The big day has arrived after a lot of Thanksgiving menu planning. Thanksgiving Day is incomplete without some fun, music, and Thanksgiving games with the family. So, when everyone is full after dinner or maybe when everyone arrives before the dinner begins, you can arrange for some fun and amusement via the best games!
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In this article, we have listed down the best Thanksgiving games that you can enjoy with your kids and the whole family!
20 Best Thanksgiving Games for the Whole Family to Play Together!
1. Rip It Off
This is one of the most engaging and entertaining thanksgiving minute to win it games. The aim of this game is to tear a sheet of construction paper into the shape of a turkey.
Age Group: 7 years and above
Supplies: Construction paper, stop watch
How to Play: The challenge is to do so while holding a piece of construction paper behind your back and within a time limit — a minute is usually sufficient. Before you begin, select a judge, and the winner will be the person whose paper cutting most resembles the shape of a turkey.
2. The Great Thanksgiving Challenge
This game is a wonderful mix of fun and learning, perfect for kids and adults alike. The Great Thanksgiving Challenge uses printable worksheets filled with Thanksgiving-themed puzzles, word searches, and trivia.
Age Group: 5 years and above
Supplies: Printable worksheets, pencils, and a timer
How To Play: Download and print the Thanksgiving-themed worksheets provided below. Set a timer for 10 minutes and challenge your family members to complete as much of the worksheet as possible within the time limit. The worksheets can include crossword puzzles with Thanksgiving food items, word searches with words that signify gratitude, and trivia questions about the history of Thanksgiving.
After the timer goes off, review the answers together as a family. The person with the most correct answers wins a small prize, like getting to choose the first slice of pie!
3. The Mayflower
It is an ideal family thanksgiving game which can be played anywhere in your backyard or balcony.
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Storage container, water, cork, straws and fake flowers
How To Play: To play this game, you have to fill a large storage container with water. Give each person a small cork with a fake flower stuck into it and instruct them to place it on one end of the storage container.
To win, the player must be the first one to blow their cork from one end of the storage container to the other. They can blow on it directly or through a plastic straw. The first cork to reach the other end is the winner.
Related Reading: Fun Thanksgiving Activities for Kids to Keep Them Busy!
4. Roll with Pumpkin
This one is a funny Thanksgiving game that will have everyone in splits. This one gets everyone moving and may help burn off some of the extra calories from the big meal.
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: 3-4 large pumpkins
How To Play: You’ll need two large pumpkins, plus a couple of spares in case one breaks. As pumpkins aren’t smooth balls, they don’t roll in a straight line. They tend to roll all over the place, so plenty of room is required for this game.
Racers form a line and move the pumpkin to the finish line with their hands. Make it a thanksgiving relay race if you have a large number of participants.
Related Reading: Humorous Thanksgiving Jokes For Kids
5. Spin-the-pie Game
This is one of the best family thanksgiving games. Allow guests to spin to reveal six slices of life, such as Family, Friends, and Travel, each of which is intended to evoke a memory for which they are grateful.
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Paper plates, craft paper, pens, gold brad, hot glue, scissors, and letter stencil
How to Play: To make, divide a paper plate into six sections and write prompts in each. Make a smaller round out of colorful craft paper and cut one “slice” out for the category window. Using a gold brad, attach the wheel to the plate. Hot-glue the jute rope to the rim. Stenciled letters can be added.
Related Reading: Best Thanksgiving Wishes for Kids to Wish Family Members
6. Toss a Feather
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Feather, tape, flat and blunt nail, marker, and a basket
How To Play: Attach a weight to the end of a feather with tape. To provide stability to the feather, use a flat, blunt nail as the weight. Mark the floor with a marker and place a basket a few feet away.
Allow each participant to toss the feathers into the basket in turn. Keep track of the score to determine who the winner is.
7. Tag Turkey
Age Group: 5 and above
Supplies: Clothespins, paint, craft paper, and googly eyes
How To Play: A game of tag is a must-have for a Thanksgiving gathering, and these DIY turkey tag clothespins make it even more enjoyable.
