Thanksgiving Crafts for Kids

The first Thanksgiving celebration was held by the Pilgrims after their 1^st harvest in 1621; Thanksgiving now occurs on the fourth Thursday in November. Even though many of the original settlers had died that first year, the Pilgrims that remained were grateful for the abundance of their harvest and they invited their neighbors, Native Americans, to join in their 3-day feast.

Thanksgiving celebrations today usually include a huge family meal of turkey and many trimmings. It’s never too early to begin to cultivate a spirit of thankfulness in your toddler, even though she or he may be too young to fully understand the significance of the holiday yet. Talk with your children about all of the things that you have that you are thankful for.

This is a great time to instill a giving spirit in your child, too. Your child can help you pick a few canned goods to donate to a local food bank; it is a simple act of kindness that has a positive community impact. You can also prepare for the Thanksgiving season by setting aside clothing and toys to donate to a local relief agency. Bake a plate of cookies for friends who may be housebound or for community workers (mailman, garbage collectors…)

Here are some terrific and easy Thanksgiving craft ideas that you can do with your kids:

What you’ll need:

• Sponges
• Scissors
• Liquid tempera paint (fall colors)
• Water
• Paper

Cut feather shapes in various sizes out of sponges – don’t forget to include the stem on the end of the feather shape!  Wet the sponges, squeeze them out, dip them into the paint, and press onto the paper.  The different colors and sizes of feathers make a nice effect. 

What you'll need:

• Old magazines
• Construction paper or light cardboard
• Glue or paste
• Clear contact paper

Give your child old magazines and have her or him cut out things for which he or she is thankful.  Let you child glue the cut-out onto a piece of cardboard or construction paper and cover the whole thing with clear contact paper for a fun Thanksgiving placemat.  

What you'll need:

• Construction paper or small paper plate
• Marker or pencil
• Glue
• Dried beans and uncooked pasta

Trace around your child’s hand, with fingers spread, on a piece of construction paper or small paper plate.  With a marker or pen, draw an eye and beak on the thumb and turkey feet at the bottom of the hand.  Decorate the rest of the turkey by gluing on dried beans and the uncooked pasta. 

What you'll need:

• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Dry leaves
• Glue stick

Cut 1 or 2 leaf shapes out of the construction paper.  Crinkle up the dry leaves until they are in fairly small pieces (probably your child’s favorite part!)  Spread glue on one side of the construction paper leaf and sprinkle the dry leaf pieces on top.  Optionally, punch a hole out at one end of the leaf to hang it, or many, on display. 

What you'll need:

• Brown, red, yellow, and green paint
• Paper
• Markers

Paint your child’s palm and thumb brown.  Paint stripes (like a rainbow) of red, yellow and green across the fingers.  Press child’s hand onto a piece of paper to create a turkey print.  When the paint dries, use markers to add and eye, beak and feet. 

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