This Thankful Turkey Bucket is a great fall craft for kids to make at home or at school. November is often the time of year we focus on thankfulness and expressing gratitude.

Transforming a small bucket into a turkey doubles as a craft activity and a conversation starter. It’s an excellent way to engage kids in learning about being thankful.

Making these turkeys goes along well with our printable Gratitude Game.

They also make a cute fall decoration idea.

Thankful Turkey Bucket Craft in black text at top of picture of completed craft project. Small metal bucket painted brown with googly eyes and felt beak and feet glued to it. Multiple colors of jumbo craft sticks sticking out of it to look like tail feathers with things written on them. Brown kraft tag hanging off handle says I am thankful for...

Gratitude Turkey Bucket Thanksgiving Craft

To teach kids gratitude, we have to model it and have them practice. While being thankful and grateful is important year round, it is a popular topic during the holidays.

Perhaps because there are more family gatherings and visits with family members we don’t see frequently throughout the year.

Working on thankful turkey buckets is a great family activity.

The kids can help paint buckets and cut out felt pieces for the turkey’s face and feet. You will need to assist younger ones with gluing the pieces to the bucket.

You could create one together that contains gratitude prompts on the craft stick tail feathers.

Example prompts include: favorite thing to do, someone you love, favorite food, etc.

Then when someone pulls a stick out, they answer what they are thankful for and share that with everyone.

Small metal bucket painted and made to look like a turkey with craft stick tail feathers sticking out of it. Some colored craft sticks laying neatly on table by turkey bucket showing thankful prompts such as someone who is kind and my favorite thing to do. Small yellow gourd decoration sitting to the left of the turkey bucket.

Another option is to create turkey buckets for everyone. Each individual’s bucket would contain what they are thankful for on the craft sticks.

For example, my kids’ buckets would have sticks that included video games, their grandparents, and their best friends.

The turkey gratitude buckets provide an opportunity to talk and share. They also make super cute fall decorations or even a table centerpiece.

Thankful Turkey Bucket Craft Supplies:

Yellow, orange, and red felt, scissors, black permanent marker, two googly eyes, assorted colored jumbo craft sticks, small plain metal bucket with handle, brown paint, paint brush, and hot glue gun laying out for project.

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15 Jumbo Colored Craft Sticks
Small Metal Bucket
2 Googly Eyes
Crinkle Cut Paper Shred
Natural Jute Twine (about 10 inches)
Craft Felt in Yellow, Red, and Orange
Small Shipping Tag/Gift Tag
Brown Acrylic Craft Paint
Black Permanent Marker
Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
Pencil
Scissors

How to Make a Thankful Turkey Bucket:

Paint the outside of the metal bucket with brown acrylic craft paint. Set aside to dry and apply a second coat, if necessary.

Small metal bucket painted brown on the outside. Bottle of brown acrylic paint and paint brush nearby.

While the bucket is drying, prepare the craft sticks and cut out the felt pieces. If you don’t have craft felt, use colored paper or craft foam.

Brown painted bucket, orange felt cut like bird feet, yellow felt triangle, red felt snood, googly eyes, scissors, and hot glue gun.

Next, cut out a triangle beak shape from yellow craft felt.

Cut a wiggly snood shape from red craft felt (snood is the part that hangs over a turkey’s bill and the wattle is the red part on their neck).

Cut two turkey feet shapes from orange craft felt.

Brown metal bucket with turkey face and feet glued onto it. Turkey bucket next to scissors and hot glue gun.

Glue the googly eyes, beak and snood to the bucket. For best results, use a hot glue gun. It

Then write “I am THANKFUL for…” on a small brown tag with a black marker. Tie the tag to the bucket handle with a 10” length of natural jute twine and tie it with a bow.

Turkey bucket filled with brown crinkle cut shredded paper and tag attached with twine. Tag says I am thankful for...

Fill the bucket with crinkled paper shred.

Lay out 15 colored jumbo craft sticks. If you do not have colored craft sticks, you can color plain craft sticks with markers or paint them.

Turkey bucket filled with crinkle paper sitting next to colored jumbo craft sticks with gratitude prompts written on them in black marker.

Write thankful prompts or things you are grateful for on the craft sticks with a pencil, and then trace with a permanent black marker.

Use the thankful prompts listed in the photo above or make up your own based upon what is important to your family.

If making individual buckets, use the prompts to help you create your list of 15 gratitude items.

Completed thankful turkey bucket craft with gratitude prompts written on craft stick tail feathers in the bucket. Turkey is sitting next to a small yellow gourd decoration.

Place all 15 colored jumbo craft sticks in the Thankful Turkey Bucket using the crinkled paper shred to hold them in place. They become the turkey feathers making it a cute fall decoration!

More Turkey Crafts:

Thankful Turkey Bucket Craft

Yield: 1

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Active Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Estimated Cost: $10 or less

Make this cute thankful turkey bucket Thanksgiving craft to create a conversation about gratitude and what you are thankful for in your life.

Materials

15 Jumbo Colored Craft Sticks
Small Metal Bucket
2 Googly Eyes
Crinkled Paper Shred
Natural Jute Twine (about 10 inches)
Craft Felt in Yellow, Red, and Orange
Small Shipping Tag
Brown Acrylic Craft Paint
Black Permanent Marker

Tools

Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
Pencil
Scissors

Instructions

Paint the outside of the metal bucket with brown acrylic craft paint. Set aside to dry and apply a second coat, if necessary.
Next, cut out a triangle beak shape from yellow craft felt.
Cut a wiggly snood shape from red craft felt (snood is the part that hangs over a turkey’s bill and the wattle is the red part on their neck).
Cut two turkey feet shapes from orange craft felt.
Glue the googly eyes, beak and snood to the bucket. For best results, use a hot glue gun. It
Then write “I am THANKFUL for…” on a small brown tag with a black marker. Tie the tag to the bucket handle with a 10” length of natural jute twine and tie it with a bow.
Fill the bucket with crinkled paper shred.
Lay out 15 colored jumbo craft sticks. If you do not have colored craft sticks, you can color plain craft sticks with markers or paint them.
Write thankful prompts or things you are grateful for on the craft sticks with a pencil, and then trace with a permanent black marker. Use the thankful prompts listed in the photo or make up your own based upon what is important to your family. If making individual buckets, use the prompts to help you create your list of 15 gratitude items.
Place all 15 colored jumbo craft sticks in the Thankful Turkey Bucket using the crinkled paper shred to hold them in place. They become the turkey feathers making it a cute fall decoration!

Notes

While the bucket is drying, prepare the craft sticks and cut out the felt pieces.

If you don’t have craft felt, use colored paper or craft foam.

Hot glue gun is highly recommended.