Our teacher friends are crucial for getting through the long hours, heavy workload, and extreme stress of teaching. Social distancing means we don’t get to spend nearly as much time with our besties as we want – in a time when we need them the most. Let’s vow to change that right now! Here’s how to throw together a quick and easy Teacher Friendsgiving to celebrate your bonds and that you’ve made it to Thanksgiving break.

What is Friendsgiving?

Friendsgiving is a modern idea of celebrating friendship. For many people, friends are nearly as important as family. Some people don’t have family to rely on and friends fill that space. Friendsgiving is a celebration of the special bonds we create with friends. It’s typically held the Saturday before Thanksgiving but doesn’t have to be. There are no official foods or rituals. It’s a blank slate for whatever your group wants it to be, for example, Teacher Friendsgiving.

10 Easy Ideas for Teacher Friendsgiving

The best part of Teacher Friendsgiving is anything goes! Unlike Thanksgiving which is rich in tradition and expectations, Friendsgiving has the flexibility to be anything you want. There’s no pressure.

Host Teacher Friendsgiving Over Zoom

Or Google Meet, Facetime, or other video platform.

  1. Have a theme. Think of how fun it will be to see everyone show up on the screen in costume for your theme? Challenge everyone to come up with an activity or prompt based on the theme. For example, everyone could dress like their favorite Friends or Schitt’s Creekcharacter, play trivia based on the show, share favorite quotes, and re-enact scenes.
  2. Decide on a menu. Increase the bonding by all eating similar foods, even though you’re apart. Breakfast for dinner? Desserts? Italian? Diner foods? Share photos and recipes in the chat.
  3. Play a game. A quick Google search will bring up tons of games perfect for adults to play over Zoom. Some require everyone to go to a specific website or download an app. Psych, Cards Against Humanity, Heads Up!, Pictionary and Bingo are a few options. Other games, like 20 Questions, trivia, and charades lend themselves well to video naturally.
  4. Watch a movie together. Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon all have “watch party” features. This allows you and friends to watch a movie together in your own homes while discussing the film (and anything else) in a chatbox. You can all also have Discord running in the background so you can hear each other talk.
  5. Strategize about Black Friday. Everyone can show up with their favorite snacks and drinks within reach, as well as their shopping list. Search for the best deals on each other’s wish lists together.

Host it outdoors

Spread out and enjoy your teacher friends in person in an outdoor setting. After being cooped up in classrooms or behind computer screens for months, it will feel like a mini vacation! Fresh air, sunshine, and your friends? It’s a 2020 dream come true!

  1. Meet at the park. Invite everyone to bring their own picnic meal and blankets. Pick up some plastic cups and encourage everyone to bring their favorite wine, beer, soda, or other beverage to share.
  2. Take over the school ball field. The last place you want to be on Thanksgiving break is school? But what if it’s to hijack the ball field with your teacher besties for some much-needed bonding time? Encourage everyone to bring a chair. Steer clear of alcohol on school grounds. Collect contributions via Venmo, then swing by a Panera or Dunkin’ Donuts for one of those huge containers of coffee and some bagels or donuts.
  3. Get moving together. Plan an active outdoors meetup. Go for a walk to look at holiday decorations. Take a hike in the woods. Go skiing or fishing. Play softball.

Other ideas:

  1. Have a drive-by Teacher Friendsgiving. Park yourself in your driveway or the school parking lot. Invite friends to visit you. Hand out a fun treat, such as the mini, individually boxed Patti LaBelle sweet potato pies from Walmart. If everyone lives fairly close together, set up a schedule so each member of your squad gets a turn as a driveway host.
  2. Meet up at a drive-in (or create your own). Does your area have a drive-in theatre? Meet there! If not, create your own by projecting a movie onto a fence or garage wall. Encourage everyone to bring their own snacks and drinks.
  3. Have it later in the year. No time or energy to throw together even the most casual gathering? We get that. Pick another day to celebrate. Just don’t hold off until things go back to normal. We need laughter, support, and friendship in our lives now.

Happy Teacher Friendsgiving!