First Thanksgiving Reader's Theater Ideas
Use these interview transcripts as inspiration for Thanksgiving reader’s theater that brings history to life.
Conducted with expert historical interpreters from Plimoth Plantation, these interviews are a creative entry point into life in 1621.
Plimoth Plantation is a living museum of 17th-century Plymouth that showcases the Wampanoag People and the Colonial English community in the 1600s.
A few quick ideas to get started:
- Break each interview into short sections and assign small groups to perform the interviews.
- Have students write a letter as a character portrayed in one of the interviews.
- Use the interviews as research starters and have students write their own original readers theater skits.
Articles
On the Mayflower: John Alden, Ship's Cooper
As cooper, John is in charge of the barrels and casks of supplies for the voyage and for the new colony. Here are his answers to students' questions.
Life in Plimoth: John Alden, Pilgrim
John decided to stay in New Plymouth, where he married Priscilla Mullins. He became a husbandman, or farmer, as well as a cooper. Here are his answers to students' questions.
Life in Plimoth: Priscilla Mullins, Pilgrim
Priscilla traveled on the Mayflower with her parents, her brother, and a servant — all of whom died during the first winter in Plimoth. She is planning to marry John Alden. Here are her answers to students' questions.
On the Mayflower: Robert Coppin, First Mate
Robert assists in sailing the ship. He is the only sailor aboard who has been to New England before. Here are his answers to students' questions.
On the Mayflower: Elizabeth Hopkins, Passenger
Elizabeth is traveling to America with her husband and two stepchildren. She's pregnant and may give birth during the voyage. Here are her answers to students' questions.
Life in Plimoth: Elizabeth Hopkins, Pilgrim
Elizabeth arrived in America with her husband, two children, and two step-children. Here are their answers to students' questions.
Life in Plimoth: Elizabeth & Damaris Hopkins, Pilgrims
Damaris was 3½ when she and her mother, Elizabeth, traveled on the Mayflower. Here are their answers to students' questions.
On the Mayflower: Desire Minter, Passenger
Desire is a young girl from Leyden, Holland, traveling on the Mayflower with the ship's governor, Mr. John Carver, and his household. Here are her answers to students' questions.
Native American Perspective: Fast Turtle, Wampanoag Tribe Member
Fast Turtle lives in Massipee, just west of Plimoth. He has a wife and two children. When he was a boy, he was trained to be a pniese, a special kind of warrior counselor. Here are his answers to students' questions.
Life in Plimoth: Elinor Billington, Pilgrim
Elinor came to Plimoth with her husband and her two sons. She was one of the few adult women who lived through the first winter in Plimoth and survived its terrible sickness. Here are her answers to students' questions.
Life in Plimoth: John Howland, Pilgrim
John has been a servant to the first governor of Plimoth Colony, a yeoman farmer, and one of the assistant governors to Governor Bradford. Here are his answers to students' questions.
Life in Plimoth: Elder William Brewster, Religious Leader
William served as an elder of the Separatist church in Holland and in Plimoth and was the religious leader of Plimoth for many years. He and his wife sailed on the Mayflower with their two sons. Here are his answers to students' questions.
