No one will dread being seated at the children’s table for Thanksgiving this year! We have some fun activities that will keep little hands busy, all while creating adorable table decor and sweet memories. Here are three decorating ideas for this year’s Thanksgiving children’s table:

Memory Tablecloth

Purchase or “donate” a white tablecloth you already own to the children’s table. Depending on the age of the kids, choose either washable markers or permanent. Permanent markers work great for keeping the tablecloth over the years, but may be a hazard with younger children. Be sure to cover the table underneath with heavy paper to avoid color bleeding onto the table.

Grab markers and choose a color scheme like yellow, brown, red and orange. Or just one or two colors. Or throw the whole box of markers in! Let little hands write what they are thankful for directly on the tablecloth. Have them sign their names, draw seasonal pictures, whatever they want! This sweet keepsake is adorable to look at each year, especially when we’re able to compare handwriting and thankfulness over the years.

Pumpkin Turkeys

Mini pumpkins are so festive for the fall season. Grab a bag at the grocery or farmers market and pile them onto the children’s table. Set each place with these supplies:

construction paper or foam pages

faux or real leaves in fall colors

googly eyes

scissors

glue stickers

For littler guests, it may be better to cut out pieces for the turkey ahead of time. Create an oval for the head, triangle for a beak, an odd shape for a gobbler, and don’t forget feet! For older kids, let their creativity run wild. They can cut out their own feathers or use the leaves to create them. Let them cut and glue to create their own unique pumpkin turkey. This is also a great project to keep your own children entertained during the dinner preparations! They can create a turkey for each place setting and even print each guests’ name on the turkey feathers as place cards.

Make a Grateful Pie

Using paper plates, glue, construction paper, pen and a brass fastener, create these adorable “grateful pies”. This is another one that could be pre-assembled for smaller guests. Place pens at each seat with a “pie” and have the guests spin the wheel to fill in what they are grateful for. Pass the pies around for everyone to read aloud.

Need some more ideas on how to get your kids involved in Thanksgiving preparations? Click to our post Three Ways to get Your Kids Involved in Thanksgiving Prep!