Thanksgiving Class Party Setup Kit

Categories: Fall | Product Previews | Seasonal

I’m so excited to talk about Thanksgiving in the self-contained classroom!

My students and I love holidays in our classroom. Holidays allow us to build lasting memories and they are a GREAT reason to have a party! Holiday parties are fun and exciting, however they can be very challenging for my students because of the change in schedule/routine, unpredictable activities, and sometimes too much down time. To help keep our parties structured and fun (and low prep for me), I use the Thanksgiving Class Party Setup Kit from The Autism Helper. This kit is the easiest to prep and it ensures that our class party is successful and fun!

What’s Included?

This is a photo of what is included in the Thanksgiving Class Party Setup Kit.

The Thanksgiving Class Party Setup Kit includes these amazing low-prep resources that are essential to our Thanksgiving class party:

Directions including shopping and material list
An overall list of centers
Schedule and group list to organize rotations
Student visual mini schedules
Visual directions for each station
Materials for each activity
4 station and 5 stations option

These resources do not require laminating, unless you’d like to, of course! Now, let me show you each resource and how I use it in my classroom:

Directions Including Shopping and Material List:

The Thanksgiving Class Party Set Up Kit directions and shopping/materials list are short and easy to read and understand. The shopping list is small and cost effective, which I love! Another bonus, the materials needed are typically already in my classroom.

Overall List of Centers:

The overall list of centers is a visual list with a photo describing each station, the instructions for the station, and the materials needed. It is an excellent visual aid I use when preparing my students and getting them excited for our class party as well as a checklist for my students, staff, and me when preparing materials.

Pro Tip: I show this list to my paraprofessionals ahead of time and have them choose which station they would like to prep for and implement during the party.

Schedule and Group List:

Students and staff both benefit from visuals and visual schedules during changes in routine. To help,I love projecting the schedule and group list during our Thanksgiving class party to help keep myself and my paraprofessionals organized and on schedule. This is a great way to remember which student should be where during the party should anyone end up at the wrong station – it happens!

Visual Student Mini Schedules:

Having schedules are a must-have to everyday life in my self-contained classroom, therefore a non-negotiable for any classroom party we have. The student mini schedules help make for a very successful class party. I print as many as I need for my stations, pass them out to my students, and students keep track of their centers by crossing off the station they just finished.

Visual Directions for Each Station:

Promoting independence is a daily theme in my classroom. It is essential and easy to continue that expectation during our Thanksgiving class party when using the visual directions for the station activities. Having visuals for each station decreases the amount of adult prompting, student frustration, and anxiety. Visuals also increase student success and independence!

Materials for Activities:

Some of the Thanksgiving class party station activities come with activity sheets. The Thanksgiving Class Party Setup Kit comes with a game activity and an additional recipe activity. The game station includes two options so you can have an appropriate level of difficulty for your students! Both games have materials and directions included in the kit. I am able to use both games in my classroom (depending on each group) and am so grateful for the included materials!

4 Station and 5 Station Option:

The Thanksgiving Class Party Set Up Kit also comes with an option to run the party with either 4 stations or 5 stations. The additional activity for the 5-station option is making instant stuffing using a microwave. YUM!

Pro Tip: I don’t always have enough staff to run 5 rotations during our class parties so I like to invite parents/caregivers and service providers to join and help.

I hope you feel ready to have your very own Thanksgiving party with your students – you won’t regret it. If you still need convincing, read Tips for Throwing a Behavior-Free Class Party from Sasha. You can get the Class Party Set Up Kit on The Autism Helper Store!

Let me know in the comments what you are most looking forward to during your Thanksgiving class party. Feel free to ask any questions and I will get back to you. Thanks for reading!