Thanksgiving Boredom Busters for Kids

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

22 Nov 2008 11:29 AM

Thanksgiving is not exactly the most kid-friendly of holidays. There's no gift exchange, no candy to pass out, and no chocolate covered eggs to find. This, of course, means that parents need to be particularly creative to keep their gaggle of little turkeys under control until the real bird hits the table.

If you are on the hunt for fun ways to keep boredom at bay, consider the following Thanksgiving-themed games.

DANCING WITH THE TURKEYS

This is basically a knock-off of the hit ABC reality TV show where celebs and dance pros compete in the ballroom together. In this version you'll be playing some groovy music, and ask children to move like: big turkeys, little turkeys, happy turkeys, scared turkeys, tired turkeys, sad turkeys, etc.

Another version of this game has you placing masking tape Xs in random spots on the floor of a large room. Next, play upbeat music and have the children pretend to be turkeys that strut and dance around the room. When the music stops, the turkeys need to run onto one of the Xs. Remove one of the Xs and start the music again. Whichever turkey doesn't have an X to stand on when the music stops is eliminated. Keep doing this until one X and one turkey remain.

PASS THE APPLE

Gather as many children as possible and separate them into teams with the same amount of players. Have the children line up facing each other (they can be sitting or standing). Place a chair at the front and back of each line. Place six apples on the chair at the head of each line. Then, have each player grasp the right wrist of the player to the right of him or her. The first player picks up an apple with his free hand and places it into the right hand of the player next to him, while still keeping hold of the other player's hands. The apple must be passed down the line this way and if it drops, it must be picked up without breaking the chain. If the apple falls the passing must start over again from the first person in line. When all the apples have been successfully placed on the chair at the end of the line, the game starts in reverse. The team that gets all the apples back to the original chair first is the winner.

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Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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