Fun and Meaningful Thanksgiving Crafts for Kids

Do you remember Thanksgiving as a kid? We always made some kind of fun Thanksgiving craft at my elementary school. My mom still has the pine cone turkey that I made in third grade! I love Thanksgiving because it’s a great time to slow down, spend time with family, and remember all the things that we are grateful for.

It seems like Thanksgiving now gets lost in the Christmas shuffle. In fact, Thanksgiving seems like a one day interruption in the Christmas season! Keep Thanksgiving its own holiday with these fun Thanksgiving crafts for kids.

I’ve divided the crafts into four categories: Turkey Crafts, Thanksgiving Activities, Thanksgiving Table Decor, and Thankfulness Activities.

Turkey Crafts

Turkeys are of course some of our favorite Thanksgiving crafts for kids! So many cute ways to make one.

I absolutely adore these Pine Cone and Ribbon Turkeys from Fireflies and Mudpies!

Here’s another way to do some cute Pine Cone Turkeys from Live Craft Eat.

Preschoolers will enjoy making these fun Paper Roll Turkeys. Feathers from the craft store are a favorite craft supply for kids!

Another classic craft – make some Paper Plate Turkeys. (Good scissor practice!)

Build some LEGO Turkeys! There are building instructions in the post.

Use feathers and play dough to make adorable Play Dough Turkeys.

I also love the simplicity of these Paper Cup Turkeys. Paper cups, construction paper, googly eyes, and glue! And they look cute to display.

Thanksgiving Activities

Here are some Printable Thanksgiving Coloring Pages. Kids can do these while waiting for dinner to be ready!

These Thanksgiving Dinner Painted Rocks are just brilliant! Use them in a sensory bin with other materials, or use them to serve a pretend dinner.

Make a No-Sew Play Food Turkey Dinner. You’ll be amazed at what convincing green beans you can make just by rolling up some felt and gluing it! Then make your own play food mashed potatoes and rolls. I did purchase the turkey part because hey, no-sew crafting skills do have their limit… 🙂

Then for after the turkey dinner, you’ll need some No-Sew Play Food Pies!

If your kids aren’t into play food, then maybe they’ll enjoy these Nerf Turkey Targets! Ha!

My kids are going to LOVE this Printable Thanksgiving Jokes Cootie Catcher/Fortune Teller!!

Thankfulness Activities

Turn a photo frame and some scrapbook paper into a beautiful Thankful Tree! This is such a fun craft and family tradition.

If you prefer not to make your own Thankful Tree, here’s one you can print from I Heart Naptime – Printable Thankful Tree.

Here’s a Printable Gratitude Journal to do with kids. There are 7 journal entries to complete. This is Bible based, with verses to look up and then things to write (and draw!).

I really like this Gratitude Game with Pick-Up-Sticks from Teach Beside Me.

This Daily Gratitude Pumpkin is also a lovely idea for the whole family. From Coffee and Carpool.

Print these Gratitude Cards (Thank You Cards) for kids to send. These are perfect for appreciating teachers, coaches, neighbors, friends, church leaders, and more. Teach kids to appreciate the people in their lives!

Thanksgiving Table Decor Crafts

These Thanksgiving crafts for kids will easily double as decor on your Thanksgiving table!

Use construction paper and scrapbook paper to make Turkey Placemats and Turkey Crayon Holders. We looooove scrapbook paper because of all the fun patterns! It’s such a great crafting material.

Make some Wood Slice Turkeys! These are adorable on their own, and we’ll also show you how to make them into place card holders for the Thanksgiving table.

These Turkey Napkin Rings are easy to make out of pipe cleaners and a few other basic supplies. So cute!

Use mason jars to make these Turkey Leaf Luminaries. These would look beautiful on the table!