Putting The Pretty In Preschool

Finding Beauty In Everyday Early Childhood Experiences

Thanksgiving Day

DIY Turkey Bowling Game

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Looking for a fun, low-prep activity for kids to do during a Thanksgiving get-together or an active play time? This simple and fun DIY turkey bowling game will get everyone moving. The crafted turkey-themed bowling pins blend recycling, creativity, and energetic play – a fantastic combination. Download the free printable in the post to make creating the festive bowling pins a breeze.

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Supplies To Collect

Just a few simple supplies are needed for this Thanksgiving-themed bowling game. Gather the following to make the pins and play the game:

  • large, clear juice or water bottles
  • craft foam sheets
  • markers
  • scissors
  • white glue or glue gun
  • small rubber or plastic balls

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Making the Turkey Bowling Pins

Children will enjoy helping create the colorful bowling pins for the DIY turkey bowling game, as they are simple to make.

To start off, select clean bottles to use for the body of the turkey pins. Large, clear bottles with solid bases work well. I feature juice bottles that hold approximately 1 ½ litres (6 cups) of liquid.

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Next, cut a round face and three or more tail feathers from craft foam colors of your choice. Feel free to use this printable as a pattern for the foam pieces.

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Bottle Turkey Pattern PrintableDownload

This printable is for individual or one classroom use only.

Then draw a turkey face on the round foam cutouts. Include eyes, a beak, and a teardrop-shaped snood.

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To finish off, use white glue or a glue gun to adhere the round face to the lower front of the bottle, and the tail feathers to the lower back.

The pins are now ready to be set up in a “bowling alley” in your home, yard, or classroom. Children can work as a team or individually to knock the pins down with small rubber or plastic balls.

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Benefits of the DIY Turkey Bowling Game

This handcrafted turkey bowling game offers the following benefits:

  • hand-eye coordination exercise
  • practice in turn-taking and working as a team
  • opportunity to participate in an active, fun activity

Questions about this mini bowling game? Leave a comment below.

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More Thanksgiving Activities

Shop these Thanksgiving printable games in my Etsy shop “Skills N Smiles“:

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Paper Plate Turkey Craft

Turkey Sensory Tubes

Thanksgiving Tablescape Pretend Play

Coffee Playdough Turkey

Turkey Playdough Tray

[Read more…] about DIY Turkey Bowling Game
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Edible Playdough Turkey Craft

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Here’s a sweet, edible playdough turkey craft just in time for Thanksgiving Day. It is suitable any time of the year for a farm animal theme. It is simple to make and uses five easy-to-find ingredients.

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Follow me on Pinterest for more early learning ideas.

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Supplies To Collect

Gather the following supplies for this color-infused playdough turkey:

  • chocolate frosting
  • vanilla frosting
  • powdered sugar
  • candy corn
  • white candy eyes
  • small serving plate
  • large mixing bowl
  • large spoon for stirring
  • knife

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Making The Edible Playdough

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To make this edible playdough, first select a large bowl for the ingredients.

Next, empty half a container of vanilla frosting into the bowl.

Then scoop in an equal amount of powdered sugar.

With a large spoon, stir the powdered sugar and frosting together.

Afterward, knead the ingredients thoroughly, adding more powdered sugar or frosting if necessary, until the dough is a non-sticky playdough consistency.

Make a similar batch of playdough using chocolate frosting, incorporating powdered sugar with the brown icing.

Then form a ball of vanilla playdough and a smaller one of chocolate. Knead the two balls together to get a light brown shade.

Finally, add a little vanilla playdough to a ball of chocolate. Knead them together to get the medium brown shade.

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Little learners will love to help make this tasty edible playdough, and will especially enjoy the kneading part. Discussions about color mixing, spheres, and small and large sizes can be introduced during the playdough and turkey-making process.

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The Edible Playdough Turkey

Fashioning the playdough turkey is almost as easy as making the two colors of dough.

First, form a ball of medium brown playdough and flatten it into a circle on a dessert plate.

Next, make a light bulb shape from the light brown playdough and press it on top of the circle, designing a turkey head and neck.

Then add two candy eyes and a candy corn beak.

Tip: Slice off the wide end of a piece of candy corn with a knife to make a shorter beak if desired.

Finally, position candy corn pieces all around the edge of the large playdough circle.

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You may have noticed that this playdough is super sweet. It’s a good idea to encourage participants to design their turkey first and then snack on some of the extra supplies.

After the turkeys are made and participants have had the chance to do a little snacking, wrap leftover frosting playdough in saran wrap and place it in a jar or plastic bag. Store the playdough and part containers of frosting in the fridge to use another time.

