If you want to have fun with your kids, you should consider interesting and engaging activities such as seasonal crafts. I don’t know about you, but I simply love creating turkey crafts for Thanksgiving. In fact, I am so into this type of project that I am constantly thinking about it once autumn comes. Making these kinds of crafts is suitable for all age groups, from small kids such as toddlers to preschoolers and beyond.
In today’s post, you will discover plenty of interesting ideas on how to create beautiful turkey crafts, using all sorts of tricks, tips, and materials like paper bags, clay, etc. These projects will keep your kids busy while encouraging them to do something enjoyable and expand their creativity.
5 DIY Turkey Crafts
1. Painted Turkey Handprint Crafts
This idea is definitely one of the best turkey crafts for kids. It is an excellent way to keep track of your child’s development by comparing current handprints with previous ones. The handprint method is an oldie but goodie craft for Thanksgiving that has maintained its popularity over the years. Finished projects can be used as homemade decorations or small special gifts for the grandparents.
Painted Turkey Handprint Craft Supplies
Painted Turkey Handprint Craft Instructions
First of all, you must paint the entire palm of your child’s hand, using the brown color. Then, go creative when you reach the fingers. For each finger, choose a different color from the ones that remain once you exclude brown. Help your kid press his or her palm onto the paper. This will create the turkey handprint which is the bird’s body with the thumb being the turkey’s head.
Wait until the handprint dries and then add some extra characteristics such as eyes, beaks, and feet. Allow your child to do this with markers. For an extra touch or a greater effect, you could use jiggly eyes which are tiny plastic supplies that mimic eyeballs.
2. Handprint Turkey Hat Crafts
This is another great and creative idea that many parents enjoy doing with their children. It is another project that requires your kid’s handprint but this time it isn’t painted anymore. Instead, you will have to draw your child’s handprint on several papers and then cut them out.
Handprint Turkey Hat Supplies
- A black marker;
- Different shades of construction paper – mostly brown, orange, and yellow but also small parts of white and red;
- Glue, stapler, or tape.
Handprint Turkey Hat Instructions
Start with the brown paper and cut two wide strips. Measure your child’s head and adjust the strips accordingly and then connect them by stapling them together or taping them. The next step is creating the eyes. Cut two white medium-sized circles. As I mentioned before, you must now cut three different handprints of your child; each one should be of a different color. I prefer red, yellow, and orange.
Use the brown paper to make the turkey’s head and encourage your little one to glue a beak and two eyes on it. With the marker, make two black circles in the middle of the white shapes that represent the eyeballs. The beak can be made from orange paper and has an asymmetrical triangle shape. You can also use cardboard instead of paper if you want a thicker and more solid structure.
All three handprints must be glued on the strips you made initially and then, the head with the eyes and the beak will be placed on top of the handprints. You can also make the feet of the turkey by cutting two thin strips of orange paper and then glue them on the inside of the hat.
3. Stuffed Paper Bag Turkey Crafts
Stuffed Paper Bag Turkey Supplies:
- One brown paper lunch bag;
- Construction paper in the following colors: brown, orange, yellow, and red;
- A couple of plastic grocery bags;
- A stapler;
- One black marker;
- White paper or cardboard;
- Glue;
- A pair of scissors.
Stuffed Paper Bag Turkey Instructions:
Open the paper bag and place the plastic bags inside it. Fold the edges in the top part of the bag to create a pointy shape and staple those folds down. Scrunch the bags together by pushing the top part of the paper lunch sack down. Create a turkey head shape from cardboard or brown construction paper. Use orange paper to create the beak and red paper for the wattle.
For the eyes, together with your child, create two round shapes from white paper and then two smaller circles from black paper. Glue all these features on the brown paper shape that represents the head. Now, it is time to finish the entire project by stapling the head to the folded lunch bag. As for the finishing touch, you must create the turkey’s feathers from three different colors of cardboard or paper: yellow, orange, and red.
Spread the “feathers” out like a fan and glue or staple them at the bottom part of the lunch sack. I, for one, use the stapler to fix the feathers on the turkey’s “body” and then use a little glue in those places where the feathers touch each other to make sure they remain stable and don’t move around.
4. Coffee Filter Turkey Craft
If your child is bored, I know just the right activity to make him or her snap out of it. This is one of the funniest and most exciting turkey crafts for toddlers.
Coffee Filter Turkey Craft Supplies:
- A coffee paper filter;
- Paintbrush;
- A pair of scissors;
- Glue;
- Watercolor paints;
- Googly eyes;
- Different colors of craft foam (red, orange, and brown).
Coffee Filter Turkey Instructions:
Fold the coffee filter and then paint it brown using the watercolor paints. Wait for the paint to dry. Meanwhile, you can use the brown foam to create a 4-inch circle. I used a small bowl to come up with the perfect size and shape. Using the same brown foam as before, cut a 2-inch circle and glue it onto the bigger circle. Place the coffee filter behind the larger circle and glue them together.
Make a turkey beak from orange paper or cardboard by drawing a triangle and cutting it out. Make the feet from the same paper. For the gobbler, you can use red foam. Place both the beak and gobbler on the smallest circle and glue them on it. Then, add the jiggly eyes and attach the feet in the back of the coffee filter.
5. Popsicle Stick Turkey Craft
This idea is one of the most creative turkey crafts for preschoolers. First of all, you must prepare all the necessary supplies. It will be fun to do this, especially for your kid because he or she can eat plenty of ice cream to gather all the sticks you need.
Popsicle Stick Turkey Craft Supplies:
- Popsicle sticks;
- Googly eyes;
- Scissors;
- Markers;
- Construction paper in the following shades: orange, red, brown;
- Hot glue – glue gun
- regular glue.
Popsicle Stick Turkey Instructions:
First, you must color all the popsicle sticks. Do this together with your child. Use fall-inspired markers like brown, red, yellow, and orange. I believe that six sticks will be enough. They will represent the turkey’s feathers. Then, glue all the sticks together by using hot glue from a glue gun. Place them in the shape of a fan before gluing them together.
Until the glue dries off, you should start working on the bird’s body. Cut out two circles from a brown construction paper. One circle should be larger than the other. Cut the beak and legs from orange paper and the snood from red paper. It’s time to glue all the parts. The smaller circle is the head on which you must place the eyes, the beak, and the snood.
Finally, glue the entire body on top of the fan shape made from popsicle sticks. If you want to make this craft a Thanksgiving centerpiece, you can add an extra stick to the bottom part of the craft which will allow the finished product to stand upright.
The Best Turkey Crafts Ideas to Consider – Bottom Line
All of the above ideas are great, entertaining, and fun turkey crafts for toddlers, preschoolers, and kids in general. So, if you want to have fun with your little one this Thanksgiving, you should definitely give these projects a try. Most importantly, all of these products are easy to make and they will engage your child in something other than watching TV or playing video games all day long. Basically, it is an old-school kind of fun!
Looking for other holiday craft ideas?
We've got so many other easy holiday craft ideas you can try with your kiddos.
- Celebrate your holidays like a Brit with a DIY Kings Crown.
- Another favorite in our household that never gets old is homemade Apple Cinnamon Play dough
- The other favorite holiday we love making crafts for is Valentine's Day and we love making Valentine's Day Straw Toppers
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