Allow the children to paint and decorate the clothespins to resemble turkeys. Attach them to the backs of their shirts. The children are then supposed to run at the call of ‘Run Turkey Run!’ and collect turkey tags from other children’s shirts. In the end, the child with the maximum number of turkey tags is the winner.
Don’t just let the kids have a good time, be sure to join them. This is a fun Thanksgiving game for the whole family.
8. Guess Who Is Grateful
This game is one of the most fun Thanksgiving guessing games, doing justice to the name and the spirit of the festival.
Age Group: 10 years and above
Supplies: Paper chits, pens, and a basket
How To Play: As guests arrive, have them each write down what they are thankful for on a piece of paper, fold it up, and place it in a basket. After everyone has arrived, have one person read the notes aloud while the others try to figure out who wrote them.
Related Reading: Best Thanksgiving Poems for Kids to Read Aloud
9. Toss and Tell
This is a great icebreaker and interactive thanksgiving game that a group of friends or family members can have fun playing together.
Age Group: 10 years and above
Supplies: Turkey soft toy or any other soft toy
How To Play: Participants form a circle and sit in it. The first person asks a question while tossing a small turkey soft toy or a football to someone else.
For instance, who do you think will win today’s football games, or what are you grateful for today? This game allows multiple generations to interact with one another.
10. The Goblet of Fire
This one is one of my favorite thanksgiving kids games that they will look forward to playing every thanksgiving.
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Plastic or glass goblets, tables, and ping pong balls
How To Play: Lay glasses or plastic goblets on different tables on the far sides of the room for each team or player. Place orange ping pong balls on the opposite side of the room on another table.
Players must transfer three ping pong balls from the table to their goblets on the opposite side of the room to play the game.
What’s the catch? They can only touch and hold the ping pong ball between their chin and neck.
11. Mr. Turkey, Where Are You?
Age Group: 7 years and above
Supplies: stuffed turkey toy
How To Play: Depending on the weather, hide a stuffed turkey toy inside or outside your home. Designate one person from each team to find the turkey toy. The other team members provide hints to the seeker. Gobbling like turkeys provides cues. If the toy is not nearby, the team gobbles quietly. As the hunter reaches closer to the toy, the players gobble louder and louder until Mr. Turkey is found. The team or player that reaches the turkey fastest is the winner.
If you have small children, this would make a fun scavenger hunt to get them in the Thanksgiving spirit.
12. Waddle, Turkey
Age Group: 7 years and above
Supplies: Balloons
How To Play: Turkey Waddle is a silly Thanksgiving game that will get the whole family moving. This is a relay race in which you use balloons between your legs to try to cross the finish line first. It’s sure to make you laugh, and both kids and adults will enjoy it.
13. Take the Pic!
Kids enjoy taking pictures, and in this Thanksgiving game, they get to operate the camera.
Age Group: 7 years and above
Supplies: camera
How To Play: Kids will give clues about their relatives and then photograph the person who matches the clue. It’s a great way to get the kids to interact, and you’ll have the photos that will make great memories in the future.
14. Don’t Leave the Leftovers
This is one of the most exciting turkey games you can play with the family.
Age Group: 7 years and above
Supplies: Plastic or fake food, cups, and a food item
How To Play: Place a piece of plastic or fake food, such as “turkey legs,” on top of an upside-down Thanksgiving cup, with three cups and three pieces of food for each player.
To win, players must knock off three pieces of food by tossing Thanksgiving paper plates like discs from a distance like the other side of the room.
15. Twister & Thanksgiving
Age Group: 7 years and above
Supplies: Tape and a twister game
How To Play: Replace the colored dots with Thanksgiving symbols to make the classic game of twister into a Thanksgiving-themed game. To prevent ripping, completely secure pictures with tape. Twister is an excellent way to get your guests moving!
16. Race a Hand Turkey
Age Group: 7 years and above
Supplies: Craft paper, scissors, pens, and colors
How To Play: Everyone should keep track of the time as they work to draw the perfect hand turkey. The person who completes it in the shortest amount of time wins.
Here’s how you can make a turkey with your hand.
