Thanksgiving Traditions Worth Starting With Your Kids

The traditions kids remember from Thanksgiving are rarely the big ones. They remember the job they always had, the walk after dinner, the game that only comes out once a year. That’s good news, because it means the best traditions are cheap, simple and easy to start this year.

Here are traditions worth trying, grouped by when they happen. Pick two or three. A tradition only becomes one if you repeat it, so it’s better to keep a few small ones than launch ten and drop them all.

Before the day

A gratitude list that grows. Starting on November 1, tape a long strip of paper to a wall or door. Each evening, everyone writes or draws one thing they’re thankful for. By Thanksgiving it’s a long, slightly chaotic record of your month, and it makes a good thing to read aloud at the table.

Kids plan one dish. Let each child choose and help make one item on the menu. It can be as simple as a bowl of clementines arranged in a pattern or as ambitious as a pie. Our guide to cooking with kids by age has jobs that suit each stage.

A family food drive. Take the kids shopping with a short list for a food pantry donation and let them pick some of the items. Many schools, churches and neighborhood groups run collections in November. Ask what’s needed most before you shop, because pantries often prefer specific items.

Make the place cards. Kids can draw a portrait of each guest, write names in their best handwriting or decorate leaves collected from the park. It keeps them busy on a hectic morning and gives every guest something to take home.

Thanksgiving morning

Watch a parade. Chicago’s Thanksgiving Parade has run since 1934 and heads up State Street through the Loop on Thanksgiving morning. Watching from the curb is free, though it’s cold and crowded, so dress warmly and arrive early for a spot near the front. It’s also broadcast on local TV if you’d rather watch in pajamas. Check the official parade site for the route and start time each year.

A morning run or walk. Many towns hold a Thanksgiving morning fun run, often called a turkey trot, and some have short kids’ races. Or keep it simple: a family walk around the block before the cooking chaos starts.

A special breakfast. Something easy that only happens on Thanksgiving, like cinnamon rolls from a tube or pumpkin pancakes, gives the day a starting ritual and keeps everyone fed while the turkey takes over the oven.

At the table

The thankful jar. As guests arrive, hand them a slip of paper and ask them to write one thing they’re grateful for, without signing it. Put the slips in a jar. During dessert, pass the jar and take turns reading them aloud while everyone guesses who wrote each one.

A tablecloth that keeps the years. Buy a plain cotton tablecloth and some fabric markers. Each year, every guest writes their name, the year and something they’re thankful for. After a decade, it’s the most valuable thing in your linen closet.

One question for everyone. Pick a single question and go around the table. Good ones for mixed ages:

• What’s something that made you laugh this year?
• Who helped you this year without being asked?
• What’s something you learned to do?
• What should we do together next year?

A kids’ table with a job. Cover the kids’ table in butcher paper and leave crayons out. Give them a challenge, like drawing the whole family or designing next year’s menu.

After dinner

The walk. A family walk after the meal is the most underrated tradition there is. It gets kids out of the house before they melt down, gives adults a break from the dishes and fresh air helps everyone.

A once-a-year game. Choose a board game, card game or puzzle that only comes out on Thanksgiving. A big jigsaw puzzle on a side table that people work on all afternoon is especially good with guests of all ages.

A movie and pie. Pick the same movie each year, or let the youngest guest choose. Leftover pie, eaten on the couch, is the whole point.

Letters to the future. Each family member writes a short letter or draws a picture about this year, then seals it in an envelope marked with the date. Open last year’s before writing this year’s. Kids love seeing how their handwriting and their answers change.

When you’re not hosting

If you’re traveling to relatives or eating out, traditions can travel too. Bring the thankful jar. Make place cards for your host. Do the after-dinner walk wherever you are. If you’re spending the holiday with just your household, a small Thanksgiving gives you room to try something new, like a picnic indoors or a menu made entirely of everyone’s favorite side dishes.

Making it stick

Write your traditions down somewhere you’ll find them next November, such as a note in your phone’s calendar on November 1. List what you did, what worked, and what to skip. Next year you won’t have to remember, and the kids will remind you anyway.

When Thanksgiving is done, the month that follows can feel like a sprint. Our calmer December plan helps you keep the good parts and drop the rest.