Thanksgiving Games for Kids

For cousins of 6 to 11 while the grown-ups cook and talk: press Pick 3 new games.

Thanksgiving Games for Kids

  1. Secret Thank-You Notes Under the Plates1. Each player draws the name of a grown-up at the dinner from a hat. 2. They write that person a two-line note about one thing to thank them for. 3. Before the meal, each note is slipped under the right plate without being seen. 4. A writer scores if the grown-up finds the note and cannot say who wrote it. Ages 9 to 11. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: slips with names, note paper and pens.
  2. Feather Pairs, Face Down1. Cut twelve paper feathers and color a dot on the back of each, two feathers for each of six colors. 2. Lay them dot side down in rows. 3. On a turn, a player flips two. A matching pair is kept, and the player goes again. 4. Feathers that do not match are turned back over. The most pairs wins. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 5. Time: 10 min. Props: twelve paper feathers and crayons.
  3. Pin the Feather on the Turkey1. Tape a large paper turkey with no tail to a door, at the children's shoulder height. 2. Each child gets a paper feather with their name on it and a loop of tape on the back. 3. One at a time, a child closes their eyes or wears a blindfold and walks to the door with a grown-up beside them. Nobody is spun, and nobody runs. 4. The feather is stuck where the hand first touches. The feather closest to the tail wins. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: a large paper turkey, paper feathers, tape and a blindfold.

Next step Thanksgiving games for the whole house

How it works

These Thanksgiving games for kids are for the children's corner of a family Thanksgiving: cousins of 6 to 11, at home, while the grown-ups cook and talk. Each game gives its ages, and no food is raced or thrown.

Read the full guide

Thanksgiving themed games for kids, by age

Choose Ages 6 to 8, Ages 9 to 11 or Mixed cousins of 6 to 11 in the All games menu, and the list keeps the games written for that band.

Through the afternoon

1. Before the meal, start with the Turkey and feather games in the living room. 2. Move to the Corn and harvest-table games while the table is still free. 3. Seat everyone with the Quiet table games as the food comes out. 4. Keep the Thankful games for dessert.

Tips
  • Give the oldest cousin the timer and the score sheet: a job keeps a ten-year-old in the game.

Questions and answers

What Thanksgiving games can kids play at the table?

The Quiet table games are made for it. Read My Lips: Name the Dish needs paper and pencils, Spin the Spoon: The Handle Picks Who Answers a spoon, and Silent Supper: Two Minutes in Mime only a timer.

What can a 6 year old and an 11 year old play together?

Choose Mixed cousins of 6 to 11. Those games pair an older cousin with a younger one, or run on drawing and guessing, so the six-year-old does more than watch.

Are there games for children under 6?

Not on this list, which starts at age 6. Children of 3 to 5 have a page of their own, Thanksgiving games for preschoolers, with shorter games, no reading and nobody out.

What are the thankful games?

Games about what a child is glad of, built so that nobody has to make a speech: Thankful Chain: Read a Link, Guess the Writer, Act Out What You Are Glad Of and A Cheer for the Cooks.

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All 28 games

Turkey and feather games 7

  • Disguise the Paper Turkey, the Grown-Ups Guess 1. Each cousin gets a plain paper turkey and ten minutes with crayons, paper scraps and glue. 2. The job is to disguise the turkey as something else: a mail carrier, a cactus, a bowl of fruit. 3. Line the turkeys up on the mantel, unsigned. 4. The grown-ups guess what each turkey is pretending to be. A disguise they guess at once scores, and so does the one that fools them longest. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 15 min. Props: paper turkeys, crayons, paper scraps and glue.
  • Feather Pairs, Face Down 1. Cut twelve paper feathers and color a dot on the back of each, two feathers for each of six colors. 2. Lay them dot side down in rows. 3. On a turn, a player flips two. A matching pair is kept, and the player goes again. 4. Feathers that do not match are turned back over. The most pairs wins. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 5. Time: 10 min. Props: twelve paper feathers and crayons.
  • Five Feathers in a Row: Rebuild the Order 1. One player lays five feathers of different colors in a row behind a propped-up book. 2. The book is lifted for five seconds, then put back. 3. The others each build the same row from their own five feathers. 4. A point for every feather in the right place. Add a sixth feather when someone gets all five. Ages 9 to 11. Players: 2 to 6. Time: 5 min. Props: five craft feathers in different colors for each player, and a book.
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Turkey and feather games, continued

