Thanksgiving Activities for Kids: 25 Ideas for the Big Day

The best Thanksgiving activities for kids fill the long stretch between arriving and eating. Think of it in four parts: things to do in the kitchen, things to do at the table, things to do outside, and quiet things when everyone is full. This list has 25 ideas for all four, with notes on age and how much prep each one needs.

Quick picks

Kitchen helpers

Kids like feeling useful. These jobs are safe and simple:

1. Wash vegetables. A bowl of water and a soft brush for potatoes and carrots.
2. Tear lettuce or bread for salad or stuffing. Clean hands only.
3. Stir cold mixtures, like cranberry sauce ingredients or cookie dough.
4. Press cookie cutters into rolled-out dough in fall shapes like leaves and pumpkins.
5. Set the table. Count out forks, fold napkins and place name cards.

Adults handle knives, hot pans and the oven. Check for allergies before children touch anything that goes into a shared dish.

Gratitude activities

6. Gratitude tree. Draw or tape a bare tree branch on a wall or large paper. Cut out paper leaves in autumn colors. Everyone writes or draws one thing they're thankful for and sticks it on the tree. By dinner, the tree is full.
7. Thankful jar. Add a note to a jar each day in November. Read them aloud at dinner.
8. Thank-you cards. Kids color a card and write a few words for a guest, a teacher or a grandparent. A printed flower page from our flower coloring pages makes a nice cover.
9. Thankful turkey. Draw a turkey body. Each guest adds a feather with something they're grateful for.
10. Table question cards. Write questions on small cards: "What was the best part of your year?" "Who made you laugh?" Pass the bowl around.

Table activities

When kids are waiting, give them something at their place:

11. Coloring placemats. Print a turkey or fall scene and let them color while adults finish cooking. See our Thanksgiving placemats guide for sizes, paper and ideas.
12. Place cards. Kids decorate cards with each guest's name. Try our name coloring page generator to make a card that has the name in big outline letters.
13. Thanksgiving bingo. Cards with pictures of turkey, corn, pumpkin, pie and leaves. Use small candy or paper bits as markers.
14. I spy. Hide a few small items, such as acorns, in a centerpiece or bowl. Kids search and list what they find.
15. Draw the meal. Hand out paper and ask kids to draw everything they expect to eat.

Craft stations

Set up a craft table with paper, glue and crayons:

16. Handprint turkeys. Trace a hand and add feathers and a beak.
17. Pinecone turkeys. Glue paper feathers to a pinecone.
18. Paper bag centerpiece. Decorate a small paper bag with fall leaves and fill it with candy corn or flowers.
19. Leaf rubbings. Place a leaf under paper and rub with a crayon on its side.

We have a longer list of 20 crafts with steps in Thanksgiving crafts for kids.

Outdoor and active

20. Leaf hunt. Collect leaves in different shapes and colors and sort them.
21. Backyard turkey trot. A short race or a relay with a hat or stuffed turkey. Cheer for everyone.
22. Football, frisbee or catch. The classic. Leave room for the little ones.
23. Neighborhood walk. After the meal, a stroll helps digestion and burns energy. Look for the most colorful leaf.

Quiet time

24. Coloring and puzzles. Simple, calm and good for cousins of all ages. Our coloring pages library has fall scenes, animals and mandalas for the adults who join in.
25. Board games and card games. Choose games that work for mixed ages and finish in under 30 minutes.

Activities for different ages

• Toddlers: leaf collecting, sticker turkeys, big crayons on a large sheet of paper, and a bowl of dry cereal to sort by color.
• Preschool and kindergarten: handprint turkeys, the gratitude tree, bingo with pictures and cookie cutter fun.
• Ages 7 to 10: place cards for the whole table, a written thank-you note, a menu design, and a short skit or story they perform before dinner.
• Teens and cousins: let them lead a game or help the little kids with a craft. Giving them a job works better than asking them to just play.

Tips for a smoother day

• Plan for naps. Little ones often need a quiet corner.
• Mix ages. Pair older kids with younger ones on crafts.
• Keep a basket ready. Put crayons, paper, stickers and a few small toys where kids can reach them.
• Be flexible. If a plan isn't working, move on to the next one.
• Prep ahead. Print coloring pages, cut leaves and prepare materials the night before.

A simple schedule for the day

If the day feels long, a loose plan helps. Here's one that works for many families:

1. Late morning: kitchen helper jobs and a craft station while adults cook.
2. Just before dinner: the gratitude tree and place cards, so the table is ready.
3. At the table: coloring placemats, a question card or two, and bingo for the kids who finish early.
4. After dinner: a walk or backyard game to burn off energy.
5. Evening: coloring, a board game or a movie while adults clean up.

You don't need to do everything. Pick two or three ideas that suit your group and leave room to relax.

For the classroom

Teachers can adapt most of these: the gratitude tree, a class thank-you card, a "Thanksgiving word of the day" and a fall leaf sort. If you need a calm center, a coloring station with a few fall pages works well.

More Thanksgiving ideas

For hands-on projects, see our Thanksgiving crafts for kids. For something to print and color at the table, try the Thanksgiving placemats guide. You can also create a custom page for your family with the AI coloring page generator.