Thanksgiving is almost here, friends! Can you believe it? This year has flown by. I feel like I blinked and the world jumped from enjoying beach days to bundling up against the chilly weather. To be fair, autumn is an absolutely beautiful time of year and the change in seasons is refreshing. With the upcoming holiday, we are beginning to relax our homeschooling schedule and plan for family visits. Thanksgiving is one of the best opportunities to enjoy quality time, savoring the small moments, and focusing on thankfulness for the lives we have been given. When the extended family is together, there’s hardly anything better than gathering everyone to play a game or work on a holiday project!
10 Ideas for Thanksgiving Activities for Kids
Thanksgiving can get busy, sometimes even chaotic, with guests, recipes, and activities. However, it’s all about spending time together, having fun, and reflecting on gratefulness. At times, though, there is downtime sprinkled throughout the rush of the holidays, and these activities are perfect for those moments! Whether you want to enjoy these in the days leading up to Thanksgiving, on Thanksgiving day itself while waiting for dishes to bake, or after the feast once stomachs have rested, you’re bound to find an activity here for your family to enjoy!
- DIY Leaf Turkey Luminaries. These little lanterns are beautiful! What a fun way to spend time together! Collect leaves, design your turkeys, and enjoy stunning lanterns as a result.
- Thanksgiving Recipes for Kids! Anyone with kids knows that they love to be involved with everything, and that includes cooking! It can be challenging to find ways for including children in the kitchen, but these recipes are a great solution! As a bonus, this is a fun way to begin teaching your kids to cook and bake.
- Play Turkey Bowling! This activity is too cute! It’s definitely a must for families with smaller kids. This would be helpful to help them enjoy Thanksgiving and keep them occupied while the kitchen is filled with hot pans and sharp knives.
- Enjoy a Gratitude Photo Scavenger Hunt. Thanksgiving is all about gratitude, and this photo challenge underlines it! This is a wonderful way to refocus on the meaning of the holiday and take stock of how blessed our lives already are.
- Play Thanksgiving Charades. Charades is a classic holiday game when the family is gathered together. However, have you played Thanksgiving Charades?! This twist on the classic game will make it even more fun.
- Solve a Thanksgiving Word Scramble. I love sitting down at the table during the quiet of the holidays to solve a puzzle or two. This Thanksgiving-themed Word Scramble couldn’t be more festive!
- DIY Photo Props with this Free Printable! Could these photo props be any cuter? In this age of Instagram-worthy shares, these photo props are perfect for a family to use in their Thanksgiving fun and games. Even better, they are free and easy to print!
- Print this Free Gratitude Booklet! While Thanksgiving is fun and delicious, it’s easy to forget the meaning of the holiday. Bring it back to the importance of thankfulness with this fantastic gratitude booklet.
- Play Thanksgiving Pictionary. As with Charades, Pictionary is a classic game for groups over the holidays. Make it even better with this Thanksgiving twist!
- More Awesome Fall Crafts & Activities for Kids. Find even more fun activities and simple crafts on this website!
10 Resources for Gratitude and Thanksgiving
November offers a wonderful chance for gratitude and Thanksgiving-centered studies. Whether you want to go all-in with a unit study, or you’re looking for ways to supplement your courses in the spirit of Thanksgiving, there are several amazing resources to choose from. Here are ten of our favorites!
- Thanksgiving Scripture Copy Work Free Printable
- 6 Simple Ways to Celebrate Thanksgiving in Your Homeschool
- Creative Writing Gift Ideas
- Kid Activities That Encourage a Heart of Gratitude
- Thanksgiving’s Traditional History
- Books of Gratitude
- Thankful Poems
- Colorful Books to Enjoy this Fall
Gratitude is so important to focus on with our children. It influences how we view the world, how we approach challenges, and how we spend our free time. We love Thanksgiving food and games as much as anyone, but let’s challenge ourselves to remember to be thankful this holiday season. If we demonstrate a genuine “attitude of gratitude” with joy, our children are likely to happily catch on as well. From our home to yours, have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Listen to our Recent Podcast on Ways to Practice Gratitude in our Homeschool!
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