Looking to transition your classroom decorations for the Thanksgiving holiday? Here's a great turkey-themed display from Mrs. Freire, a featured Gigglepotz bulletin board contributor, that will complement a science or history unit on technology, inventions, and famous inventors!

Technology-Themed Turkey Crafts

To enhance the technological motif, have your students create turkey crafts from recycled compact discs (CDs). Using the disc as the body, provide students with strips of card stock in assorted colors, inviting them to fashion feathers for the turkey (if you desire, have them trim the top edges to make them look like feathers). With the help of a template, have students create a wattle from red card stock, as well as the turkey's head/neck from brown card stock.

You might also consider creating turkey crafts from old light bulbs. Have students paint the light bulb with brown washable paint then, using felt sheets in assorted colors, have students cut feathers, feet, a beak, and a wattle to glue to the dried light bulb. These crafts could then be strung up to the board using fishing wire.

Thanksgiving Technology Bulletin Board

• Background: Red bulletin board paper.
• Title: "Technology We Are Grateful For!"
• Border: Mrs. Freire decided not to use a bulletin board border, but you might consider adding a Thanksgiving-themed trimmer, a technology-themed bordette, or a plain border in a complimentary color!
• Decoration: 1) The Turkey. Create a large circle from light brown Kraft paper to use as the turkey body (add wing detailing with a brown marker) and a small circle for the turkey head. Using 12" x 18" sheets of construction or bulletin board paper in assorted colors (e.g. red, orange, yellow, and green), draw and cut out feathers for the turkey. With red and orange construction paper, fashion a wattle, a beak, and feet for the turkey and use a black marker to draw eyes onto the turkey cutout. Mount the turkey to the middle of the bulletin board. As you discuss technology and inventions in class, write the various technologies your students are grateful for - e.g. electricity/light bulb, computers, internet, cars/transportation, etc - onto the colorful turkey feathers. 2) The Embellishments. Use your student's technology-themed turkey crafts!

Bulletin boards provide a great way to reinforce concepts learned in class. Mrs. Freire showed that, with a little ingenuity, unit displays and seasonal/holiday decorations can be merged for dynamic classroom decor!