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DIY Paper Turkey Place Cards for the Thanksgiving Kids' Table

A circle of brown paper, five bright feathers and a folded card: that's a turkey that tells every child where to sit. Here's how to make a set of place cards for the Thanksgiving kids' table in an evening — plus a gratitude-feather twist that gives the kids a job before dinner.

Thanksgiving is the one meal of the year when the seating chart matters. There are grandparents to place, cousins who haven't seen each other since the summer, and a kids' table that will either be the calmest corner of the house or the loudest. A place card at every seat settles the first argument before it starts, and a paper turkey is the place card children actually want to keep.

This is a six-step project for one evening. It uses cardstock, a glue stick and a marker, it works for ages four to ten, and it looks cheerful rather than crafty if you keep the shapes simple and the colors warm. Still planning the table itself? Our Thanksgiving kids' table rental page explains what we deliver for a family Thanksgiving, and the big-family Thanksgiving seating plan covers how many kids' tables you need, by age.

How to make the paper turkey place cards

1. Cut the bodies and heads

   From brown or kraft cardstock, cut a 3-inch circle for each turkey's body and a 1½-inch circle for its head. A drinking glass and a jar lid make easy tracing guides. Count every child at the kids' table and add two spares for the late cousin.

2. Cut the feathers

   Cut five teardrop-shaped feathers per turkey, each about 3 inches long, from red, orange, gold and yellow cardstock. Fold a small stack of paper and cut four or five at once — it is the slowest step, and stacking halves the time. If the kids will write on the feathers later, make them a little wider.

3. Fan and glue the feathers

   Lay the feathers in a fan behind the top half of the body circle, pointed ends tucked in, and glue them down. Alternate the colors so each turkey looks bright from across the room. Glue the head circle to the top of the body, overlapping by about half an inch.

4. Add the face

   Cut a small orange triangle for the beak and a red teardrop for the wattle, and glue them just under the middle of the head. Draw two dot eyes with a black marker. (Kids four and up love this step — set out the beaks and wattles and let them build the faces.)

5. Fold the tent card and add the name

   Fold a 3½×5 inch piece of cream cardstock in half the short way so it stands like a little tent. Glue the turkey to the front so the feathers rise above the fold, then letter the child's name on the turkey's belly in a fine black marker. Simple print looks tidier than bubble letters.

6. Set the table

   Stand one turkey at each place before the children come to the table, so the seating is decided and nobody argues about who sits by whom. If the kids will write on the feathers, set a small cup of crayons or fine markers above each plate.

The gratitude-feather twist

Leave the feathers blank and the place cards become an activity. When the children sit down, hand out the crayons and ask each child to write one thing they're thankful for on each feather — five feathers, five things. Younger kids draw instead of writing, or tell a big cousin what to write. It takes about ten minutes, which is roughly how long the grown-ups need to carve, and the finished turkeys go home as keepsakes.

If you're also making our “I'm thankful for” placemats, use the turkeys for names only and keep the writing on the placemats, so the kids aren't asked the same question twice.

Variations by age

• Ages two to three: assemble the turkeys ahead of time and let the little ones add round stickers to the feathers. Skip the names and use a single initial.
• Ages four to six: set out pre-cut bodies, feathers, beaks and wattles and let the children build their own turkey at the table — a great job while they wait for dinner.
• Ages seven to ten: give them the gratitude feathers, or let them make the place cards for the grown-ups' table too.

Where the kids' table comes from

A place card only works if the child can sit comfortably in the seat behind it. At a grown-up table, a five-year-old kneels on the chair to reach the plate; at a table their size, they sit, eat and stay put. Our heights-by-age guide explains why. We're not the party planners — we rent the kids' tables, chairs and dessert carts. For Thanksgiving that means a properly sized kids' table and matching chairs, delivered and set up before the meal and picked up the next day. You make the turkeys; we bring the table. See kids' table and chair rentals for the collections, and the holiday party rentals hub for the whole season.

Thanksgiving weekend and Friendsgiving dates book early. If you already know yours, you can hold your date now and finalize the headcount later.

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