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Festive Graham Cracker Turkeys

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The leftover frosting and candy eyes will come in handy for desserts, so nothing will go to waste. One idea is to spread a thin layer of chocolate or vanilla frosting on graham crackers. Add two candy eyes to each one, and five candy corn pieces around the upper edges. Slice off the wider end of some of the candy corn pieces and place them under the eyes for beaks. You’ll end up with festive turkey treats that will quickly be gobbled up by your little charges.

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Non-Edible Playdough Turkey

The tasty turkey can be made with a basic playdough recipe instead of the sweet, edible dough. You can leave the playdough uncolored to create a white farm turkey or add varying amounts of brown gel icing color to small batches of playdough to get similar turkey colors as with the edible playdough turkey.

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Thanksgiving Printables

Shop Thanksgiving printables in my Etsy shop “Skills N Smiles“:

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More Turkey Activities

Paper Plate Turkey Craft

Turkey Sensory Tubes

Coffee Playdough Turkey

Turkey Playdough Tray

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More Playdough Recipes and Activities

Apple Playdough Tray

Scented Playdough Activities

Pumpkin Playdough Activities

Orange-scented Playdough Invitation

Chocolate Mint Playdough

Santa Claus Playdough Tray

Valentine’s Day Playdough Activities

St. Patrick’s Day Playdough Tray

Easter Playdough Tray

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[Read more…] about Edible Playdough Turkey Craft
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Turkey Playdough Tray

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Turkeys are a big part of fall, and this turkey playdough tray celebrates them. Three rich fall playdough colors are featured, along with turkey-themed loose parts.

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Follow me on Pinterest for more early learning activities.

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Turkey Playdough Ingredients

All three playdough colors in the tray are made with my go-to basic recipe, with an icing color added.

For the orange playdough, gather the following ingredients:

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 cup salt
  • 4 teaspoons cream of tartar
  • 2 cups water
  • orange icing color
  • 3 tablespoons oil

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How To Make Turkey Playdough

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To make the orange playdough, start by adding the first three ingredients to a sturdy pot and mixing them together.

Next, mix a half teaspoon of orange icing color in two cups of water, stirring well. Then blend in 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the oily, colored water to the dry ingredients and combine.

Afterward, heat the pot on the stove on medium heat.

Stirring frequently, cook until the mixture is no longer glossy and the dough forms a ball.

Then scoop the dough onto a cutting board.

Knead when cool, adding one tablespoon more oil.

Finally, store the playdough in a sealed plastic bag.

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Gold and Copper Playdough Colors

To make the gold playdough, stir a generous amount of buttercup yellow icing color into the water before mixing it with the oil and dry ingredients.

To make the copper playdough, stir in copper icing color instead of orange or yellow.

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Turkey Playdough Loose Parts

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Including loose parts in the turkey playdough invitation adds interest and offers more opportunities to develop finger and hand strength. The following loose parts are in the tray:

  • turkey game counters
  • life-like turkey figurine
  • pioneer and turkey cookie cutters
  • turkey wooden beads
  • turkey ring and cupcake topper
  • orange, red, and yellow spherical beads
  • yellow, orange, and red feathers
  • spotted brown feathers
  • small wiggly eyes
  • red and tan pipe cleaner sections

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Turkey Playdough Invitation

The orange, buttercup yellow, and copper playdough hues are complementary colors, so they go well together.

The turkey and pioneer cookie cutters are on point with the theme.

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Little learners have the opportunity to craft a turkey using playdough, feathers, and wiggly eyes. Cut and bent pipe cleaners work well for creating turkey feet and snoods.

The turkey counters and life-like turkey figurine provide models for creating playdough turkeys and are great for incorporating counting activities.

The fall-hued beads, turkey ring, and cupcake topper add interest to the manipulative play invitation.

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Besides being appropriate for a Thanksgiving or turkey theme, the beautiful playdough colors in the tray are perfect for any fall theme.

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Thanksgiving Printables

Shop Thanksgiving printables in my Etsy shop “Skills N Smiles“:

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More Turkey Activities

Paper Plate Turkey Craft

Turkey Sensory Tubes

Coffee Playdough Turkey

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[Read more…] about Turkey Playdough Tray
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Paper Plate Turkey Craft

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Paper plate crafts are always a hit, and this paper plate turkey craft is a super cute one. Fit it during a farm animal theme or letter T mini-theme, or save it for a Thanksgiving Day celebration. Download the free turkey template to prepare this craft with ease.

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Follow me on Pinterest for more early learning ideas.

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Supplies To Collect

For this adorable farm animal craft, gather the following supplies:

  • large paper plate
  • red, yellow, orange, and brown construction paper or cardstock
  • red pipe cleaner
  • wiggly eyes
  • white glue and glue paddle
  • glue stick
  • glue gun

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Paper Plate Turkey Prep

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To prepare this animal craft, first cut a paper plate in half.

