Thanksgiving Day Crafts and Activities for Everyone

Thanksgiving is a time for family gatherings. I feel blessed to enjoy my family and friends at Thanksgiving time and appreciate the fun memories that are always shared. Creating lasting reminders of Thanksgiving Day gatherings can be fun and special ways for everyone to enjoy the day even more.

Ongoing Thanksgiving Themed Scrabble Game.

Set up the board, and place a basket with the game pieces nearby.

Write down a Thanksgiving Day Theme on an index card, and let family and friends add words throughout the day.

Set up an arts and craft type table for children.

Make sure that there are enough materials for all the children.

Have Christmas crafts available so that each family will take home a special holiday decoration created by their child.

Salt dough Christmas Decorations:
Have a batch of salt dough Christmas shapes already microwaved and ready to go

Put out paints, markers, glitter, and whatever decorative add- ons you can think of and let the kids decorate their own Christmas tree decoration to take home.

Salt Dough:

4 cups flour

1-cup salt

1-½ cups warm water

Mix together to form dough. Knead and layout on floured surface. Use Christmas -shaped cookie cutters to make cutout decorations. Microwave approximately 2-4 minutes depending on your microwave and how many decorations you have on a plate. Let the dough cool before decorating. This should make at least a dozen decorations.

Thanksgiving Day Wreath

Have a large cut out cardboard wreath placed on a table. Have construction paper in fall colors of red, gold, brown, and orange nearby. Also have pencils and scissors and glue. Every guest, adults and children, can take a moment to trace and cut out their own handprint. On their print, they can write down what they are thankful for and then glue their handprint on the wreath. Add a pretty ribbon or bow when the wreath is done. Each year at Thanksgiving time, the wreaths can be shared again, and new ones made.

Tournament Game

A fun tradition at Thanksgiving Gatherings is an annual tournament of some sort. A silly game of pick up stix, football, a board game are just a few ideas. Just make sure that each year the same game is played. A tournament trophy can be given out each year to make this tradition even more fun.

Pictures

A picture galleria is fun for everyone to look at and reminisce. Have pictures and mementos of gatherings past for displayed in scrapbooks, or on poster boards or in decorative baskets.

Pinecone Turkey Craft

Pinecones in a basket with Fall colored construction paper already cut in shapes of feathers makes for a fun and easy craft project for the kids. The kids can stick the "feathers" into the pinecone crevices to make a turkey. Have cut out turkey heads also and some glue, so these can be added to the pinecones.

Mittens

Kids will love taking home a pair of warm winter mittens as a Thanksgiving Day memento. Mittens in red, yellow, orange and brown can be decorated with glue and Thanksgiving trinkets and beads.

Creating warm happy memories of Thanksgiving Day Gatherings is a way to preserve family tales and stories for years to come. Very few opportunities come along in our busy lives to spend quality time with family and friends. Treasure such times and make them as special as can be with lasting memories and traditions.