Thanksgiving Kids’ Party Ideas

Gobble, gobble … Halloween has barely come and gone and the next holiday, Thanksgiving, is already well on her way. If your kid’s birthday is on Thanksgiving Day or during that holiday weekend, you want to incorporate the theme of Pilgrims, Indians, and the bountiful feast into a party theme. To create a Thanksgiving birthday, here are some ideas:

Invitations

Send out Turkey Invitations with bright feathers glued to its body. These can be found at any craft store. Using brown, orange, and deep red colors, provide the party details.

Decorations

Decorate with balloons and streamers with a cornucopia of colors, orange, brown, dark reds, purples, etc. You can also place streamers all around the party room in these colors.

For the table centerpiece, take vegetables and fruits that share these colors and make a platter of them to symbolize the harvest’s bounty, or check out the seeded glass pumpkin.

Have pumpkins, gourds, and corn stalks around the party table, the party room, and at the front entrance of the party.

Activities

When the kids arrive, have them make either a Pilgrim or an Indian attending the party. Have the kids make either a Pilgrim hat or Indian Feather Cap to distinguish the two groups from each other. This is an excellent craft that can be taken home at the end of the party. A leaf turkey is a good thanksgiving day activity for kids.  For other Thanksgiving craft ideas, check out the craft kids at Oriental Trading Company.

Making a “Harvest Necklace” is a good craft for older kids. Using string and a needle, have them string popcorn, cranberries, and dried fruit on to a necklace. Tie it off for them to wear at the party.

Recreate the story of the Pilgrims and the Indians. Tell the story in narrative fashion, and have the kids re-enact their very own first Thanksgiving tale. Make sure to have platters of bounty for the kids to bring forth during the re-enactment to share.

Related to the idea above, have a Thanksgiving storytime.  One great suggestion: The Night Before Thanksgiving.  It’s a charming twist on the famous Clement C. Moore poem, The Night Before Christmas.

Play a trivia game all around the first Thanksgiving and traditions that have evolved over time. You could play it in Jeopardy fashion, having the kids state the answers as questions.

If it is a crisp, sunny day, have some fun relay races with the Pilgrims and Indians … make them carry the “Platter of Bounty” from one end and back without spilling anything off of the plate. First team done wins! Place a dollop of cranberry sauce and cream on a large spoon and give it to the kids to carry from one end and back without it falling off the spoon … they must eat it at the end and the next person goes. Have a popcorn race: give kids popcorn that they must run and deposit into an empty bowl. First team to fill the bowl wins!

Play Cornucopia: Have the kids sit on chairs forming a circle with one leader in the middle. The leader points to each of the other players to give them a Thanksgiving name, such as “Turkey.” The leader then calls out two names, “Turkey and potato.” Those two players must quickly switch places. The leader keeps calling at a quick pace, until suddenly she says “The cornucopia has tipped over!” Everyone, including the leader, then scrambles for a new place. The player without a seat is the new leader.

Hide Mr. Turkey in the party room or outside in the yard. The kids must all try to find Mr. Turkey. You can play this with several turkeys being hidden in the yard and everyone finds them, or play it with one kid looking for Mr. Turkey and the rest of the kids helping him find the guy. They can yell out “Hotter! Colder” to help Mr. Turkey to be found!

Food

Serve mini-turkey pot pies, sweet potato fries, corn muffins, and baked beans. You could also serve turkey sandwiches cut into turkey shapes or turkey nuggets with different dipping sauces. Make it festive, but easy as well. Cranberry juice would be a good drink to serve. Check out more thanksgiving food ideas for fun T-day treats, or cook for thanksgiving with the kids.

Favors

Send home little sugar cones, with the kids’ names printed on the cones, using decorative frosting. Tie an orange ribbon and fill with plenty of small candy goodies, like mini-chocolate turkeys, to take home. There are also favor kits at Oriental Trading Company.

For even more ideas on how to celebrate a Thanksgiving birthday, check out the Thanksgiving Party Ideas page at Birthday in a Box.