Here is a festive and fun project to do with your preschoolers this Thanksgiving season – the Thanksgiving turkey puppet craft! This isn’t your ordinary craft, we’ve swapped out the messy glitter for dyed salt, making clean-up a breeze. This is a must-do Thanksgiving themed art activity.
This is a great way to boost your child’s creativity as well as their fine motor skills. Plus, once the craft is complete, they can use them for pretend play. So let’s get our craft supplies together and start creating some turkey magic!
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Making a Thanksgiving turkey puppet craft is a simple and effective activity for preschoolers.
By using dyed salt (instead of glitter) on foam turkeys, they can create colorful puppets while practicing their fine motor skills.
This craft also provides an opportunity for children to engage in pretend play and storytelling once the puppets are finished. It’s a practical and fun way to combine creativity with skill development.
Thanksgiving Turkey Puppets
Have you ever made turkey puppets with your preschoolers?
This adorable turkey puppet craft will work your preschooler’s fine motor skills and hand strength, while providing an end product perfect for the dramatic play center.
Materials
- foam turkey cut outs (or you can also use heavy card stock or cardboard)
- colored faux sand (how-to will follow)
- craft sticks
- liquid glue
- hot glue
- googly eyes
The Set Up
The set up for this Thanksgiving craft is really quick and simple. Aside from gathering the supplies, all you have to do is make the faux glitter.
You can use glitter if you’re up for it. I personally don’t mind glitter, but for those of you who do, this is the best alternative!
How to Make Faux Glitter or Sand
Even though I love adding glitter to our preschool crafts and process art collages, sometimes the mess that comes with glitter isn’t worth the fine motor skill or hand control development that comes with it.
I thought using color sand would be a perfect alternative, but the cost is hard to get around when you’re working with a preschool class.
So, I set out to make my own faux sand in various colors.
Hint: it’s just dyed salt. Here’s how to do it.
- Place about a cup of salt in a zip top baggie.
- Add a few drops of food coloring or liquid water colors.
- Add a squirt of hand sanitizer.
- Seal the baggie and shake well to distribute all the dye.
- Pour onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet and allow to dry fully, about 2 hours.
- Repeat steps 1-4 to create multiple colors.
Note: The reason for adding the hand sanitizer is that the alcohol will help set the dye and keep it from rubbing off when using.
How to Make Thanksgiving Puppets
Begin with a foam turkey cut out.
I found my set at Target’s dollar spot, but these look-alikes will work just as well.
Use some liquid glue on the tail feathers in lines to make a design. With my preschoolers, in the photos, I just put a quick line of glue around each of the tail feathers of the turkey craft.
Invite your little one to sprinkle some faux sand on the glue. If you need a recipe, you can find my recipe here. I made five vibrant colors to make sure the faux sand really stood out against the darker color of the turkey craft.
I love sprinkling activities because it is excellent for developing fine motor skills. This took the place of the writing activity that day. In preschool, we focus more on fine motor activities than using pencils to trace letters and shapes.
For more information about writing in preschool, you can read these posts: Development of Emergent Writing and What Does Writing Practice Look Like in Preschool?
Once the faux sand has been sprinkled all other the glue, covering every little bit, allow the glue to dry completely. Then, over a sink, dust off the remaining faux sand.
Finally, carefully glue a craft stick on the back of the turkey using hot glue and a googly eye on the front.
Allow the puppets to dry completely, and then hand it to your little one for some fun pretend and puppet play!
Thanksgiving Fine Motor Activities
Looking for more Thanksgiving activities that really work fine motor skills? There are some of our favorite ideas.
Thanksgiving Puppet Ideas
These little turkey stick puppets are super fun for preschoolers. Here are some other Thanksgiving puppet ideas to try out.
Thanksgiving Crafts for Preschoolers
Can’t ever have enough turkey crafts for kids. From simple paper turkeys to sun catchers using construction paper and tissue paper, these are really fun crafts.
Thanksgiving Turkey Puppet Craft
Gobble, gobble- it is that time of year again! This darling turkey puppet craft helps develop fine motor skills and helps strengthen hand muscles.
Plus, it is oh so much FUN and the final adorable product gets to be used for imaginary puppet play for your preschoolers!
To make things even better, this craft swaps out the messy glitter for dyed salt, which makes clean up so much easier.
You will definitely want to add this craft to your Thanksgiving-themed preschool activities!
Materials
- foam turkey cut outs (or you can use heavy card stock or cardboard)
- colored faux sand (made from sea salt, see instructions below)
- craft sticks
- liquid glue
- hot glue
- googly eyes
Instructions
The Set Up for this craft is easy! All you have to do is gather the supplies and make the "faux colored sand."
- How to Make the Faux Colored Sand:
- Place about a cup of sea salt in a zip top baggie.
- Add a few drops of food coloring or liquid watercolors.
- Add a squirt of hand sanitizer.
- Seal the baggie and shake well to distribute all the dye.
- Pour onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet and allow to dry fully (about 2 hours).
- Repeat steps 1-4 to create multiple colors.
Note: The reason for adding the hand sanitizer is that the alcohol will help set the dye and keep it from rubbing off when using it.
- Turkey Puppet Instructions:
- Begin with a foam turkey cut out.
- Use the liquid glue to put a quick line of glue around each of the tail feathers of the turkey craft. I typically do this for the kids.
- Invite your preschoolers to sprinkle some faux sand on the glue.
- Once the faux sand has been sprinkled over the glue (covering every little bit) allow the glue to dry completely.
- Next, over a sink, dust off the remaining faux sand.
- Carefully glue a craft stick on the back of the turkey using hot glue and glue a googly eye on the front.
- Allow the puppets to dry completely and then time for some turkey-themed pretend play!
Notes
Be sure that only adults are using the hot glue gun, and to keep it out of reach of the children. Safety first!
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I’m Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home-mama of five! I’m the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught a range of levels, from preschool to college and a little bit of everything in between. Right now my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction.
Thank you! My son got these turkeys as a thanksgiving prize from his aunt and we didn’t know what to do with them. Your “sand” recipe is great!! He keeps asking if it’s after lunch so we can use it for our craft. Thank you! I’m subscribing to your site today!
So happy you and your son enjoyed the craft, and thanks for subscribing! I’m glad you are here!