Do you have any upcoming road trips? Here are five Thanksgiving car games for kids that you can play in the car. And best of all, none of them require any materials so you don’t have to add to your packing list!
If you’re ready for some Thanksgiving holiday fun in the car, give one of these games a try on your next trip. I hope you and your family enjoy them as much as we do.
1. I’m Planning Thanksgiving Dinner
There’s a classic car game called “I’m Going to Grandma’s House.” The goal is to take turns naming items that you’re going to bring with you. Except you can’t just willy nilly say anything. You have to pick an item that starts with a specific letter of the alphabet.
So player one says something that starts with A. Player two says something that starts wit B. And so on, all the way to Z.
Well this classic car game is the perfect game for a Thanksgiving twist!
Here’s how you play..
The first person says, “I’m planning Thanksgiving dinner and we’re going to have” and then they say a food that starts with A. Maybe acorn squash or apple pie?
The next person says, “I’m planning Thanksgiving dinner and we’re going to have” something beginning with the letter B. Will beets or baby carrots be on your table?
Keep going, naming foods or drinks for each letter. Can your family make it all the way to Z?
You may decide to skip some letters is no one can think of a food dish. And remember to have fun – so what if liver and onions or french fries make it onto the list? Don’t feel limited to “traditional” Thanksgiving fare.
2. Tiny Blessings
November is the perfect month for counting your blessings!
The goal of this game is to come up with the smallest thing to be thankful for. One person begins by saying, “I’m thankful for _____”. Let’s pretend they say family.
So the next person has to think of something smaller than “family.” Maybe they say they’re thankful for their cousin.
Keep going, taking turns naming blessings that are smaller and smaller in size. When one person can’t think of an answer, you can either work together, or you can decide they’ll be out for the round.
How small can you get? Are you thankful for the spiders that eat bugs? Or for the molecules inside of everything?
When you can’t go any smaller, you can play again. Except this time, work your way back up. What’s the largest thing you’re thankful for?
3. Ways to Use Pumpkin
Each fall, pumpkin spice makes its way into almost everything! There’s pumpkin coffee, pumpkin rolls, and pretty much pumpkin everything.
The goal of this Thanksgiving car game is to take turns naming items with pumpkin inside.
It’s played in a round robin format. One person starts, then the next one goes. Continue until everyone who’s playing gets a turn and then start over.
When one person can’t name one, they sit out the rest of the round. Continue until only one person is left. That person is the winner!
You might say pumpkin:
- Milkshake
- Pie
- Muffins
- Rolls
- Pudding
- Latte
Plus whatever else you can think of!
Finished with pumpkin? Try playing the same game with these topics instead:
- Turkey
- Cranberries
- Potatoes
- Apples
4. Thanksgiving Ten Questions
Ever played Twenty Questions? This one is similar, but with a catch. Each person must think of a Thanksgiving themed item.
It could be a football, a turkey, or a pilgrim. Or something entirely different.
Because of the limitations of the theme, the other players only get 10 questions to try to figure it out instead of the traditional twenty. Remember each question must have a “yes” or a “no” answer.
Here are some questions that work well:
- Can you eat it?
- Is our car bigger?
- Do we own one?
- Is it a fall color?
Once your ten questions are up, make your final guesses. Did anyone figure it out?
Now have another player pick a Thanksgiving object.
5. Thanksgiving Rhymes
What rhymes with turkey?
How about pie?
Take turns picking a Thanksgiving word and seeing how many words you can name that rhyme with it.
You can decide if nonsense words count. When I’m playing with my younger crew, I allow them.
See if everyone can name something for each word. Then have someone else give a word.
Will You Play Any of These Thanksgiving Car Games?
If you’re traveling this November, will you give any of these games a try? I’d love for you to share which one you think sounds most fun.
Have any other Thanksgiving car games you enjoy? Please share how to play in the comments so we can all get in on the fun!
And if you’re looking for even more car games for kids, try these:
This post was originally published in November of 2017. It’s been updated and refreshed!
Tajuana Rhodes says
These are some really neat ideas! Our son is 18 now but these would have been great when he was younger. I’ll share your post with my readers on Facebook instead 🙂
Lisa says
Thank you so much Tajuana!