How to use these Thanksgiving worksheets
Print the pages the night before so they're ready when you need a calm 10 minutes. You'll need a pencil, crayons, and a clipboard if you want to take the pages to the kitchen table while dinner cooks.
- Start with the word tracing page. Say each word together (plate, turkey, gravy, bread), point to the picture, then trace. Color the picture last as a reward.
- Move to Count & Write. Touch each drumstick or wreath as you count it out loud, then write the number in the box. Touching each picture stops double counting.
- Play I Spy Thanksgiving. Your child finds every pie, heart, hat and drumstick in the big picture and writes the totals at the bottom. Crossing each one off lightly with a pencil helps.
- Try the word search. Show that words only go across or down. Find the first one together, then let your child hunt.
- Finish with patterns. Read each row out loud ("corn, wreath, corn, wreath...") and let the rhythm tell them what comes next.
A page takes most children 5 to 15 minutes. Stop while it's still fun.
Tips by age
Age 4: Do the counting, I spy and pattern pages first. For tracing, it's fine if the line wobbles; what matters is starting each letter at the top. You can circle the word search answers for them to color.
Age 5: Ask them to read the tracing words back to you after writing them. On the I spy page, see if they can say which picture there is the most of without counting again.
Age 6: Time the word search for fun, or ask them to write one of the words in a sentence on the back ("I like pie.").
Games to play with the pages
- Real-life I spy: after the worksheet, count real things on the table: plates, cups, bread rolls.
- Pattern place mats: let your child make their own pattern with stickers or drawings on a paper place mat for each guest.
- Word hunt helpers: put the word search beside the menu and see which words also appear in your real meal (corn, gravy, pie, bread).
- Thankful counting: once the counting page is done, count three things each person is thankful for and write the number.
For more ideas for the whole week, from turkey crafts to kitchen jobs, see our guide to Thanksgiving activities for kids. If you have a younger sibling at the table too, try these Thanksgiving activities for toddlers.
When your child is ready for more
If these pages go well, the natural next steps are counting past 10, simple adding and taking away, and writing a short sentence of their own. That's what the rest of the book covers.
The full Thanksgiving Math & Reading Fun book has 30 pages for ages 4 to 6. Alongside the pages in this sample, it has math pages with turkeys and pies to add and take away, counting to 20, reading pages, writing pages where your child writes a thankful sentence, cut-out cards, a maze, a dot-to-dot, an odd-one-out page and turkey and harvest coloring pages. It's enough for a page a day through November, and you can reprint the favorites.
Questions parents ask
They suit children aged 4 to 6, so older preschoolers, pre-K and kindergarten. A 3 year old can enjoy the I spy page and the coloring with your help. Tracing and the word search work best once your child knows most letters and can hold a pencil with some control.
Yes. The 5 pages are a free sample from our Thanksgiving Math & Reading Fun book. You choose the color or black and white version in US Letter or A4 and the PDF downloads straight away. There is no sign-up and no email address needed, and you can print as many copies as your family needs.
Color looks lovely and helps younger children spot the I spy pictures. Black and white saves ink, and many children like coloring the pictures themselves once they finish a page. Both versions have the same activities, so pick whichever suits your printer and your child.
Most 4 and 5 year olds spend 5 to 15 minutes on a page. The tracing and counting pages are quick, while the word search can take longer for a new reader. One or two pages a day across Thanksgiving week works better than doing all five in one sitting.
The full book has 30 pages: math pages with adding and taking away, counting to 20, tracing and writing pages, reading pages, cut-out cards, a maze, a dot-to-dot, a compare and order page, an odd-one-out page, coloring pages and a draw and write page.
