Having a family gathering for Thanksgiving and want to make sure they stay entertained? We’ve listed some simple games that are sure to bring laughs and fun during your Thanksgiving!
This list has been updated to reflect the need to play some of these games via Zoom. Almost all of these games can be played via zoom to begin with.
We have some ideas of games to play on Thanksgiving!
Click on the image for a printable PDF version of the game! We hope that you have fun making new memories this Thanksgiving!
Fall Scavenger Hunt
A fun fall scavenger hunt is a great way to keep the kids busy and out enjoying the cool crisp day, provided that you have good weather. My family lives close to a wooded park and is the perfect location for some pre-dinner fun. They run around the park working up a big appetite while some of us stay behind to finish up the dinner preparations without the kids in the way.
Amazon has some games like this Fall Scavenger Hunt, if you want to go that route, or use the printable above!
Thanksgiving Selfie Scavenger Hunt
If you have teens or preteens, you are likely very familiar with the selfie craze. Why not embrace it and incorporate it into a fun game that will leave you with pictures as memories of your day together on Thanksgiving? The reality is you’ll likely have to talk your older kids, who are too cool for anything, into doing it at first, but I’d be willing to bet they get into it quickly.
On Amazon there is a game called Big Dot of Happiness Thanksgiving Selfie Scavenger Hunt, with the ideas already laid out for you. Or get creative and create your own list!
Thankful from A to Z
We have always talked about what we are thankful for at dinner and it’s the same every year, we are thankful for our family, our health, to have that out of town guest at the table.
After those sediments mix it up a little but with this fun Thankful From A to Z Challenge. Everyone has to write something they are thankful for each letter of the alphabet. I bet you didn’t know how thankful everyone was for X-Ray machines and Xylophones did you?
Charades
For some after dinner fun for the whole family, how about charades? We’ve come up with some ideas that are good ones for the whole family. We do teams so that the smaller children are matched up with an adult to help them out. Some are harder than others, but it’s always a great time. Just print off the printable, cut them up, and you are ready to play. If you want to buy a Thanksgiving specific charades game, you guessed it, Amazon has one!
Thanksgiving Mad Libs
I don’t care how old you are, Mad Libs are hilarious! These cute Thanksgiving Mad Libs are no exception! Created by fellow blogger, Sisters Suitcase Blog, they are sure to leave your kids in stitches of laughter. They won’t even realize that Mad Libs is a teaching tool, what a fun way to learn about verbs, nouns, and adjectives!
Pictionary
Pictionary is one of my all-time favorite games. We have the board game, but even if you don’t really need it to play. There is an only tool you can use to generate the words and then all you need is a marker board! So much fun, especially after a few glasses of wine. If you have more than 4 people do it in teams and have a blast! Online Pictionary Word Generator or the Traditional Pictionary Game.
Good Games to play via Zoom:
Bingo
Bingo is a great game to play via Zoom. We discovered a website that is called Bingo Maker that allows you to host your own game, or join games that are already going on. This classic game is an easy way to get multiple households together for a game.
Two Truths and a Lie:
Each contestant shares 3 facts about themselves. Except for the twist is that one of those facts is a lie. The players in the game have to determine which is the lie in the group of facts.
Superlative Game:
So this game is a ton of fun. Think high school year book nominations like “most likely to be famous” the person putting together this game will want to come up with the ‘nominations’ ahead of time and then each player will vote for the person they thing is most likely to fit into a given category.
A Classic Board Game:
This can get a little bit cumbersome but my kids played monopoly with my parents via zoom. The key is that each person playing on zoom will need keep track of the moves that were made and then advance tokens for the people that are playing from other locations. Playing a traditional board game via zoom brought about a bunch of laughs!
No matter how you celebrate Thanksgiving or who you do it with, you are making memories that will last for a life time.