Kid-Friendly Crafts for the Thanksgiving Table

Thanksgiving gatherings involve the time-honored tradition of turkey and favored side dishes, but what are guests to do while waiting for dinner to be ready to consume? Here are three fun activities for guests of all ages to complete before it’s time to assemble around the table for the Thanksgiving feast.

Provide Craft Materials

Before settling on what crafts to provide for your guests, make sure you have the necessary materials for them to unleash some Thanksgiving creativity. Take a look around your house to see what you might already have in the cupboards and drawers, then purchase any other materials needed on sale to save a little extra cash. These craft materials can include:

• paint
• sponge brushes
• beads
• segments of hemp or leather
• stamps and ink
• felt or other fabric pieces
• markers
• cardstock and construction paper
• feathers
• adhesive, like tape or glue in different forms

Once you have a good idea of the materials you already have or want to purchase, you can decide which Thanksgiving crafts would be ideal for your guests!

Placemats from Nature

Thanksgiving placemats are a traditional and fun pre-Thanksgiving dinner project. Why not combine this craft with the natural loveliness of leaves that have fallen to the ground? Cut pieces of cardstock or construction into 9” by 12” pieces, and then make a variety of ink and paints available for your guests to put on the leaves and stamp their own beautiful placemats. Choose paint colors to reflect the season, such as luminescent gold and red or vibrant yellows and oranges, or offer a wide variety of unusual colors to create individual works of art.

Craft with Feathers

Hunting for an actual turkey isn’t possible for the majority of our Thanksgiving gatherings, but it’s possible to hunt for the turkey feathers that can later be used in crafts for the Thanksgiving Table. Buy a wide range of feathers in different sizes and colors and hide them around your house, then have kids hunt for them as a fun Thanksgiving Day activity. These feathers can then be used to create personalized dream catchers, decorative arrows, or turkey-themed placemats.

Teepees for the Tabletop

It’s important to remember that the celebration of Thanksgiving provides kids and adults alike the opportunity to find out more about early Native Americans and how they lived. Some American Indian cultures used teepees, which are easy to make and decorate for the Thanksgiving table.

Use heavy-duty tag board – reuse any manila folders you might have lying around in your office – or cardstock and create a cone shape. Start at one corner of the paper and roll it so that it makes a cone – this may take some experimentation to achieve the size and shape that you want. Have your guests do some research on the internet regarding cultures of American Indians who primarily used Teepees to find inspiration for decorating the outside of the teepees. Cut the top of the teepee in order to place three small twigs found in your front or back yard to complete your Thanksgiving craft.

These crafts provide your guests with fun and interesting crafts that offer a chance to practice creativity while providing beautiful decorations for your Thanksgiving table.

Kelly Wilson enjoys making holiday crafts with her kids throughout the year. For tips on how to keep your teeth healthy while celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday, visit Dr. Brett Johnson, an Oregon City dentist.