Thanksgiving as a Time of Courage

The Bill of Rights Institute wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving! We appreciate your continued use and support of resources over the years.

We often regard Thanksgiving as a time to give thanks. But what about courage? The history of Thanksgiving is surrounded by courage, from the story of the Pilgrims to Thomas Nast's depiction of Uncle Sam's Thanksgiving dinner.

Tie Thanksgiving to tangible life-lessons and civic virtues with a collection of resources.

Explore the Playlist

Cartoon Analysis: Thomas Nast on Reconstruction, 1869–1874

This activity explores the 1869 Thanksgiving season through the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment and Thomas Nast's "Uncle Sam's Thanksgiving" political cartoon. Students will analyze the message of the cartoon and explore the courage it took to create the political cartoon and the political courage present during Reconstruction.

What’s the Significance of the First Thanksgiving Today?

What's the real story of the First Thanksgiving? This podcast episode delves into the myth and the truth of the Pilgrims. Help students dissect the courage it took to survive the first winter and connect with the local Native Americans.

BOE: Bottom of Email

Dear :

The Bill of Rights Institute is happy to announce our newest curriculum, Government and Politics: Civics for the American Experiment!

Units 1-3 are available online now. Units 4-7 will be available April 2025. The curriculum explores the foundations and operation of representative government through constitutional principles and examines how a vibrant civil society and the practice of civic virtues serve to promote our common endeavor.

We continue to offer our array of resources and materials to you at no charge. In addition to hundreds of lessons and classroom-ready activities, we also maintain a Current Events page . Our team searches for recent news articles that explore relevant themes and connect those articles to our resources. And don’t forget about our Think The Vote platform – we hope it helps your student think critically about the world around them!

P.S. Shop the BRI store this weekend with the code BLACKFRIDAY to get a discount of 20% of all products! The discount will be available from 12:00AM ET Friday 11/29 through 11:59PM ET Monday 12/2.

Warmly,

Laura Vlk
Director, Educator Engagement
Bill of Rights Institute

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