Keeping Kids Entertained, Thankful, and Creative This Thanksgiving

This article is a response to Thanksgiving Riddle Game: A Game for Kids of All Ages to Keep Them in the Turkey Day Spirit.
The author of this article published a great game that can be used to keep children entertained on Thanksgiving. This article is written in response, not in a negative way, but as an additional and supplemental component.
If you are hosting the big meal this year, or just bringing your little ones to grandma's house, it is always a good idea to have something for them to do besides watch TV. Thanksgiving is also a great teaching time for little ones, and giving Thanks is somethign that should be taught all year long. However, there are several things parents and families can do in order to promote grateful hearts in our little ones as well as encourage them to be thankful!
One great idea to use with little ones on Thanksgiving Day is some kind of craft that will keep them busy during the cooking portion of the day. Little ones love to make fun decorations that can even be used as a centerpiece or a napkin holder.
One great idea to use with kids is to make a craft stick turkey. Craft sticks are pretty easy to locate from a craft store and can be bought in bulk. There are also plenty of crafts that they can be used for throughout the year. By taking an upside Dixie or paper cup, poke one brown (painted or colored with marker) craft stick into the cup. Decorate the stick with felt pieces or magic markers. Construction paper can be used to create a sort of dress for the front of the turkey and to cover up the paper cup. Construction paper can also be used to make a little "Happy Thanksgiving" tag for the turkey.
Next, have the children color about eight of the craft sticks in festive fall colors such as orange, red, yellow, and brown. Glue the sticks together at one end to form a sort of fan with the craft sticks. Attach the fan of "feathers" to the top of the paper cup to make a lovely turkey! You may use hot glue or white craft glue to accomplish this. Also, google eyes are a great addition to make the turkeys even more lifelike!
Another idea is to have the children make Thanksgiving placemats. This is an extremely easy craft and the children will love the fact that their art is neatly displayed on the Thanksgiving dinner table. Simply take construction paper or white printed paper. You may also opt to have some tissue paper in order for children to make a decorative collage with glue and scissors. Have the children decorate to their liking using crayons, markers, colored pencils, leaves, or other fun fall decorates. Next, laminate the artwork using contact paper. Make sure to press hard so that there are no wrinkles or bubbles. The children can make enough placements for each and every guest and they also make lovely parting gifts. These placemats are also reusable and are lovely keepsakes for the little ones.
Another great Thanksgiving craft is decorative place holders. Children can use a pattern that you provide or simply make their own table tent. A leaf pattern works especially great for thanksgiving. Once the children have colored and decorated the pattern, an adult may write the name on the place holder and assist the child in the cutting process. Children will love to see their artwork on the table. Foam stamps of leaves and other fall decorations work especially well for this craft.
There are also many other ideas for children to make their own decorations, however, it is also important for children to get a chance to think about Thanksgiving and why it is such an important holiday.
One great way for children to think about what Thanksgiving means to them is to write an acrostic poem using the word Thanksgiving. Each letter in the word can then be used to write a sentence about something they are thankful, beginning with that specific letter. For example T-together, I am thankful that our family can all get together on this lovely holiday.
This is a great way for children and adults to get the wheels turning and consider all that they have to be thankful for this year. Poems can also be decorated and laminated and used as placemats. Guests can then read each other's acrostics as the meal begins.