These Thanksgiving Gratitude Activities for kids are perfect for all ages to join in on the fun.
What better way to be thankful for all the things in their life than by listing and drawing them out? Teaching kids about gratitude and having them share what they think doesn’t have to be boring or hard.
Once the kids realize that being grateful can be fun, they’ll be more inclined to do additional gratitude activities, like a gratitude journal for kids and a gratitude tree.
Jump to:
Why is it Important to Teach Children Gratitude?
Teaching children to be grateful not only benefits them right now, but it’s also setting them up for greater overall well-being as they grow up. Here are just a few of those benefits:
Emotional Well-Being
When your kids learn to regularly express gratitude, it will cause them to have more joy, happiness and contentment about their life. If they’ve had a stressful day, finding something to be grateful for will help them feel less stress and anxiety.
Learning how to look for the things about themselves that they’re grateful for, will increase your child’s self-esteem and self-confidence. They’ll also learn to be more resilient because they will know how to look for the good in the bad/tough situations.
Social Skills
Children who practice gratitude are more likely to show kindness and generosity towards others. When they see all of the things to be grateful for in their own life, they’ll want to be more kind to others who aren’t as fortunate.
Kids will learn to be more empathetic toward others. As they learn to understand themselves better and the things that make them happy, they’ll be able to understand others better.
Physical Health
We know that stress can affect you physically, so when children learn to be more grateful and they have less stress, their bodies will feel better too. Plus, it will make it easier for them to sleep at night because they’ll feel more relaxed.
If you’re wondering how to teach kids to be grateful, mixing it with family fun activities is the best, like this Thanksgiving gratitude game. Not only will they be excited to join in on the fun but they’ll love having their own printable that they can complete and build confidence while doing so.
Dare I say that they’ll be “grateful” for sitting down and taking the time to write and draw out what they love about their lives?!
Creative Ways to Use This Thanksgiving Gratitude Game
Make a Gratitude Scavenger Hunt
Once the kids list out everything that they’re thankful for, see if you can turn it into a scavenger hunt around the house. Have the kids run around and find the items that they listed on the free printable.
Use Their Skills
Once your children have written down their skills that they’re grateful for, depending on their age, either have them research things they can use their skills for to help others, or you can research it together. Then, make plans to go do that activity together as a family or as something they can do with their friends.
Plan a Family Outing
In this game, the kids are asked to name the places they’re grateful for. If there’s a place that’s affordable, maybe you can go ahead and plan a trip there together.
Plus, you might be surprised to see that at least one of the places they listed is a friend or family member’s house, or a place that you frequent, so it might be really easy to increase the times you all go to that location.
Write a Gratitude Letter to a Family Member
The easiest way to show gratitude is to spread that knowledge to someone else in the family. Since one of the parts of this game is to list the people they’re thankful for, a quick hand-written note is a perfect way to share the love.
Equipment Needed / Helpful Tools for Printables
Printer: This one is a great budget printer. If youโre willing to spend just a little more though, this is a better option. And if youโre looking for an all-in-one home office machine, this one does it all, has high reviews and includes 2 years of ink.
Ink cartridges: Speaking of ink, this is where the cost of using printables can really add up! To save BIG on ink, buy it from CompAndSave.com. It’s substantially cheaper than anywhere else and they carry ink for all major printer brands and models.
Printer paper or cardstock: If youโre printing for one-time, quick use, print on regular printer paper. If you need the printout to hold up to being handled often choose cardstock.
Binder or Folder: If you’re using page protectors for your printables, binders are such an easy way to keep them together and organized. I love this colorful set. If you prefer to stick with standard white though, this set is highly rated and very affordable. And if you need larger binders, this set is terrific. If you go with folders, I like these.
Storage boxes: I like to keep a collection of coloring pages and activity sheets for kids in these plastic storage boxes that I pull out whenever I need to keep kids occupied.
Hole punch: If you don’t use page protectors but want to use binders to organize your printables, a hole puncher will be your best friend. This is the one you want if you’ll be punching holes in several pages at a time and want to do so easily. And this bargain option is ideal if you don’t mind limiting your hole punching to 2-3 pages at a time.
Markers and Pens: The right writing instrument makes a big difference! Depending on what I’m writing, I have different preferences. Here are my favorites for each type:
- Gel pens – My favorites for journaling
- Fine point permanent markers – These are my favorite for coloring
- Markers – These are my favorites for kids since there are no caps to lose and the kids can easily open and close them on their own
Clipboard: I love this clipboard for on-the-go with the kids. It has built in storage for both printables and markers or pencils. This one stands up like an easel so it perfect for holding the game board.
How to Get the Thanksgiving Gratitude Game
The Practicing Gratitude Printable is a PDF file that you can download and print over and over.
Just fill in the form below to access your copy of the Thanksgiving Gratitude Game.
Printable FAQs
Fill in the form above. After you submit the form, you’ll receive an email from “Wondermom Wannabe” with a direct link to the printable. If you do not see the email in your inbox within a few minutes, check your spam folder.
The most likely place will be in your computer’s Downloads folder. You can also select “Downloads” in your browser menu to see a list of your downloads, then simply select “Show in folder” below the file name to see where it is stored on your computer.
You’ll need a program that supports PDFS, likeย Adobe Acrobatย (which is free). Open the program, click File > Print. Select your printer and set the number of copies you want to print. Double check your print preview, then click print.
Additional Thanksgiving Fun
Keep the Thanksgiving fun going strong with some of these other fun printables and activities.
- Fun Thanksgiving Games for the Entire Family – Several great games to play on Thanksgiving day! Both indoor and outdoor games and each of them is appropriate for all ages!
- Printable Thanksgiving Jokes Napkin Rings โ These printable Thanksgiving jokes napkin rings are an easy way to bring laughter and fun to your Thanksgiving table and kids will love to tell them.
- Printable Thanksgiving Riddles For Kids – These funny printable Thanksgiving riddles are perfect for kids! Sneak them into their lunchboxes the week leading up to Thanksgiving or use them as place cards at the dinner table.
- 100 Thanksgiving Would You Rather Questions For the Whole Family – Have fun with this list of Thanksgiving Would You Rather Questions to ask your family for a memorable family-bonding event.
- Printable Thanksgiving Activities Placemats – Make Thanksgiving creative and fun with these Thanksgiving Printable Placemats. The kids can use their minds while waiting for dinner.
- Turkey Donuts You Can Make With The Kids – Get the kids in on the Thanksgiving prep and recruit them to make these adorable turkey donuts. Easy, adorable, and fun to eat.