We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Frane Lessac is a wonderful Fun Friday read aloud choice as it introduces young learners to the concept of gratitude through the lens of Cherokee culture. This beautifully illustrated book invites students to explore the Cherokee tradition of giving thanks year-round, offering a fresh perspective on what it means to appreciate the world around us. With its colorful pictures and simple, rhythmic language, the story helps children connect to ideas of community, nature, and cultural traditions. Reading this book encourages students to think about what they are thankful for in their own lives, while also fostering an early understanding and respect for cultural diversity.
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We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga Book Summary
This vibrant picture book celebrates the Cherokee tradition of expressing gratitude throughout the year. The word “otsaliheliga” means “we are grateful” in Cherokee, and the story follows a full year in the life of Cherokee people, highlighting their customs, values, and deep connection to nature and community. Each season brings unique occasions for gratitude, from gathering food in the fall to playing in the snow in winter. Through lyrical text and beautiful, detailed illustrations, the book introduces young readers to Cherokee words, practices, and the importance of being thankful for the world around us. It serves as both a celebration of Native American culture and a reminder to find gratitude in everyday moments.
We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga Book Activities for Every Subject
To turn this book into a full day of fun, we have compiled activities that complement the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga in reading, writing, math, and social studies. We have also included a fun thankful tree craft that goes with the book as well as a special snack.
Reading Activities for the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga
Getting Ready to Read
Here is a great video of the author, Traci Sorell, talking about the book We Are Gateful Otsaliheliga. I would recommend viewing this with your students before reading the book. Traci Sorell also has an educational website for teachers. You can find helpful information, coloring pages, posters, and more on her website.
Comprehension Questions for the Book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga
Because this book contains words in Cherokee, I recommend practicing reading it aloud before reading it to your class. Thankfully, the author included pronunciations of each Cherokee word. As you practice reading, take note of places to stop and ask text dependent comprehension questions. You may also want to write a brief kid friendly introduction to the book.
The following are some examples of text dependent discussion questions:
- What do you notice about the tree on the first page of the book? Why do you think the illustrator drew the tree this way?
- What does the tree signify?
- What are the people thankful for in fall? Winter? Spring? Summer?
- What are some activities you do with your family/community throughout the year?
For more ideas on using text-dependent questions and making your read-alouds more engaging, check out 3 Steps to Create Meaningful Experiences Through Read Aloud. We also offer an Interactive Read Aloud resource specifically for the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga—read on to see how this resource can save you time and bring extra engagement to your read alouds!
Interactive Read Aloud for the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga
Bring your read-aloud to life with this engaging 3-day Interactive Read Aloud for the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga!
This resource comes complete with:
- 3 days of detailed lesson plans with book introductions, text dependent questions, vocabulary, and common core standards
- 14+ differentiated writing pages
- Story elements anchor charts
- Cute and fun craft to decorate your classroom or send home to showcase student work
This resource aligns with the science of reading. It is research based, easy to implement and aligned with the common core standards.
Writing Activities for the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga
After reading and discussing the book, ask your students to write about it. I recommend modeling and using word banks. This can also be a great opportunity to use Interactive Writing.
Here are some writing prompts you can use.
- What was your favorite part of the story?
- What are some things you are grateful for?
- What are some activities you do with your family/community throughout the year?
- What is your opinion of the book and why?
Here are some FREE writing templates for you to use.
Math Activity for the Book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga: Favorite Seasons Graph
Before the lesson
Create a graph titled Favorite Seasons, with one column for each of the 4 seasons (see the image above). Gather enough sticky notes so each student can have one.
During the Lesson
With your students, revisit the artwork on the first page of We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga. Point to the tree showing all the ways it changes throughout the seasons and remind students that the book follows a Cherokee family through all four seasons. You may want to ask students to recall some things the Cherokee people were grateful for in each season. Then ask students to think about what they are grateful for in each season. Explain that you are going to make a class graph of everyone’s favorite season. Ask the class, “What is your favorite season and why?” Have students share their answers with a partner. Then pass out sticky notes and have everyone write their name on the sticky note. Bring the class back together and have students place their names on the column that represents their favorite season.
