Step Into Plymouth Harbor
Welcome to Plymouth Harbor, where one pink basketball leads to an unforgettable trip through time! Join Regan Rose as a mysterious phone booth whisks her back to 1621, where preparations for a feast of giving thanks are underway. From hearth cooking to the skills the Wampanoag people shared with the settlers, there is plenty to discover—and three elusive turkeys put Regan’s basketball skills to an unexpected test! This playful adventure invites children to explore helping others, giving thanks, and finding creative ways to use their own talents.
Bringing Plymouth Harbor to Life?
Start with the Reader Guide!
Bring Regan’s adventure to life with pretend time travel, playful basketball challenges, Head–Heart–Hands conversations, and activities that celebrate gratitude, helping others, and sharing our talents—all in one printable guide.
🦃 Before the Story: Set the Scene
Set out a selection of Thanksgiving books for children to browse. Invite them to explore the pictures and talk about giving thanks, sharing food, and helping others. Then introduce Regan Rose and the Thanksgiving Three-Pointer—and wonder together what might happen when a basketball player takes a surprising trip through time!
Get Ready for the Adventure
Transform your space into Plymouth Harbor! A cardboard telephone booth, a pink ball, pretend cooking supplies, and a gathering table can invite children into Regan’s adventure. Use what you already have, leave room for imagination, and get ready to travel through time!
Build a Time-Travel Booth
Turn a large cardboard box into a doorway to Regan’s adventure!
Bring the Pink Basketball
Fill a little basket with pretend treats for Grandma.
Cook on a Pretend Hearth
Use play food, pots, and spoons to imagine cooking together.
Set the Gathering Table
Gather bowls, cups, and pretend food. Make a place for everyone!
Live the Story
This is where the story moves off the page and into the room! As you read Regan Rose and the Thanksgiving Three-Pointer, invite children to imagine stepping through the telephone booth alongside Regan. Make room for pretend stirring, helping hands, and playful basketball movements. For the first reading, keep pauses brief so children can enjoy the adventure. Return to favorite moments for more dramatic play afterward.
Become a Time-Travel Guide
The reader gets to join the adventure, too! Wear your own time-traveler headband and welcome children to the pretend telephone booth. Invite them to imagine leaving today behind and arriving in 1621. Guide them through Regan’s adventure, wondering together about what she notices and how she uses her talents to help.
✨Magic on a Budget
Paper strips, crayons, and a cardboard box are all you need. No large box? Frame a pretend doorway with paper and let imagination do the rest!
Become a Time Traveler
Invite children to put on their decorated headbands and gather beside the telephone booth. Step through together—or travel in imagination—and arrive in Plymouth Harbor! Encourage everyone to notice opportunities to help, share, and make room for others.
✨ Magic on a Budget:
Cut headband strips from construction paper or recycled cardstock. Children can draw their own clocks, basketballs, and decorations—no special supplies needed!
🏀 Bring Your Talents Along
Regan brings her basketball skills into an unexpected adventure. Invite children to think about what they could bring: helping hands, creative ideas, a friendly smile, or a knack for making others laugh. Ask, “How could your talents help someone today?” Everyone has something to offer!
Enter Plymouth Harbor
Invite children to wear their time-traveler headbands and gather beside the pretend telephone booth. Let them walk through the doorway or imagine traveling from wherever they are. Count down together: “Three, two, one—Plymouth Harbor!” Once everyone settles into the reading circle, introduce Regan’s adventure: “One pink basketball. Three turkeys. Where will this trip through time take us?”
While You Read
Keep the story moving and let children enjoy the adventure! During the first reading, welcome their reactions and keep questions brief. On later readings, invite them to pretend to stir a cooking pot, practice a basketball motion without a ball, and notice the ways people help one another.
🦃 Gather for a Friendship Feast
Invite another class to share a meal or snack together. Each classroom can contribute one simple item, or children can enjoy their regular school lunch together with a special addition. Children can help make invitations, decorate the tables, and welcome their guests. Follow school food and allergy guidelines, and keep it simple—the magic is in gathering, helping, and giving thanks together!
After the Story
The story may be over, but the adventure isn't! Take a few minutes to help children think about what they learned, how the story made them feel, and what they can do with what they discovered.
🧠 Head — What Did We Discover?
- How did Regan travel into the past?
- What did she discover about cooking on a hearth?
- How did her basketball skills become useful?
- Which parts of this adventure are make-believe?
❤️ Heart — What Did We Feel?
- How might Regan have felt arriving in an unfamiliar place?
- How do you feel when someone welcomes you?
- How does it feel to share something you’re good at?
- Who or what are you thankful for today?
🙌 Hands — What Can We Do?
- How could we welcome another class to our table?
- What could you help prepare for a shared meal?
- How could you use one of your talents to help someone?
- How could you show someone you’re thankful for them?
Keep the Magic Going
The story may be finished, but the fun isn't! Keep exploring, thinking, creating, and discovering with these free SpiroTales activities.
🦃 Make a Thankful Hand Turkey
Trace around each child’s hand on paper. Turn the thumb into the turkey’s head and the fingers into colorful feathers! Invite children to draw or write something they’re thankful for on each feather. An adult can write down their words if needed. Display the turkeys together or use them to decorate your Friendship Feast tables.
🦃 Read Again: Look Closer!
Return to Regan Rose and the Thanksgiving Three-Pointer for a second reading. This time, slow down and explore the illustrations together. Invite children to search for hidden turkeys and share details they missed before. Pause at the car that sped by and ask, “What do you think is happening here?” Give children time to explain their ideas and point to clues in the picture.
Prompts to Try
Where is a turkey hiding?
What do you notice about that car?
What makes you think that?
What new detail did you discover this time?
🏀 Take the Three-Pointer Challenge
At recess or outdoor playtime, set up a child-sized basketball hoop—perhaps borrowed from a classroom family—and offer a soft, lightweight ball. Mark a nearby two-point line and a farther three-point line with chalk or securely placed tape. Let children choose where to try, adjust the distance so everyone can participate, and take turns cheering for one another. Count points together if they enjoy it, and celebrate practice, persistence, and helping retrieve the ball!
🐿️ Make a Paper-Loop Squirrel
Turn simple paper strips into a squirrel with a personality all its own! Gather brown construction paper, paper scraps, glue, crayons, and child-safe scissors.Cut two brown paper strips about 3 inches wide, one longer than the other.Curl each strip into a loop and glue the ends together. Use the larger loop for the body and glue the smaller loop on top.Cut out a face and ears. Draw the eyes, nose, and smile, then glue the face onto the front of the smaller loop.Add paper feet underneath and arms at the sides.Cut out a big, bushy tail and glue it behind the body. Add crayon lines for fur.Give your squirrel a paper acorn to hold, if you like!Let children choose their own shapes and expressions. An adult can help with cutting and hold the loops together while the glue sets.
❤️Take the Magic Home
Print the Thanksgiving Family Card