Looking for an easy craft for your family? Or an easy way to to introduce gratitude to your children. Look no further! This is an easy way to include your kids in the decorations for your Thanksgiving dinner. It is also a wonderful way to teach them how to take a few minutes to think about another person and express gratitude for them. You can use these for any gathering big or small. If you have a small gathering, you can do this from start to finish for everyone. If you have a big group coming, you can make turkeys ahead of time and have names written and let guests write on them too. Or provide materials and let your guests make their own turkey. You can check out the video tutorial below or find instructions here. In the video we talk a little more about the importance of letting children be part of decorating and gratitude in general.
I am making these with my 3 year old daughter while my 8 month old crawls all around us. It is dumping snow outside and I am grateful to have a job that I can work remotely from when needed! The pictures included are the actual result of what we made today, you will notice that they are by no means perfect. That isn’t the point. This is about gratitude, not perfection. Let them be what they are! Celebrate the things in life you are grateful for and the people who bring you joy. It is a great day for simple crafts and taking a moment to practice gratitude.
Materials needed:
Construction Paper
Scissors
Markers
Glue
(Googly eyes-optional)
Directions:
Step 1: Trace a hand print on a piece of construction paper. Cut it out.
Step 2: Cut out feet, beak, waddle and glue them to your hand print to make it look like a turkey. Use the thumb to make the face and the fingers will be the feathers
. 
Step 3: Write the person’s name in the middle of the hand print. Write reasons you are thankful for that person, things that you love about them, or other things you may want to share with them
.
Step 4: Use these as name plates for people you are hosting. You could also use these as cards to mail to family and friends that will not be with you for the holiday.
Pro Tips:
- If you are doing this with small children, have all materials ready to go. Have the waddle, beak, and feet cut out with glue and scissors nearby. Attention spans may be fleeting, especially for littles.
- For children who cannot write yet, interviewing them and writing responses is a fun way to go. You can also have them draw a picture on the feathers instead.
- Let it be what it is! This is not about perfection. This is about gratitude. Just now, when I was doing this with my own 3 year old, we were talking about gratitude and she just started listing things she was grateful for so I wrote those down on the feathers instead of them being for a specific person. Take a moment to recognize what you are grateful for, slow down and enjoy the moment.
