This Thanksgiving I am working on cultivating a spirit of thanksgiving in my home. One of the ways we are pursuing this is by creating a thankfulness turkey. It’s a very easy process and it has tremendous benefits for little learners in the home.
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Although my son is only 7 months old, I firmly believe that developing a spirit of gratefulness starts with us as parents. So although my BaaBoo will have no memories of this in 5 years, we choose to start the process of learning thankfulness with him.
Together we cut out this tin turkey and feathers. Together we placed it above his small table and chairs. Each day until Thanksgiving we will sit down together and create a Thankfulness feather to place on our Turkey. During those times I often (but not every time because let’s be real) read a passage of scripture that speaks about thankfulness.
Verses for your Thankfulness Turkey
Sometimes we like to add those Bible verses to our turkey feathers. It can aid in family scripture memorization!
Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!
1 Chronicles 16:34ESV
give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1
Thessalonians 5:18
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Colossians 3:17
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6
Materials for the Thankfulness Turkey
- Tin
- Twine
- Tin Snips
- Paint Sharpie Marker
- Various Colors of Foam
Directions
- Cut the turkey outline out.
- Then place it on the tin and trace around the turkey outline with a marker.
- Using tin snips, cut the turkey shape out.
- You may also choose to drill holes in the side and hang it with twine.
- I’ve also seen people place a paper turkey outline on an empty tissue box and glued the feathers on the back of the box. It makes a nice 3D turkey! I thought this was a fantastic idea if you don’t want a tin turkey on your wall. I however love wall art!
- Using the provided feather outline, cut as many turkey feathers as you wish. I used foam materials because it is what I had available. I also have done way too many preschool projects with construction paper only to end up with the paper flopping over a few days after the project has been proudly displayed. The foam makes it a bit more durable and, to be honest, I like the look.
- As a family write out gratitude sayings on the turkey feathers and add them to your tin turkey.
- This is a great project leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday!