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How to Prepare Thanksgiving Dinner...According to 4th Graders

from the pages of the November 2015 issue of Simply Family Magazine. Check out the digital edition here! 

Preparing Thanksgiving dinner is no small feat. It’s the planning, the shopping, the prepping, and rising in the wee hours of the morning to get the bird in the oven. Not to mention the whirling dervish of activity that takes over the kitchen as the clock marches steadily toward mealtime. We might have been there, done that when it comes to Thanksgiving dinner, but we wondered about the “kidspective,” so we turned to Lyndsey Archila’s 4th grade class at Graff Elementary School to answer this all important question…

How do you prepare Thanksgiving dinner?

  • “What to make for Thanksgiving: you need turkey, cookies, and cranberries. One important thing, be polite to family members. Play games and have fun.” –Cody N.
  • “Put your turkey in the oven one day before Thanksgiving. Get your side dishes out.” –Zavier
  • “1. First you stuff stuffing in the turkey, then you bake it. When it is done you take the stuffing out. 2. Then you can make any appetizer you want. 3. Then when the turkey is cool you can cut it up and enjoy!” –Jena S.
  • “Go to your local store where you buy your supplies. When you get home make sure you bought the following: turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, marshmallows, bananas, cherries (just a lot of fruit ‘cause a little fruit salad won’t hurt). Okay, next, get the oven ready and while you’re waiting you can get started on the fruit salad! When you’re done put the turkey on the pan (or whatever you use) and make it a little burnt. Not too much, just enough to make it crispy. Enjoy your Thanksgiving!” –Alanis D.
  • “Step 1: Kill a chicken. Step 2: Gut the chicken. Step 3: Seasoning the chicken. Step 4: Cook the chicken. Step 5: Get your family and eat the chicken.” –Garrett V.
  • “You get out of bed and your parents are happy, you are happy. Then your mom starts making the turkey, you sit down at the table, then it’s done and your mom puts it on the table and you eat.” –Ayden D.
  • “I think it’s hard making all the food for Thanksgiving because you have to get all the food. So first you need is a turkey and stuffing, then you need potatoes and ham and something to drink, like milk.” –Amanda N.
  • “Cook the turkey, stuff the turkey with stuffing. And put ham with the turkey.” –Jacob W.
  • “Buy a turkey from the store. Then cook it in boiling water, then stuff it. Then you watch a movie and make some corn.” –Gatlin R.
  • “First, put the turkey in the oven. While it is in the oven get the blender out and strawberries and bananas and blend. Then make stuffing, cranberries, buns, mashed potatoes, and that’s it.” –Keira W.
  • “I think you should make stuffed mushrooms, mashed potatoes, turkey, onion soup, and orange cake. I think everyone will love it, especially if you make the orange cake. If you will make the orange cake it only takes 2 ingredients vanilla cake mix, orange pop. P.S. Please make orange cake. Thank you!” –Sawyer O.
  • “1. You should make sure your food is ready. 2. Set your table and get everybody to the table. 3. Serve your food.” –Cole A.
  • “You hunt a turkey. You clean it. You cook it. Happy Thanksgiving!” –JT G.
  • “First you buy the stuff, like the turkey and potatoes. Then you take it home and mash the potatoes, then start to cook.” –Alexis S.
  • “I think that it is hard to prepare Thanksgiving dinner. You have to hunt down all kinds of food, then cook turkey and stuffing. Before that you stuff the turkey, then you cook the turkey and some potatoes too. Then you gather.” –Matthew A.
  • “This is how you prepare Thanksgiving dinner: start by basting the turkey, then bake it. Cook for about 30 minutes, then stuff the turkey.” Drew K.
  • “Decapitate a turkey and stuff it with stuffing, and put sauce on the turkey. And do not forget the jelly cranberries.” –Ty V.
  • “You buy a turkey and all the other stuff you like to eat on Thanksgiving. Then go home and cook it the way you like it. Last step, you invite your friends and family to eat the huge meal that you made.” –Kloee C.
  • “Thanksgiving dinner is really delicious…Thanksgiving is coming up after Halloween so have a lovely day or night.” –Serenity P.
  • “How you prepare Thanksgiving dinner is you get the turkey and put it in the oven. Then you make sure it is cooking good and take the juice from it. Then you eat it and cook all the other things. Enjoy!” Rachel M.
  • “For Thanksgiving you need to have a turkey, potatoes, stuffing, etc…You also need to invite a BUNCH of people if you are having a BIG feast. You also need to have FUN that is the most important thing with holidays.” –Kaitlin K.

You heard 'em, the most important pieces of the holiday are to have fun, be polite, oh, and seriously, don't forget that orange cake. Wishing you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving from Simply Family Magazine and Mrs. Archila's 4th grade class!