Related Reading: Fun & Unique Thanksgiving Crafts For Your Kids
17. From A to Z, be Thankful
This is one of the most fun Thanksgiving singing games that will foster bonhomie, expression, and entertainment.
Age Group : 5 and above
How To Play: A family member begins by expressing gratitude by singing a spontaneous thankful song or poem on something that begins with the letter A. The next person begins with the letter B and expresses gratitude. Continue until your family reaches the letter Z. It’s a fun game, especially for younger children still learning their ABCs.
Play and get ready for some hilarious moments with family!
18. Relay for Candy Corn
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Craft paper, scissors, pens, and colors
How To Play: Divide the children into teams and place a jar of candy corn and a small bowl for each team on one side of the lawn. Allow the kids to race through an obstacle course while holding a spoon full of candy corn.
The team with the most candy corn in their bowl at the end of 5 minutes wins.
19. Be ready for the Pie
Age Group: 5 and above
Supplies: Candy letters, whipped cream, and a bowl
How To Play: Place the candy letters in a dish and cover them with whipped cream. Participants will have to find the letters in the whipped cream to spell out the word “pie”. The fastest one in the game wins.
The catch is that they cannot use their hands!
20. 12 Days of Gratitude
Thanksgiving should teach kids about gratitude and playing thanksgiving gratitude game is a great way to do that.
Age Group: 5 and above
Supplies: Craft paper or colored paper, pens, string
How To Play: To play this, give your kid a paper cut out in the shape of a leaf and ask them to write one thing they’re grateful for each day. This will go on for 12 days before Thanksgiving. On Thanksgiving day, give them all the leaves and let them create a garland from it to hang in the living room!
Related Reading: Prayers for Children to Teach Them How to Be Grateful
21. Thanksgiving Would You Rather
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Pieces of paper, pens and a bowl
How To Play: Would you rather Thanksgiving games not only help to bring the whole family together but also break the ice. Write a few would you rather questions around thanksgiving on pieces of paper and throw them in a bowl.
Let the family members come and pick a paper one by one and answer the question as laughter ensues! This is one of my favorite thanksgiving dinner games for family and friends.
22. Pumpkin Stomp
Age Group: 4 and above
Supplies: Orange balloons, tiny gifts for everyone
How To Play: Games like this one are not just fun for the whole family but also lets you decorate your house for the big festival! For this game, you need to blow some orange balloons (for the thanksgiving spirit) and fill them up with small gifts for everyone. This can be chocolates, toys, candies, etc. Leave these balloons on the floor after they’ve had the big turkey feast and let them run around and stomp the balloons to get their gifts!
23. Thanksgiving Pictionary
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Paper, pens, a drawing board
How To Play: If you’re looking for games that keep the whole family engaged, this is a great one. To play this game, take some pieces of paper and write thanksgiving related words on each like turkey, mashed potatoes, etc. Throw these in a bowl and split the family in two teams. Each team will choose one player to draw the words on the board and the respective teams have to guess it in 30 seconds.
24. Thanksgiving Charades
Age Group: 7 and above
Supplies: Charades cards
How To Play: Thanksgiving games like this one bring the whole family together like nothing else! Divide the family into two teams. Each team will select one player to pick a charades card and act out the word to make them understand. If the team guesses correctly, they get one point.
And that’s it. These are the best DIY Thanksgiving games that you can enjoy with your whole family!
So, after going through this list, we hope you have already found your favorite games for the day. Thanksgiving is a holiday for the family. It’s a celebration of togetherness and love. It’s a celebration of being grateful for the things and blessings we have in life.
SplashLearn wishes you and your family a fun & love-filled Thanksgiving!!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How do you teach gratitude to kids on Thanksgiving?
Kids learn best by observing their parents. Practice saying a few words of gratitude before the big thanksgiving meal and encourage your kids to add and say what they’re thankful for too.
What games are best for kids under the age of 5?
The best way to keep kids under the age of 5 years engaged on thanksgiving is giving them a craft activity like painting or a sensory bucket or bag to play with.
Do games play any role in strengthening the bonds between family?
Yes, games are a great way to bond with your family members, be it kids or adults. They’re a great way to break the ice and bring you closer to your loved ones.
