Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks and to share specialmoments with family members, but most think of the day as a time tochow down.

Local elementary students received early lessons in givingthanks and stuffing their stomachs as area schools participated invarious Turkey Day activities and festivities before gettingThanksgiving week off for vacation.

Mamie Martin Elementary School would have the earliestcelebration.

On Wednesday, students dressed as American Indians and pilgrimsand ate a festive lunch of turkey, dressing, sweet potato casseroleand green beans.

Some students’ favorite part of the week was acquiring feathersthrough good behavior for their headbands.

“You have to earn your feathers,” said first-grader AmyMabile.

On Thursday, Enterprise and Loyd Star Attendance Centers joinedthe school celebration casserole.

In addition to a feast for the kindergarten, Loyd Starelementary students made a book about the first Thanksgiving, madeturkeys out of coffee filters and wrote recipes for their favoriteholiday foods. Also, elementary principal Kelly Earls dressed inpilgrim attire and read to kindergarten students.

Kindergarten teacher Carla Wallace said the story is one thestudents will definitely remember.

“They were excited to have Mrs. Earls read to them,” saidWallace. “They can tell you all about Thanksgiving.”

At Enterprise, students made arts and crafts throughout theweek, which included a headdress and pilgrim vests made out ofpaper bags.

Students were also treated to a special catered Thanksgivingmeal with ham, turkey, macaroni and cheese, sweet potato casseroleand cake.

Bogue Chitto Attendance Center and Brookhaven Academy would haveto wait until Friday to enjoy their Thanksgiving festivals.

Kindergarten students at Bogue Chitto enjoyed a feast whiledressed in usual Thanksgiving garb at Bogue Chitto BaptistChurch.

Second-graders wrote what they were thankful for on art projectsand made additional artwork. First-graders ate in their classroomsand kindergarten through sixth grade participated in a canned fooddrive for Dickerson Place, a children’s home in Brookhaven.

At Brookhaven Academy, pre-kindergarten students held a”Friendship Feast,” in which students’ parents brought in food forthe banquet. Students also sang songs and recited poems, and wereintroduced to their parents by their American Indian names.

BA first-graders communicated a prayer in sign language andrecited the “ABCs of Thanksgiving” before having their feast on thefootball field.

BA second-graders were treated to tasty samplings of “stonesoup,” which related to the book “Stone Soup,” which they read inclass.

While not one Thanksgiving program was the same among the localschools, the smiles across the faces of the students as they helpedthemselves to a second helping of food was the same across thecounty.

Next up, Christmas.