Thanksgiving Games for Older Kids

As Thanksgiving Day draws near, it is fun to get your kids excited about the holiday by involving them in some activities, crafts, and games. While the younger kids in your group are relatively easy to please, sometimes it is the older kids in your group that are harder to entertain. Not only do your games need to be more intellectual, but you have got to at least spark an interest in your older kids to get them to agree to participate. The Internet is a great resource when it comes to finding more age appropriate activities for your kids. By searching for Thanksgiving games, you can actually find interactive games online that are much like video games, which most older kids enjoy. Other good ideas for games that older kids can play are games that challenge them and cause them to have to think. Crossword puzzles and word searches are good game ideas for older kids because you can find them, or even make them yourself, at a difficulty level that matches the abilities of your child. Here are a few more ideas for Thanksgiving activities that even the older kids would be excited to play:

Hoop Sticks

Hoop Sticks is a game that actually teaches a little bit of history. Hoop Sticks is a Native American game that you can teach your children about and play by using simple household items. All that you need is a 12″ wooden dowel or stick for each player and yarn, string or twine, at a length of about 18″ per stick. You simply tie the yarn to the end of the stick and make a “hoop” at the other end (Don’t worry it gets more challenging). The object of the game is to catch the “hoop” with the end of your stick using only one hand!  If you are familiar with the Mexican Balero game, the same principles apply. For variations on the game, you can wrap the hoop in masking tape, making it slightly easier to control where the hoop falls. You can also decorate your sticks with Native American symbols, feathers or beads.  You can involve a whole group of people by having everyone first make their Hoop Stick and then dividing into teams. Using a timer, count how many hoops each player on each team makes in the allotted time. The team with the most hoops wins!

Make your own Mayflower and count your blessings

This game is a craft, activity and lesson all in one. You start by making a paper Mayflower. You will need a clean cardboard milk carton, a brown paper bag, construction paper in a variety of colors, glue, wood dowels, two apples, scissors, tape, and something to write with. Start by cutting one side from the milk carton (so that it looks like a boat) and cover the inside and outside with the paper from the brown paper bag. Doing this covers any milk logos and writing. Use the white paper to make the sails by cutting two large rectangles and two small rectangles. Next, use the colored paper to cut our flags for the masts of your ship. Poke the dowels through the top and bottom of each of your sails and then stick the dowel through the apple. This will help the masts to stay upright. Fill the inside of the Mayflower with slips of colored paper to begin the activity portion of this Thanksgiving Day game. Either on Thanksgiving Day, or on the days leading up to Thanksgiving, encourage your family members and those visiting your home for the holiday to take some time and use the slips of paper to write down the things that they are thankful for. On Thanksgiving Day you can read all the slips out loud and enhance the focus on our many blessings.

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