We all need a few minutes of peace on turkey day to get the food on the table (or just hide in the pantry nibbling on some pumpkin pie), and there's no shame in giving kids a few Thanksgiving online games to keep them busy. It's all about sticking with the turkey day theme and choosing games that fit for their age levels and interests.
We've got some fun and festive recommendations for preschoolers, elementary, and middle school kids, so grab that tablet and get ready to mash the potatoes without interruption.
Fun Online Thanksgiving Games for Preschoolers
When the wait is on for the turkey to roll out of the oven, you'll do anything to keep the screaming range from getting to sonic boom level. Try a few online games with your preschoolers to keep them occupied.
With younger kids, it's always good to keep them nearby while they're gaming, so you can answer questions and keep an eye on what they're doing. We like to run through the game with them the first time they do it, too, so they can learn how it works.
Digigo LLC: Gobble Mania App
Designed for all your devices, preschoolers can play Gobble Mania. This app is kind of like a road race with a turkey. You try to gobble as much produce as you can to raise your score. Just don't eat the candy corn.
DLTK's Site for Kids: Thanksgiving Games and Puzzles
DLTK's Site for Kids offers an array of fun games little kids have no problem learning. These games range from coloring pages to dominos. They also have a fun Thanksgiving fortune teller for littles. The games don't require a login and are completely free. However, the page does have ads.
Kid's Games: Thanksgiving Games for Kids
Available from Kid Games on Google Play for free, this Thanksgiving Game Set is geared towards preschoolers. It includes 18 games to help teach young kids shapes, numbers, and attention to detail.
Hello Kids: Thanksgiving Puzzles
Hello Kids features six fun puzzle games with Thanksgiving themes, such as a cute turkey, harvest dinner, the Mayflower, pilgrims, and a cornucopia. These puzzles are great for all ages because you can choose the level of difficulty. The levels range from easy (only four pieces), which would be great for toddlers and younger kids, to very hard (36 pieces) that will offer a challenge for older elementary students. They also have four online slider puzzles for the holiday.
YIV: Turkey DressUp Game
Younger kids will love this Thanksgiving turkey dress-up game. Children can choose from a variety of beak and feather options, as well as accessories like a scarf, hat, boots, and more. Parents should be aware that a brief ad shows before play — click the lower right "Skip Ad" button to allow your child to proceed with the game.
The Color.com: Thanksgiving Coloring Pages
If the littles running around your home love coloring, but you aren't about the mess, grab an iPad and check out Thanksgiving coloring pages. You'll find an assortment of free coloring pages to keep them busy for at least 5 minutes while you get the food on the table.
Cute Thanksgiving Online Games for Elementary Students
Your older kids aren't going to be as interested in coloring pages and puzzles. They need more interaction and learning in their play. There are plenty of options for this age group, so give these online Thanksgiving games a try.
Ask older kids to tell you about the games they're playing. This is a great way to connect and work on communicating about technology.
ABCYa: Thanksgiving-themed Games
ABCYa has six games with an educational focus and a Thanksgiving theme, including math and vocabulary. Here are just a few of the cool games:
- Turkey Touchdown - Move the turkey towards the goal by correctly answering math facts. Choose easy, medium, or hard, depending on age.
- Gobble Squabble - A Pac-Man style game played with a Thanksgiving turkey that reinforces math facts.
- Seasonal Shuffle - Put their knowledge of the seasons and holidays to the test.
Gobo Play: Thanksgiving Puzzle Games
For kids that love jigsaw puzzles, Gobo Play is a good source with several Thanksgiving-themed online puzzles, such as turkeys, pumpkins, candy corn, and more. This is appropriate for upper elementary students. Parents should know that ads do show before allowing the game to load. Click on the "Skip Ad" tab in the lower right corner to avoid ads.
Junior Games Studio: Cook a Virtual Thanksgiving Dinner App
Kids who like cooking games will love creating their own virtual Thanksgiving dinner from start to finish with the Turkey Roast Holiday Family Dinner app offered by Junior Games Studio. The game allows them to become budding little chefs and try their hand at making the turkey and all the fixins from raw ingredients.
Match the Memory: Thanksgiving Memory Match
This Thanksgiving memory match game has 20 card options, so it's probably best suited to mid or upper elementary students. There are fun Thanksgiving images like pies, pilgrims, and turkeys. This is a time-based game, so evaluate whether it's right for your child before playing.
MathGameTime: Thanksgiving Dinner Game
MathGameTime features a unique Thanksgiving dinner game. It's an interactive online logic puzzle great for elementary-aged kids. The game focuses on math and logic, so parents can feel good about its educational value, while kids will love the fun factor. The game includes 12 guests and even Thanksgiving food preferences. Kids need to figure out who sits where in order to solve the game.
PrimaryGames: Thanksgiving Games
Giving your kids games to play on Thanksgiving can be a learning experience. PrimaryGames offers a plethora of math and vocabulary games for Thanksgiving. Children can learn to count by 10s and 5s, play tic-tac-toe, and do a Mayflower drag-and-drop. If they get bored with one game, move them on to another.
Starfall Education Foundation: Star Fall Turkey
Starfall offers a great fun and educational app geared towards kids eight and younger. It is available for Android and iOS for 99 cents. Kids can practice their reading skills, use their imagination to create new farm animals, and work on logic and vocabulary with fun puzzles. There are a few different games available.
- Silly Turkey - Add fun accessories to dress up your turkey.
- Animal Symmetry - Play a puzzle game to match one side of the animal to another.
- My Turkey Yard - See your silly turkeys in your turkey yard.
Exciting Thanksgiving Games for Tweens and Teens
As kiddos start getting toward the tween and teen years, you'll typically find them on YouTube or texting. However, if they want to join in on the Thanksgiving online game magic, check out these gems.
Digipuzzle: Thanksgiving Games
Digipuzzle has a variety of Thanksgiving-themed online games. Some games, such as the Thanksgiving Match or the online Thanksgiving coloring pages, are suited for younger children, but many of the games are better for upper elementary and middle-school children. Games include Thanksgiving riddles, box puzzles, solitaire, and mahjong.
Y8: Spot the Differences
In the Spot the Thanksgiving Differences Game from Y8, kids can hone their attention to detail as they compare two Thanksgiving scenes and click on the small differences between the pictures. There are 10 different levels to play, but each level must be unlocked by getting previous ones correct. Some differences are obvious, but others are difficult to spot. This is a good option for upper elementary and middle school students.
Quicksailor: 3D Escape Games - Thanksgiving Room App
Do your kids like escape rooms? You can challenge your older kids with a fun Thanksgiving-themed escape room. Players have to escape from 16 different rooms by solving puzzles and finding objects.
Kids' Games for Thanksgiving Day
There are many websites providing a variety of Thanksgiving online games for kids of all ages. Whether you love puzzles, action games, word searches, or the classics, finding great Thanksgiving versions of your favorite games is easy to do and provides hours of holiday fun.
