My 12 Favorite 6th Grade Thanksgiving Math Activities

As Thanksgiving approaches, students are starting to think more and more about the upcoming holiday—and can drift off from math class.

It’s possible to harness this excitement with math activities that incorporate Thanksgiving. Instead of telling students to get back on track, we can make class more about the holiday they’re already thinking about.

Here are 12 of my favorite 6th grade Thanksgiving math activities.

Ratios & Rates

Wondering how to review ratios & rates with 6th graders on Thanksgiving?

One of my favorite review activities is Pixel Art.

It blends art and math for in the digital classroom, leveraging Google Sheets to auto-grade the student’s responses, and give them instant feedback on how they’re doing. Students solve a series of problems, and each correct answer unlocks parts of a mystery picture.

Here’s a few that I like for ratios & rates:

Equivalent Ratios & Rates: Tables & Word Problems — 2 Pixel Art Google Sheets

$3.99

Buy on TPT →

Ratios and Unit Rates BUNDLE — 4 Pixel Art Sheets

$5.99

Buy on TPT →

Decimals

Wondering how to review decimals with 6th graders on Thanksgiving?

I love reviewing with Doodle Math.

Doodle Math is a print and go activity where students solve a series of problems, and then unlock doodle patterns that they can draw onto a template image in the color of their choice. It’s like color-by-number but with more creative freedom.

Here’s a few for practicing decimal operations:

[Fall] Add and Subtract Decimals — Doodle Math: Twist on Color by Number

#6 Sales This Week

$3.00

Buy on TPT →

Multiplying Decimals Word Problems — Doodle Math: Twist on Color by Number

#7 Sales This Week

$3.25

Buy on TPT →

But you may be wondering — how can I prepare for the winter holidays, too?

That’s why I made Doodle Math 5-Holiday Packs. They contain multiple problem sets, and multiple seasonal images, so you can buy them once and use them year-round. They have you covered for fall/Thanksgiving, the winter holidays, and spring holidays like Valentine’s Day as well!

Here’s a holiday pack for decimal operations:

Decimal Operations (Add, Subtract, Multiply, Divide) — HOLIDAY

$15.00

Buy on TPT →

Fractions

Wondering how to review fractions with 6th graders on Thanksgiving?

Try these Pixel Art activities and money-saving bundles:

Dividing Fractions by Whole Numbers and Fractions— 2 Pixel Art Google Sheets

$3.99

Buy on TPT →

Adding & Subtracting Fractions BUNDLE — 4 Pixel Art Google Sheets

$5.99

Buy on TPT →

Fractions Operations Add Subtract Multiply Divide BUNDLE — 8 Pixel Art Google

$11.97

Buy on TPT →

Expressions

Wondering how to review expressions with 6th graders on Thanksgiving?

I have a range of Pixel Art, Doodle Math, and Doodle Math Holiday Packs for you.

Here’s a couple of Google Sheets Pixel Art activities to try:

Evaluate Algebraic Expressions Variable and Exponents— 2 Pixel Art Google Sheets

$3.99

Buy on TPT →

PEMDAS Order of Operations Evaluate Numerical Expressions — 2 Pixel Art Google

$3.99

Buy on TPT →

This is one of my top selling Doodle Math activities during the fall:

[Thanksgiving] Order of Operations — Doodle Math, Twist on Color by Number

$1.99

Buy on TPT →

And, of course, I have a Doodle Math 5-Holiday Pack for practicing order of operations with expressions:

Order of Operations 5-Holidays-Pack — Twist on Color By Number

$3.99

Buy on TPT →

There are plenty of great Thanksgiving math activities out there. These are just a few of my favorites for 6th grade.

Happy teaching!