friend Alex, from The Kindergarten Connection, has an AMAZING post about play that you can check out here.)   I just introduced this center last week and my students were so excited about it!

I love that plate of food that my student in the picture above made.  Spaghetti, hot dogs, turkey, and more!    If you would like to use this in your classroom, you can download the FREE plate recording sheet by clicking the image below!

Also, be sure to stop by my Teachers Pay Teacher store to grab these FREE Thankful Tags for students, coworkers, and volunteers!  Click the image to head on over to my store and download them.