'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving

Author & Illustrator:  Dav Pilkey

Publisher:  Orchard Books, 1990

Reading Level:  Ages 4 and up

Genre:  Lyrical, Prediction, Sympathy

Summary:  Many are already familiar with The Twelve Days of Christmas, this is a story of that nature with a spin.  It is about children going on a field trip to a turkey farm right before Thanksgiving.  You see, the children distract the teacher and turkey farmer, and all that are 10 pounds heavier board the bus to go home.  As the children get home, the farmer is surprised to see all of his turkeys gone, while the children all have a special guest at their family meal where they eat veggies, jelly, and toast.  So the question remains, what happened to the turkey's?

Pre-Reading Activity:  Give each child a paper plate and have them draw on it what they will eat for Thanksgiving Dinner.  Make a chart of what they all say.  **hopefully turkey is one of them so that they can connect to the story**

Post-Reading Activity:  Have children write 5 paragraphs and entitle it 'Twas the Night Before My Birthday.  Because all children are familiar with their birthday it will be an easy connection.  

Reflection: I enjoyed this story as it showed just how much caring and compassion the children had.  The children really cared about those turkey's and what would happen to them if they left them there.  This is such a cute story to read before Thanksgiving, but kind of makes you feel guilty for eating turkey on Thanksgiving. 

Author Dav Pilkey

In the business of illustration, design and creative development, Shane W. Evans is a multi-talented artist and visionary who combines his world travels with his art to influence creative expression in others. Evans studied at Syracuse University School of Visual and Performing Arts and graduated in 1993 and began traveling the world. In addition to contract work in illustration, graphic design and web design for major companies, Evans has conceptualized and illustrated numerous children’s books. Many of the books have been featured in the media such as The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Today Show, NBA Inside Stuff, Reading Rainbow and Late Night with David Letterman. Shane has received much acclaim within the children’s literary field for his work on children’s books such as "Osceola," "The Way The Door Closes," "Shaq and the Beanstalk" and "Take It To The Hoop Magic Johnson." His accolades range from being honored by First Lady Laura Bush at the 2002 National Book Festival, The Boston Globe-Horn Book Award and The Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Non-Fiction for Children. (www.shaneevans.com)

From Publisher's Weekly:

"Patterned as a parody of the celebrated Clement Moore poem, this story of eight baby turkeys unfolds with joyous abandon and crackling vitality, as eight children embark on a Thanksgiving field trip that will change their lives forever. They are breathless as they catch sight of Farmer Mack Nuggett for the first time: "He was dressed all in denim, / From his head to his toe, / With a pinch of polyester / And a dash of Velcro." The exuberant turkeys--Ollie, Stanley, Larry, Moe, Wally, Beaver and Groucho--catch the children up in raucous barnyard antics until the merriment is quelled by the sight of the ax. Deeply touched by the turkeys' plight, the children--who have grown mysteriously fatter and have feathers sticking out from under their clothes--board the bus to go back to the city. The next night, family silhouettes can be seen--each with a grateful turkey guest--as "They feasted on veggies / With jelly and toast." This humorous, lighthearted story is adorned with bold, bright illustrations that convey a sense of wacky high-spiritedness sometimes lacking in traditional holiday fare."