Next, cut a large circle from brown construction paper or cardstock, and two sizes of smaller circles from red, orange, and yellow sturdy paper.

Then cut a narrow diamond and two small hearts from orange paper.

The last thing to do is snip a three-inch strip from a red pipe cleaner.

To make things easier, download this free turkey craft template to use for cutting out the shapes.

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Paper Plate Turkey PrintableDownload

This printable is for individual or one classroom use only.

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Tip: Paper punches are very helpful in preparing this craft.

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Making The Paper Plate Turkey Craft

To make this cute turkey craft, start by using white glue and a glue paddle to adhere red, orange, and yellow circles to the semi-circular plate.

Next, glue the brown circle to the bottom middle of the straight edge of the plate, allowing a little bit of the circle to fall below the edge. This will be the turkey head.

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Then glue two wiggly eyes to the large circle.

Afterward, fold the narrow diamond shape in half to make a beak. Glue the folded bottom half of the beak underneath the eyes.

Then fashion the red pipe cleaner strip into a narrow loop. Glue the loop to the beak so that it hangs down as a snood.

Finally, glue two heart-shaped feet to the bottom of the turkey head.

Let the crafted turkey dry overnight and it will be ready for display.

Note: A glue stick or glue gun will also work to adhere the shapes in this craft.

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This paper plate turkey is made entirely of geometric shapes, so the craft presents a great opportunity to discuss and review them.

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Paper Plate Turkey Headband

For a fun twist to this craft, turn the paper plate turkey into a headband.

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First, make sure to adhere the bottom edge of the turkey head to the straight edge of the semi circle.

Next, glue on the eyes, beak, and snood as in the first craft.

Then cut two 1 ½ x 11 inch strips from a piece of cardstock. Glue the two strips together on one side, and then adhere the paper plate turkey on top, lining it up with the bottom edge.

Measure the headband to fit the wearer, and glue the remaining two ends together.

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Thanksgiving Printables

Shop Thanksgiving printables in my Etsy shop “Skills N Smiles“:

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More Turkey Activities

Coffee Playdough Turkey

Thanksgiving Tablescape Pretend Play

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[Read more…] about Paper Plate Turkey Craft
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Thanksgiving Tablescape Pretend Play

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This Thanksgiving tablescape pretend play setup incorporates loose parts in a big way. It's an easy center to include in harvest celebrations.

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Here’s an easy Thanksgiving tablescape pretend play setup your little learners will love. It incorporates fall-colored loose parts with a few turkey and pilgrim-themed accessories.

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Follow me on Pinterest for more early learning activities.

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Supplies In The Thanksgiving Tablescape

Turkey-themed loose parts are the highlight of this Thanksgiving play tablescape setup.

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The following supplies make this Thanksgiving tablescape a fun place to play:

  • harvest disposable plates and plaque
  • clear plastic glasses, dessert plates, and jars
  • baking pan
  • orange, yellow, and green cutlery
  • gold flowers in a vase
  • green, yellow, red, and orange felt balls and wooden beads
  • turkey centerpieces
  • miniature artificial pumpkins
  • Thanksgiving cookie cutters
  • Pilgrim sticker “cookies”
  • turkey game pieces and wooden beads
  • “Be Thankful” tea towel
  • white tablecloth

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Thanksgiving Tablescape Pretend Play

Arrange supplies for this tablescape in a play kitchen on a shelf, or place them in the play stove, fridge, and cupboards. Your little learners will enjoy incorporating them into festive play.

Loose parts are always a highlight of pretend play setups. Green, yellow, orange, and red-themed felt balls and round wooden beads easily transfer from a fall play tablescape to this Thanksgiving one.

Loose parts are the highlight of this Thanksgiving-themed dramatic play tablescape.

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The turkey centerpieces were a delightful find at a party store and add color and style.

Pilgrim-themed stickers make great “cookies” when placed on a baking pan.

Turkey game pieces and wooden beads help make the play set up super special.

Themed cookie cutters are easy-to-find items that add flair.

Turkey-themed loose parts are the highlight of this Thanksgiving tablescape pretend play setup.

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Disposable plates befitting the Thanksgiving theme are included in the décor, as are artificial miniature pumpkins showcased in clear plastic glasses.

Early learners will enjoy role-playing Thanksgiving dinner events with this festive pretend play setup.

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A “Be Thankful” tea towel and harvest plaque are the finishing touches to this seasonal dramatic play center.

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Thanksgiving Printables

Shop Thanksgiving printables in my Etsy shop “Skills N Smiles“:

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Related:

Fall Tablescape Pretend Play

Pumpkin Play Tablescape

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[Read more…] about Thanksgiving Tablescape Pretend Play
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