This is a text for young beginners in English. I know the syntax doesn't sound really authentic, but I could not use any irregular verb (the idea, here, is for them to discover how the simple past works for regular verbs). I am also aware that this text depicts a stereotypical vision of the origins of Thanksgiving. They'll have to wait for another 2 or 3 years before digging a little bit deeper into the "mythological" dimension of this official Thanksgiving narrative. Anyway, thanks for your help!
In the 1600s, the Puritans were a religious group. They lived in England. But the English King, James I, didn’t like them because their religion was different. So he arrested, imprisoned and persecuted the Puritans. In 1620, one hundred Puritans decided to leave England because the King was intolerant. They crossed the Atlantic Ocean on a boat called the Mayflower. They wanted to find a new land to practice their religion freely.
After 65 days on the ocean, the Puritans finally arrived in America, where they established a colony: Plymouth. But forty-five Puritans died in the first winter: they didn’t have any food, and the weather was extremely cold. One day in spring, three Wampanoag Indians visited the Puritans, and helped them to plant corn, pumpkin and squash. One of the Indians, Squanto, could speak English. He showed the Puritans how to go hunting or fishing.
At the end of spring, the harvest was a success: vegetables, meat, fish … The Puritans organized a big feast and invited the Indians. They cooked fish, duck, corn, pumpkin, etc. The Puritans thanked God, and they played and danced with the Inidians. It was the first Thanksgiving.
