More Turkey Fun

Gumdrop Turkey

The kids had so much fun making this turkey as part of our Thanksgiving themed preschool co-op.  The only thing I would recommend is feeding your child a filling snack or meal prior to making these so that they don't overdose on gumdrops.  This is also a fun Thanksgiving Day activity for the whole family to do.

Materials Needed: Apples, Toothpicks, Gumdrops (I actually used the spiced drops (which the kids didn't like as much) in hopes that the turkey's would stay in tact during the car ride home) and a print out (or you can draw your own) of a turkey head. 

A little prep work prior to letting your toddler go at it with the gumdrops: Attach turkey head to a toothpick and place in center of apple.  Arrange toothpicks around the head (4 seemed to be about the right number for the attention span of a 3 year old).

Have your toddler place the gumdrops on the toothpicks to complete the feathers.  For an additional challenge, have your toddler come up with a pattern for the gumdrop feathers. 

We had a few extras so decided to make some with dad later that day - the following photo is evidence of why I recommended the prep work prior to having the children "attack" the project.

Exhibit A - The end result of leaving a 3 year old alone with a box of toothpicks (we named him "Porcu-Turkey").

Mini Turkey Felt Board

I loved this idea for a Felt Turkey by Melissa of Chasing Cheerios.  I thought it would be fun to make Felt Boards for each of the children in our co-op but did not have enough felt (and would not be able to get any as I decided to make them about one hour before class).  I ended up improvising and made mini felt boards by cutting a cereal box into 3x5 rectangles and covering them with adhesive backed felt.   

They were small enough to fit in a zip lock bag for the kids to take home.  I'm thinking these will be the perfect size to pack in my bag for church, the waiting room at the doctors office, etc..

On my list to make before Turkey day are this felt turkey headband and this turkey buttoning and color matching game.  You should also check out these fun (and beautifully photographed) turkey games: Turkey Roll, Turkey Bingo, Turkey Dinner Race by Katherine Marie Photography.