A Generous Helping: Fun Ways Kids Can Help with Thanksgiving Prep
Celebration
Little hands and little helpers can be another thing to be grateful
for this Thanksgiving with these fun ideas.
DECORATE
With just a few simple supplies, your girl can create a centerpiece for your Thanksgiving table. A bouquet of fall flowers, like chrysanthemums, in a decorative basket or vase—or small blooms in a row of juice glasses—can give her a good place to start. A bowl of autumn gourds, acorns, sprigs of fresh herbs, and pretty painted pinecones also makes a delightful seasonal showing. Complete the scene with a homemade gratitude tree you and your family create together.
PREP THE MENU
Ask your kids about their favorite Thanksgiving foods—and see if they can guess other family members’ favorites as you plan the menu together. Then give your kids a list of ingredients and send them on a kitchen scavenger hunt to see what you have on hand and what you need to add to your shopping list.
PLACES, PLEASE!
It’s a time-honored tradition: let the kids set the table! To help them remember the order of a basic place setting, tell them to start with the FORKS (from left to right, it’s F for Fork, O and R for the Round plate, K for Knife, and S for Spoon). Then add some festive napkins, folded, rolled, and placed creatively—to the left, the right, above, or even on the plate.
CREATE A COOKIE TABLE
Cookies make a great dessert for a Thanksgiving gathering: sweet, satisfying, and not so filling that you have to choose just one! They can also be made in advance, lightening the load on Thanksgiving Day. Let your girl take the lead by letting her arrange all your family's seasonal cookie favorites, or capture the spirit of a lemon meringue pie with these lemon crinkle cookies that are easy and fun to make.
Adapted from A Smart Girl’s Guide: Cooking © 2016 and American Girl magazine.
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