Make a What-I'm-Thankful-For Placemat

With a table laden with turkey, gravy, stuffing, and pumpkin pie, it’s easy to come up with reasons to give thanks this holiday season. But Thanksgiving is a great excuse to pause and give thanks for more than what’s sitting on the table. This activity gives kids a chance to make a cute collage of things that make them happy, and it’s perfect décor for holiday dinnertime, or any day of the year!

What You Need:

• Pictures of family and friends
• magazines (ones you’re willing to cut up!)
• glue stick
• child safe scissors
• construction paper
• clear contact paper

What You Do:

1. Sit your child down with a pile of magazines and a stack of photos and ask her to think about what she’s thankful for this year. Is it friends? Family? A special vacation you took together? A favorite toy? Give her the scissors, and ask her to cut out pictures to represent the things she wants to give thanks for this holiday season.
2. Once she’s got all her pictures, hand her the glue stick and have her lay them out in collage fashion on a piece of construction paper. When the glue dries, add clear contact paper, or take the collage to the local copy store and ask them to laminate it.

Voila! A wonderful way to pause and take stock of the year. And a great decoration for the holiday dinner table!