  • Follow the Turkey Tracks, Skip the False Trail 1. A grown-up or an older cousin draws three-toed tracks on slips of paper and lays a trail through the house to a hidden paper turkey. 2. At two places the trail forks, and one branch ends at a slip that says not this way. 3. The children follow the tracks together, heel to toe. 4. Whoever finds the turkey lays the next trail with a helper. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 10 min. Props: paper slips with tracks drawn on them and a paper turkey.
  • Keep the Feather Off the Floor, Plates Fanning 1. Each pair of cousins, one older and one younger, has two paper plates and one light feather. 2. On go, the feather is thrown up, and the pair fans it from below to keep it in the air. 3. The plates may not touch the feather. 4. A grown-up times each pair until the feather lands. The longest flight wins. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 2 to 12 in pairs. Time: 5 min. Props: two paper plates and a light craft feather for each pair.
  • Match the Hand Turkey to the Hand 1. Each cousin traces one hand on paper, out of sight of the others, and turns the outline into a turkey. 2. Nobody signs their drawing. 3. Shuffle the turkeys and lay them out. Everyone writes down which hand they think made each one. 4. Check by laying hands on the paper. The most right matches wins. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 10 min. Props: paper and crayons.
  • Pin the Feather on the Turkey 1. Tape a large paper turkey with no tail to a door, at the children's shoulder height. 2. Each child gets a paper feather with their name on it and a loop of tape on the back. 3. One at a time, a child closes their eyes or wears a blindfold and walks to the door with a grown-up beside them. Nobody is spun, and nobody runs. 4. The feather is stuck where the hand first touches. The feather closest to the tail wins. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: a large paper turkey, paper feathers, tape and a blindfold.

Corn and harvest-table games 7

  • A Handful of Kernels: Guess, Then Count 1. Pour dry corn kernels into a bowl. 2. Each child says a number, then takes one handful. 3. Children count their own kernels into piles of ten. 4. The closest guess wins the round. Then guess for a grown-up's hand. Kernels are small: play at a table, away from children under three. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 10 min. Props: a bowl of dry corn kernels.
  • Draw a Maze Through the Cornfield 1. Each player draws a field on paper: a start at one edge, a scarecrow in the middle and an exit at the far edge. 2. In five minutes they fill it with paths, at least three of them dead ends. 3. Trade papers. 4. Solve the maze you were handed with a finger first, then a pencil. The designer of the last maze to be solved wins. Ages 9 to 11. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 15 min. Props: paper and pencils.
  • Heavier or Lighter? Then the Kitchen Scale 1. Put two things from the harvest table side by side: a squash and three potatoes, an ear of corn and an onion. 2. Everyone points at the one they think is heavier. Lifting is allowed for the youngest only. 3. Weigh both on the kitchen scale. 4. A point for each right call. The winner of five rounds chooses the pairs for the next five. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: a kitchen scale and vegetables from the table.
  • How Many Chair Legs in the Dining Room? 1. Everyone sits where they cannot see under the table. 2. Each child guesses the number of chair legs and table legs in the dining room, added together. 3. Count aloud together, crawling is allowed. 4. The closest guess picks the next thing to count: forks on the table, shoes by the door. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: none.
  • How Many Cups Fill the Big Bowl? 1. Stand the biggest serving bowl in the sink, empty. 2. Every cousin guesses how many cups of water it will take to fill it to the brim. 3. The youngest pours and the oldest counts aloud. 4. The closest guess picks the next thing to measure: a pan, a pitcher, a boot. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: a large serving bowl, a cup and a sink.
  • One Word in Kernels, Read by the Others 1. Each player gets a cup of dry corn kernels and a sheet of dark paper. 2. In three minutes, each one spells a word to do with the day in kernels, hidden behind a propped-up book. 3. Books down. Everyone walks around the table and reads the words. 4. Vote for the neatest lettering. Nobody may vote for their own. Kernels are small: play at a table, away from children under three. Ages 9 to 11. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 10 min. Props: dry corn kernels, cups, dark paper and books to hide behind.
  • Sort the Kernels From the Beans, in Pairs 1. Mix a cup of dry corn kernels and a cup of dry beans in a bowl for each pair. 2. An older and a younger cousin work together with a spoon each. 3. Kernels go in one cup and beans in the other. Fingers do not touch them. 4. After three minutes, the pair with the fewest left in the bowl wins. Kernels are small: play at a table, away from children under three. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 2 to 12 in pairs. Time: 5 min. Props: dry corn kernels, dry beans, a bowl, two cups and two spoons for each pair.

