25 Thanksgiving Activities for Seniors (+ 28 Trivia Questions and a Free Printable)

Thanksgiving is a natural fit for senior living: it’s built around food, family, gratitude and tradition, and many residents have decades of Thanksgiving memories to share. A week of themed activities gives everyone something to look forward to, whether or not family can visit.

Here are 25 Thanksgiving activities for seniors, grouped into crafts, games, food and social ideas, plus 28 Thanksgiving trivia questions with answers. All 28 are also in a free large-print trivia printable with an answer key (PDF). For a full month of ideas, see our November activities for seniors.

Thanksgiving crafts for seniors

1. Gratitude leaf garland. Residents write one thing they’re thankful for on large paper leaves, then string them together for the dining room.
2. Gratitude tree. A paper trunk on the wall that grows a new leaf each day in November.
3. Thanksgiving centerpieces. Arrange large pumpkins, silk leaves and large pinecones in low baskets for the holiday tables. Skip mini gourds, acorns and berries, which can be mistaken for food.
4. Painted pumpkins. Paint small pumpkins with non-toxic washable paint or decorate them with stickers. No carving tools needed.
5. Napkin rings. Wrap cardboard rings with ribbon or twine and add a paper leaf. Staff pre-cut the leaves and rings; anyone who cuts uses blunt-tip safety scissors.
6. Place cards. Write names in large letters for the Thanksgiving meal. A small job that matters.
7. Leaf rubbings. Place leaves under paper and rub with the side of a crayon. Simple and calming. More ideas in our craft activities for seniors.

Thanksgiving games for seniors

8. Thanksgiving trivia. Use the 28 questions below, played in teams.
9. Thanksgiving bingo. Swap numbers for pictures or words like turkey, pie and Pilgrim. See our bingo for seniors guide.
10. Word scramble. Unscramble holiday words like “KRUYTE” (turkey) and “PIKPMUN” (pumpkin) on a whiteboard. More in our word games for seniors.
11. Pass the pumpkin. Pass a small, light pumpkin (or a soft plush one) around the circle while music plays. Whoever holds it when the music stops shares a Thanksgiving memory.
12. Seated turkey bowling. Roll a soft ball at plastic pins decorated as turkeys, from a chair.
13. Name that tune. Play the opening of familiar songs, including “Over the River and Through the Wood,” and let teams guess.
14. “A to Z” of thankfulness. Go around the room naming something to be thankful for that starts with each letter.

Thanksgiving food activities

15. Pie tasting. Small samples of pumpkin, apple and sweet potato pie, with a vote for the favorite. Pie crust can be hard to chew and swallow, so offer filling only or a pureed version for residents on modified textures, and check diet orders first.
16. Family recipe swap. Residents share a dish their family always made, and staff write the recipes into a community cookbook.
17. Cranberry sauce demo. Residents measure cranberries and sugar and stir them together in a bowl before cooking. Staff do all the stove work and let the sauce cool before anyone tastes it. Keep raw cranberries out of reach of residents living with dementia.
18. Butter in a jar. Take turns shaking heavy cream in a tightly sealed plastic jar until it turns to butter. Offer a taste on soft bread only to residents whose diet orders allow it, since bread and rolls can be a choking risk for people with swallowing difficulties.

Social and gratitude activities

19. Thanksgiving memory circle. Ask about favorite dishes, who hosted, and the funniest holiday mishaps. Prompts in our reminiscence therapy activities.
20. Parade watch party. Watch the parade on Thanksgiving morning with warm (not hot) coffee and soft pastries that fit each resident’s diet orders.
21. Football afternoon. Watch a game together with team colors and diet-appropriate snacks (skip peanuts, popcorn and chips for residents on modified textures).
22. Thank-you cards. Residents write cards for staff, volunteers and local first responders.
23. Family Thanksgiving lunch. Invite families for a meal the week before Thanksgiving, so families who travel or host on the day can still join.
24. Food drive. Collect canned goods for a local food bank. Residents can help sort and label.
25. Gratitude reading. During Thanksgiving week, read the gratitude leaves or tree aloud over coffee.

Visits from children and grandchildren fit naturally into this week. See our intergenerational activities for seniors.

