Ten Thanksgiving Activities to Help Celebrate with Kids

Need some celebration ideas for this Thanksgiving? We have gathered ten ideas to start your holiday off right.

1. Help kids feel valued and a part of the meal by letting them participate in preparing it. Depending on age, they can help peel, wash, stir, and decorate. This helps them feel part of the action and helps to show how important everyone’s role is in the meal.
2. Have the kids be the timekeepers for basting the turkey or cooking times for different dishes. Have them let you know when the time is up. This is particularly helpful for picky eaters. When they feel like they have a part in the meal, they are more likely to eat it.
3. Get kids involved in the planning process. Ask them what their favorite dishes are. See who they want to sit by and have them help in making decorations for the table.
4. Have everyone pick a colored candy and assign a category to each color. like family, friends, travel, home, and pets. Go around the table and have everyone share a memory from the past year about that particular thing. You may be surprised at what your kids remember!
5. Have a Thanksgiving scavenger hunt. Place items around the room and on the table. While eating dinner, have everyone try to look for the selected items. You can also involve the kids in helping to hide items for other guests.
6. Try a new recipe. Visit the library and look at cookbooks to find something that you have never had on Thanksgiving. Have the kids help pick out the recipe.
7. Play Would You Rather - Thanksgiving edition. Would you rather have stuffing or mashed potatoes? Would you rather have pie or cake for dessert? Would you rather cook or clean? The list is endless. Some of the answers may surprise you.
8. Line the table with white butcher paper and have the kids (and adults) draw what they are Thankful for on the table. Go around and see what everyone drew. This also makes for easy cleanup. No washing the nice tablecloth.
9. Play Thanksgiving Madlibs. These are plentiful online and a great way to pass the time while waiting for the meal. Have everyone take turns shouting out the different words and then read the funny stories out loud at dinner.
10. Paint small pumpkins with acrylic paints in the morning and use them for decoration on the table.