Thankful games 8

  • A Cheer for the Cooks 1. The cousins have ten minutes in another room to write a cheer of four lines for whoever cooked. 2. It must name two dishes and include one clap and one stamp. 3. Every cousin has a line or a move, the youngest included. 4. Perform it in the kitchen doorway just before the meal is served. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 15 min. Props: paper and a pencil.
  • Act Out What You Are Glad Of 1. Each player thinks of one thing they are glad to have: a dog, a bike, a bunk bed, a big sister. 2. One at a time, a player acts it without speaking. 3. The others guess. 4. The first right guess scores for both the guesser and the actor, so nobody acts badly on purpose. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Colored Straws: Each Color Asks for a Kind of Thanks 1. Put drinking straws of four colors in a cup, and agree what each color asks for: a person, a place, a food, a thing you can do. 2. A child closes their eyes and draws a straw. 3. They name one thing of that kind that they are glad of. 4. The straw goes back and the cup moves on. No answer may be used twice. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: drinking straws in four colors and a cup.
  • Draw Four Glad Things, the Table Guesses 1. Each child folds a sheet of paper into four boxes. 2. In each box they draw one thing they are glad of, with no words. 3. One at a time, a child holds the sheet up, and the others guess each box. 4. A drawing guessed at once scores a point for its artist. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 10 min. Props: paper and crayons.
  • One Kind Thing for the Cousin in the Chair 1. One cousin sits in a chair facing the others. 2. Each of the others says one true, kind thing about something that cousin did this year. 3. The cousin in the chair may only say thank you. 4. Trade places until everyone has sat in the chair. A grown-up sits in last. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: a chair.
  • Say Thanks Without Saying Thanks 1. A player draws a slip naming someone in the house and something that person did today: Grandpa carved, Aunt Jo drove. 2. In twenty seconds the player thanks them aloud without the words thank, thanks or grateful. 3. The others listen for a slip. 4. A clean twenty seconds scores a point. The person thanked is told afterward. Ages 9 to 11. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 10 min. Props: slips of paper and a timer.
  • Secret Thank-You Notes Under the Plates 1. Each player draws the name of a grown-up at the dinner from a hat. 2. They write that person a two-line note about one thing to thank them for. 3. Before the meal, each note is slipped under the right plate without being seen. 4. A writer scores if the grown-up finds the note and cannot say who wrote it. Ages 9 to 11. Players: 2 to 10. Time: 10 min. Props: slips with names, note paper and pens.
  • Thankful Chain: Read a Link, Guess the Writer 1. Each cousin writes one thing they are glad of on a strip of paper. A younger one can say it to an older one, who writes it down. 2. Strips are looped and stapled into one chain, writing side in. 3. At dessert, a grown-up tears off one link at a time and reads it out. 4. The cousins guess who wrote it. The chain goes on until every link is read. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 15 min. Props: paper strips, pens and a stapler.

Quiet table games 6

  • The Drawing Goes Around, a Line a Cousin 1. One sheet of paper and one pencil start with the youngest child. 2. Each child adds a single line, straight or curved, and passes the paper on. 3. Nobody says what they think the picture is. 4. After three times around the table, everyone says what they see. Agree on a title and sign it. Ages 6 to 8. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: a sheet of paper and a pencil.
  • Guess How Many Thank-Yous Before Dessert 1. Before the meal, each player writes a guess: how many times will the words thank you be said at the grown-ups' table before dessert? 2. One player keeps a tally on a napkin, out of sight. 3. Nobody tells the grown-ups. 4. At dessert, read out the tally and the guesses. The closest wins. Ages 9 to 11. Players: 2 to 8. Time: 5 min. Props: paper, a pencil and a napkin.
  • Portrait of the Cousin Opposite, Eyes Up 1. Each cousin has a pencil and a sheet of paper. 2. For one minute, everyone draws the person sitting opposite them without once looking at their own paper. 3. Pencils down. Hold the portraits up at the same moment. 4. Each sitter signs the portrait of themselves. The artists keep them. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 2 to 12. Time: 5 min. Props: paper and pencils.
  • Read My Lips: Name the Dish 1. One cousin picks a dish that is on the table today. 2. They mouth its name three times, slowly, with no sound. 3. The others read their lips and write down a guess. 4. A right guess scores a point. Sweet potato casserole is harder than it looks. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: paper and pencils.
  • Silent Supper: Two Minutes in Mime 1. Set a timer for two minutes. 2. Until it rings, nobody at the children's table may speak. Everything is asked for in mime: the rolls, the butter, more water. 3. A cousin who speaks holds a spoon on their nose for ten seconds, in silence. 4. When the timer rings, everyone says what they were trying to ask for. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 12. Time: 5 min. Props: a timer.
  • Spin the Spoon: The Handle Picks Who Answers 1. Lay a spoon in the middle of the table. 2. One cousin asks a question, such as: what was the best thing you ate this year? 3. The asker spins the spoon. Whoever the handle points to answers. 4. That cousin asks the next question and spins. Ages 6 to 11. Players: 3 to 10. Time: 5 min. Props: a spoon.

How this list was compiled: Written by the Game Night Generator editors on 2026-10-03 for the children at a family Thanksgiving, cousins of 6 to 11 at home while the grown-ups cook and talk, in our own words. Player ranges, minutes and ages are our estimates. No food is raced, eaten for points or thrown, no child dresses as or acts a people, and nothing is said about the history of the holiday. The line about small kernels follows the federal rule on small parts and children under three, 16 CFR 1500.19, read on 2026-10-03: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/1500.19 Licence: own work