28 Thanksgiving trivia questions for seniors (with answers)

Facts are drawn from sources including the National Park Service’s history of Lincoln and Thanksgiving, the National Archives’ account of how Congress set the date, and Plimoth Patuxet Museums’ page on Edward Winslow’s eyewitness account of 1621. The top turkey-raising state is from the USDA’s September 2026 Turkeys Raised report.

The Wampanoag are still here today: the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) are federally recognized tribes in Massachusetts (Social Security Administration). It’s worth mentioning when you play the first round.

The First Thanksgiving

1. The 1621 harvest feast often called the first Thanksgiving took place at which English colony?
   Answer: Plymouth Colony (Massachusetts)
2. Which Native nation shared the 1621 feast with the Pilgrims?
   Answer: The Wampanoag
3. Who was the Wampanoag leader at the 1621 feast?
   Answer: Massasoit (Ousamequin)
4. About how long did the 1621 feast last?
   Answer: About three days
5. Whose 1621 letter is the only known eyewitness account of the feast?
   Answer: Edward Winslow
6. On which ship did the Pilgrims sail to America in 1620?
   Answer: The Mayflower
7. Which Patuxet man, who spoke English, helped the Pilgrims plant corn?
   Answer: Tisquantum (Squanto)

Thanksgiving History

8. Which president proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving in 1863?
   Answer: Abraham Lincoln
9. Which magazine editor campaigned for years for a national Thanksgiving?
   Answer: Sarah Josepha Hale
10. Sarah Josepha Hale is credited with writing which nursery rhyme?
    Answer: “Mary Had a Little Lamb”
11. Which president moved Thanksgiving a week earlier in 1939?
    Answer: Franklin D. Roosevelt
12. Since a 1941 law, Thanksgiving falls on which day?
    Answer: The fourth Thursday in November
13. Which president made the turkey pardon a yearly tradition starting in 1989?
    Answer: George H. W. Bush
14. Which Founding Father wrote to his daughter that the turkey was “a much more respectable bird” than the bald eagle?
    Answer: Benjamin Franklin

Parades and Football

15. In what year did the Macy’s parade in New York City begin?
    Answer: 1924
16. Which NFL team has hosted a Thanksgiving game almost every year since 1934?
    Answer: The Detroit Lions
17. In what year did the Dallas Cowboys begin their Thanksgiving game tradition?
    Answer: 1966

Turkey Talk

18. What is a male turkey called?
    Answer: A tom (or gobbler)
19. What is a baby turkey called?
    Answer: A poult
20. Can wild turkeys fly?
    Answer: Yes, for short distances
21. What is the red skin hanging from a turkey’s chin and throat called?
    Answer: The wattle
22. Which U.S. state raises the most turkeys?
    Answer: Minnesota

Food and Traditions

23. Which company’s test kitchen created green bean casserole in 1955?
    Answer: Campbell’s
24. On which day does Canada celebrate Thanksgiving?
    Answer: The second Monday in October
25. The song “Over the River and Through the Wood” began as a poem about which holiday?
    Answer: Thanksgiving
26. Which 1943 Norman Rockwell painting shows a family Thanksgiving dinner?
    Answer: Freedom from Want
27. In what year did A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving first air on TV?
    Answer: 1973
28. What does the word “cornucopia” mean?
    Answer: Horn of plenty

Safety tips for Thanksgiving activities

• Check diet orders before any food activity. Offer soft or pureed versions for residents on modified textures, and skip nuts and hard candies.
• Serve drinks warm, not hot. Use lidded or two-handled mugs where needed.
• Keep decorations large. Small gourds, acorns or berries can be mistaken for food by residents living with dementia.
• Plan quiet time. Big gatherings can be tiring. Offer a calm space to step away.
• Remember those who are grieving. Holidays can be hard for residents who have lost a spouse or won’t have visitors.

Adapting Thanksgiving activities for memory care

The National Institute on Aging suggests matching activities to what the person can do, helping them get started and making sure they feel successful (National Institute on Aging). Folding napkins, arranging centerpieces, looking at family photos, smelling cinnamon and apple, and singing familiar songs work well in small, calm groups. For more ideas, see our dementia activities for seniors guide.

Plan your Thanksgiving week in minutes

ActivityBuilder’s activity calendar builder lets you drop Thanksgiving activities into your calendar from a library of 580+, and run trivia and bingo on the activity room TV. Start a free trial and have the whole holiday season planned.