Thanksgiving is a time of year when we often reflect on the things we are thankful for and grateful for.

And kids can be especially appreciative and thankful as they learn to recognize all of the good in their lives. It’s so important that kids know what it means to be thankful!

This Thanksgiving, gather the kids and make this cute thankful turkey craft from an old oatmeal container.

It’s a fun recycled activity that can help kids reflect on gratitude as well! Also, be sure to check out all of our turkey activities for kids for even more ideas.

Gratitude Turkey Craft

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Supplies

• Old oatmeal container
• Colored cardstock or construction paper
• Scissors
• Glue stick
• Glue dots
• Marker or pen
• Turkey template (enter your email in the form at the end of this post to have the link sent to you)

Directions

Download the turkey template, print, and cut out the pieces you need.

Take an 8.5″x11″ piece of brown paper and cut it down to the height of your oatmeal container (ours was 7.5″ high).

Glue the turkey eyes a little below the top of the brown paper, in the middle.

Take the turkey’s snood and glue it behind and on the side of the beak.

Position the completed beak and snood and glue it just below the eyes.

Make the turkey’s legs by folding the legs accordion style. Glue the turkey feet on one end of both of the legs.

Wrap the brown paper around the container and glue or tape it in place. There will be a gap in the back where the paper doesn’t meet, but don’t worry – it’ll be covered by the feathers.

Take the other end of the leg and attach it to the bottom and inside of the turkey cylinder. We used glue dots for this because they are strong and easy to use.

Take the feathers and have your child or students write one thing they are thankful for on each feather. Make sure it’s towards the top so you can see it once it’s glued on.

Arrange the feathers in a fan and glue them to each other. Finish the turkey by gluing (we also used glue dots here) the feathers to the back and middle of the turkey cylinder.

That’s it! This is such a cute recycled Thanksgiving craft for kids!

Thanksgiving Unit For Kids

Want to create an entire Thanksgiving study unit around this turkey craft? If so, keep reading for our favorite ideas to get you started.

Reading aloud to children is great. It helps them learn to love reading. It also helps them with their communication skills and problem-solving skills. Reading aloud can be really exciting for the child and will make their curiosity grow even more about learning new things!

Because of these reasons, we recommend starting all new units with books!

Below are some of the top Thanksgiving books for kids!

Turkey Trouble – If you’ve never read this book, you have to add it to your holiday collection! It’s so cute and fun and kids just love it! Follow the turkey around the farm as he disguises himself as different animals so the farmer doesn’t catch him for Thanksgiving dinner!

How To Catch A Turkey – Kids who love the How To Catch books will want to see all the crazy contraptions kids make to try to catch a turkey loose at the school!

Pete The Cat: The First Thanksgiving -Every Pete the Cat book is fantastic, but this one takes it up a notch with flaps for the kids to open. It’s a great way to get the kids excited about reading and Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Kids’ Crafts

Crafting is a great activity for kids because it helps with their fine motor skills, exercises creativity, and is a great way to relieve stress. It’s also a lot of fun and can create some great family memories.

Add in some more Thanksgiving crafts with these ideas:

Turkey Handprint Card Craft – This Thanksgiving, help your kids spread some extra holiday cheer by having them make these adorable turkey handprint cards. Not only are they a fun way to get your kids into the Thanksgiving spirit, but they’re also a great way to teach them about thinking of others.

Turkey Headband Craft – This turkey headband craft is perfect for kids who want to get into the Thanksgiving spirit! It’s a quick and easy project that can be done in just a few minutes, and it’s sure to put a smile on everyone’s face.

Disguise A Turkey Rainbow Craft – This Thanksgiving, don’t let the turkey become the main course! With a little creativity, you can help hide the turkey by disguising him as a rainbow. It’s a fun and colorful craft that kids will love to make.

Shape Scarecrow Craft – This fun scarecrow craft for kids is not only a great way to teach them about shape recognition, but it’s also a lot of fun to make. Use our free template and directions to have it made in no time!

Kids Thanksgiving Activities

Looking for a fun way to help your little ones work on their fine motor skills? These Thanksgiving do a dot printables are perfect! They can be used at home or in the classroom. There is so much to choose from, you won’t have any problem finding something that will keep them entertained while they learn things like letter recognition and visual discrimination.

Kids will love this fun fall play dough kit! It’s great for open-ended exploration and is perfect to keep children entertained during the holidays or anytime they just want to have some creative fun!

Help your child learn shapes and patterns while they play! Kids will have fun using these Thanksgiving pattern block mats. This activity is easy to set up – just grab your pattern blocks and print out your mats!

There are so many fun ways to celebrate Thanksgiving. One of our favorite ideas is by using coloring pages! The kids will have a blast with these turkey coloring pages and they’re great for helping them improve their fine motor skills.

Thanksgiving Fun

• Kids will love to open these Thanksgiving turkey crackers to find the surprises inside!
• Print out these giant Thanksgiving coloring pages to keep kids busy.
• These roll a turkey game pieces are perfect for the kids’ table!

Share With Us

Did you make this craft with your kids or students? We’d love to feature them on our social media!

For a chance to have your child’s craft featured, simply snap a picture of the completed project and post it to our Facebook page, email it to us directly by clicking here, or use #simpleeverydaymom on your social media!

More Thanksgiving Ideas

Free Turkey Template