Thanksgiving is coming up next week and I’m not entirely sure how that happened so fast. I swear I was just at the spray park applying layers of sunscreen to my three minis’. This now means we all need to get into the Turkey Day spirit. As many of you know, not only do I own a national nanny agency, The Nanny Consultant, I also homeschool my oldest and her little brothers join in on all the fun too. When I think of Thanksgiving, I think of three things: turkey, leaves on the ground and, the smell of pumpkin pie being baked in the oven. My favorite way to get into the holiday spirit is by doing crafts with my little ones’.
Your kids can create this super simple turkey by starting off the day with a leaf hunt, which has been a favorite of mine since I was a little girl. I have so many memories as a child raking up leaves into one big pile just to jump in them and spread them all over the yard again. In order to start this craft, grab a bowl and/or bag and get those little ones outside to find the perfect leaves for their very own turkey. Each turkey will need 2-4 leaves depending on how full you want your turkey’s feathers to look.
Next, you will want to run back inside and press your leaves. You can use any large, heavy book ensuring you place each leaf in between two white pieces of paper. I leave each leaf for 10 minutes; however, you can do longer if you’d like. While you’re waiting on the leaves to dry, print out a turkey that you like best. We used one we found on pjsandpaint.com.
Once you’ve printed out the turkey, have your littles ones’ color it in with either markers or crayons; no need to stay in the lines as once they are done coloring, they will be practicing their cutting skills. Having your child cut out their own turkey will help with their fine motor skills and coordination. I love when a craft is not only fun but also helps with their development.
After your turkey is colored and cut out, your leaves should be ready to be taken out of the book press. Grab a piece of construction paper and then, using a glue stick, attach each leaf to the construction paper in a fan-like shape. Then glue your turkey’s body in the center of the page slightly covering the leaf feathers.
Voila, you have the cutest leaf turkey!
Materials needed:
-A bowl or bag
-Leaves
-Glue
-Scissors
-Printable turkey of your liking - we used this one: https://pjsandpaint.com/printables/free-printable-build-a-turkey-coloring-page-printable-thanksgiving-activities-for-kids/
-Markers or crayons
-Construction paper for the background
Come follow us on Instagram as I share all of the activities we create.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Kyla Lopez
National Nanny Agency Owner - The Nanny Consultant
Homeschool Mom of Three Littles