40 Thanksgiving Crafts for Kids to Practice Gratitude

Forty craft ideas make gratitude tangible for kids: they can build a turkey, add a note to a thankful tree, or make a card for someone they appreciate. The projects also give families something concrete to do together as Thanksgiving approaches. Gratitude is a year round lesson, of course, but a holiday can offer a useful prompt to practice it.

For ideas to keep children occupied on the day itself, see these Thanksgiving activities. You can also browse more crafts and activities, or download Thankful Conversation Starters for family conversations.

Gather ribbons, beads, googly eyes, pine cones, and other supplies, then let the kids choose a project. The range here is the point: some crafts become keepsakes, while others are simple ways to talk about what the family appreciates.

Turkey crafts that make gratitude visible

Turkeys give kids a familiar shape to work with, and the projects can be adapted for different ages and materials. If you want more turkey ideas, there’s a separate collection of turkey crafts, as well as a turkey fine motor game.

• Make a paper cup turkey from First Palette, using the cup upright or upside down; it can also become a small basket.
• Fill this jar turkey with candy for a sweet addition to the table. It’s listed as a Toddler Approved idea.
• A scrunched paper bag becomes an amusing paper bag turkey from Primary Theme Park.
• Practice shapes with the circle body, rectangular legs, and triangular beak of this round turkey from Director Jewels.
• The large thankful turkey from Busy Toddler is designed for little hands. Hang it up and add a feather each day before Thanksgiving.
• Put spare cardboard tubes to use with this toilet paper roll turkey from The Best Ideas for Kids.
• Write notes of thanks and add them to a turkey box from Living Well Mom. Open and read them together on Thanksgiving.
• Make a keepsake with the turkey book from B-Inspired Mama, or try the pop-up turkey book from Arts & Crackers, which hides a turkey inside.
• A free template helps make this turkey story window from Buggy and Buddy. Pull the tab to reveal a story.
• Invite everyone in the family to make handprint turkeys from School Time Snippets and share what they’re thankful for.
• Use turkey placemats from Mama’s Happy Hive as a prompt: the place settings are pretend, but kids can fill the gratitude list with real answers.

Bring fall leaves indoors with trees and wreaths

Autumn leaves offer a ready-made palette of red, orange, yellow, and green. These projects turn that seasonal color into decorations and give children another way to record what they appreciate. For more seasonal inspiration, see favorite fall activities and fall tree crafts. The decorations can bring fall indoors even when Thanksgiving arrives with snow.

• An adult may need to assemble the 3D thankful tree from Twitchetts, but children can add leaves of thanks once it’s ready.
• The simple thankful tree from Hands On As We Grow uses basic supplies and grows as kids add leaves.
• Paint the thankful tree from Frugal Fun 4 Boys; it can be framed as a reminder to revisit throughout the year.
• Save a child’s handprint in this handprint thankful tree from Lady of the House. The result doesn’t need to look polished to become a meaningful keepsake.
• For a no-paint version, make the handprint thankful tree from Fun Handprint Art Blog with construction paper, scissors, glue, and a writing utensil.
• The thankful wreath from Hands On As We Grow includes a free leaf template, with simpler and more detailed options for different ages.
• Layer handprints to make the handprint wreath from Coffee with Us 3.
• Add leaves to the foam wreath from Simply Designing. The source suggests pinning them on, though the blindfolded version may be less predictable.
• For more fine motor practice, decorate a clothespin wreath from Chica and Jo, keeping it simple or making it elaborate.

Get started with Thankful Conversation Starters

Make a thank you card worth sending

A handmade card turns a gratitude activity into a gesture someone else can receive. Choose a recipient and try one of these approaches; printable options are also available in the thank you cards for kids collection.

• Reveal hidden words with crayon resist cards from Happy Hooligans.
• Make bright rainbow thank you cards from Meaningful Mama. If you don’t have a thank you stamp, write the words on the front.
• Use painter’s tape to create the tape resist card from Just Measuring Up. Peel the tape when the paint has started to dry but is not fully dry, which helps avoid tearing the paper.
• Keep the holiday theme with the handprint turkey card from School Time Snippets, complete with a small bow.
• Turn fingerprints into turkeys, other creatures, or even letters with the fingerprint cards from The Mad House.
• Cards can go to people who live in the house, too. Make DIY mailboxes from Hands On As We Grow and leave thank you notes inside for a Thanksgiving morning surprise.

More ways for kids to show thanks

These projects range from quick paper crafts to activities that can become part of the family’s Thanksgiving routine. For another seasonal idea, see this Thanksgiving leaf stamp tablecloth.

• Make a wall decoration with the garland of thanks from Mama Papa Bubba. If large leaves aren’t available for stamping, children can paint leaf shapes on white paper and continue with the project.
• Draw what you appreciate on small paper hearts for this grateful heart craft from Craft to Heart.
• Make marbled gratitude leaf ornaments from Rhythms of Play. The effect recalls this marbled sensory art activity.
• Construction paper, a toilet paper roll, tape, and markers are the basic supplies for these gratitude pumpkins from The Joys of Boys. Pumpkin crafts can work beyond Halloween.
• For a very simple group activity, create a gratitude wall like the one from What Do We Do All Day. Painter’s tape can hold the cards in place.
• Write or draw thankful thoughts on strips of construction paper, then connect them into a thankful chain from Hands On As We Grow. Staple or tape the strips together and hang the chain up.
• Make a thankful pie wheel from Natural Beach Living. Letter stickers offer fine motor practice, but writing directly on the pie works too.
• The thankful pumpkin pie wheel from Kaplan puts whipped topping around the edge rather than in the middle.
• Write messages on flower petals with the thankful flower sun catcher from the OT Toolbox; its stems catch the light.
• Use Thanksgiving conversation starters from Hands On As We Grow. A tinted glass mason jar can hold the prompts and serve as a centerpiece.
• Decorate a thankful jar from Buggy and Buddy with tissue paper. It can also store conversation prompts.
• Color together on a thankful table banner from Art Bar Blog; adults can join in too.
• Paint or decorate gratitude stones from Fireflies and Mudpies as reminders to notice small things and share a kind gesture with someone.

More Thanksgiving crafts to explore

• Pumpkin crafts for kids
• Non-turkey Thanksgiving crafts and activities
• Native American Heritage crafts and books
• Simple fall activities for toddlers
• Leaf crafts for kids
• Fall art projects
• Pumpkin activities for kids
• Fall tree crafts and projects

The Thankful Conversation Starters download can help families talk about gratitude at dinner or in the morning, throughout November or whenever it’s useful.

What does your family do on Thanksgiving?

Share your activities and traditions.