Analyze the Graph
Start by counting the sticky notes in each column to find out which season was the class favorite. Then get those mathematical minds working by asking questions:
- Which season was chosen the least?
- Which season was chosen the most?
- Are any columns the same?
- How many are there altogether?
- How many students liked summer and fall?
- What information can we gather from this graph?
This activity helps with counting, comparing, and even a little addition—all in a fun way that feels more like play than work!
Social Studies Activity for the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga: Community
Community is an important theme in the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga. Lead a class discussion on community. “Community is a group of people who care about and help each other. It’s like our class – we are all friends, and we take care of one another! In our community, people have different jobs, like teachers, doctors, police officers, trash collectors, firefighters, and many more. Community members all help make our community safe and happy. Just like how we all have jobs in our classroom, like line leader, table monitor, light monitor, trash collector… everyone in a community has an important role. A community is like one big team where everyone belongs!”
Explain that students are going to write about one person in their community. It could be a neighbor, someone from their school (teacher, custodian, principal, librarian, lunch staff…), the postman, their doctor, or any other community member. Brainstorm and create a word bank of community helpers for students to reference. Ask your class to think of one person in their community. You may want to have them turn and tell a partner about this person, using the sentence stem, is a part of my community. He/She… (i.e. Mrs. Jones, the librarian, is a part of my community. She helps me find great books to read.) Model how to write about someone in your community using these free writing templates. Use your students’ completed work to create a bulletin board or class book and title it Our Community.
Handful Feast Preparations
Send home a note to families explaining that in the spirit of Thanksgiving, your class is going to share a special meal together. Ask families to send a snack of their choosing to share with the class (i.e. pretzels, popcorn, m&m’s, raisins, cheerios, goldfish…) On the day of the Handful Feast, mix all the snacks together. Give each student a cup and have them scoop out a “handful” during snack time. To make this extra special, purchase some cheap tablecloths and place a simple center piece in the middle of the tables (Dollar Tree is great for these). Allow students to enjoy their handful feast with their friends.
Grateful Tree Craft
Creating a Class Grateful Tree is a fun, meaningful activity that helps kindergarteners expressing gratitude while building a sense of community. This craft is a perfect complement to the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorell. Here’s how you can set up and create a Grateful Tree in your classroom.
Instructions for Making a Class Grateful Tree
1. Prepare the Tree Base
Materials: Butcher paper, brown construction paper, markers, scissors, and tape.
- Create the Trunk and Branches: Use brown construction paper or butcher paper to make a large tree trunk with branches. Attach it to a wall or bulletin board in a place that’s easily visible to all students. Make sure to leave plenty of space for leaves to be added.
2. Make the Leaves
Materials: Construction paper in fall colors (red, yellow, orange), scissors, and markers.
- Cut Out Leaf Shapes: Pre-cut a bunch of leaf shapes. If you don’t want to cut out leaves, simply cut large rectangles. Then have your students snip off the corners of the rectangles, turning them into leaves. Make enough so each child has a few leaves to add to the tree.
3. Introduce the Grateful Tree Concept
- Explain that the Grateful Tree is a place to share things that make you feel happy or thankful in your life.
- Discuss examples to get students thinking about what they are grateful for: family members, friends, pets, favorite toys, classroom activities, or even simple things like sunshine or their favorite snack.
- You may want to write these words on a chart, word wall, or the front board for students to refer to as they write their own.
4. Write or Draw on the Leaves
- Give each child a leaf and ask them to write or draw one thing they’re grateful for.
5. Add Leaves to the Tree
- Once the leaves are ready, have each child come up and tape or glue their leaf to a branch. As more leaves are added, the tree will “grow” with gratitude, becoming a beautiful display of thankfulness in your classroom.
More Fun Friday Activities
We hope you enjoy these activities for the book We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga. We absolutely love using picture books to create meaningful learning experiences for children. If you’re looking to plan a full day of fun centered around a fantastic story, explore some of our other Fun Friday book ideas!
Let us know if you use any of these fun resources with your kids. We love seeing pictures and hearing about how other classes enjoy these activities.
