Handprint Turkey
Ages 2 to 6
Skill level: Easy
Materials needed: Construction paper, black and red
markers, and brown, yellow, red, orange, and green fingerpaints.
Help your child paint the palm of his or her hand and
thumb with the brown paint. Then paint each finger a
different color. Press their hand firmly on the construction
paper. You should have a brown turkey “body”
and four tall feathers of different colors. With the
black marker, draw eyes and a beak at the tip of the
thumbprint. Use the red marker to draw in the wattle
underneath the beak.
Thanksgiving Place Cards
Ages 4 to 12
Skill level: Easy to Medium
Materials needed: Heavy cardstock, scissors, glue,
seeds collected from outside, pencil, ruler, markers.
Using a pencil and a ruler, draw a line dividing one
sheet of cardstock in half from top to bottom, and then
draw two horizontal lines that divide the cardstock
in thirds. Follow the lines to cut the cardstock into
six pieces. Take each piece and fold it in half lengthwise
to make standing place cards. Choose a handful of seeds,
either all alike or different varieties, and glue them
in a little sunburst pattern on one side of the place
card. With the marker, write the person’s name
under the sunburst. Repeat with all of the place cards.
If you have more than six guests, repeat with another
sheet of cardstock.
Thanksgiving Book of Thanks
Ages 4 to 12
Skill level: Easy to Medium
Materials needed: Brighly colored construction paper
or lightweight cardstock, hole punch, string or twine,
markers and crayons.
Choose three sheets of paper (any color or combination
of colors) and fold them in half horizontally (like
a book). With the hole punch, punch two holes in each
sheet of paper along the fold – one hole about
an inch from the top and one hole about an inch from
the bottom. Stack the three pieces of paper together
so that the holes are aligned. With the string or twine,
tie the papers together, binding them with a small knot
on the outside of the “book.”
Variation 1 (Start at least ten days before Thanksgiving):
Have your child name one thing that he or she is thankful
for, and write it and illustrate it on the first page.
Continue adding one illustration each day until Thanksgiving.
At Thanksgiving dinner, your child can read the book
and show the pictures to everyone.
Variation 2: Bring the blank book to Thanksgiving dinner,
and have your child interview each guest at the dinner
about what he or she is thankful for. Write and illustrate
their responses on each page. At dinner, your child
can read the book and show the pictures to everyone.
Thanksgiving Pie-Crust Cookies
Ages 3 to 10
Skill level: Easy
Materials needed: Leftover pie dough, rolling pin,
cookie cutters, butter, cinnamon, sugar.
This craft is fun to do if you are making homemade
pie crust. When you trim the unbaked pie crust from
the edge of the pan, save the trimmings. Shape the dough
into a ball, then roll it out to 1/3-inch thickness
with the rolling pin. Cut out shapes with the cookie
cutter. Place on a small baking sheet. Dot each cookie
with butter, then sprinkle lightly with cinnamon and
sugar. Bake at the same temperature you are baking the
pies for approximately 10 to 15 minutes or until golden
brown.
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