Thanksgiving games for the whole family

A Thanksgiving game plan for the whole day

Thanksgiving has natural gaps: the hour before dinner, the wait while the turkey rests, the slump after pie. Match the game to the gap, and nobody has to organize anything.

1. 1While the turkey cooks, play charades or Forehead Guess in the living room. It keeps kids out of the kitchen and gives early guests something to do.
2. 2While the turkey rests, play a quick round of Imposter or Who Am I? at the table. Both take a few minutes, so you can stop the moment the food comes out.
3. 3At the table, pass the phone with the Thanksgiving would you rather questions between helpings. They work for every age, and nobody has to get up.
4. 4After pie, when everyone is full and happy to sit, read the Most Likely To Thanksgiving questions or start a game of Don't Say It.
5. 5Late in the evening, play Fishbowl with whoever is staying, or a few rounds of Name 3 Things for a quick, quiet finish.

You don't need all five. Pick two, and let the day decide the rest.

Thanksgiving games for kids

The kids' table gets restless long before the adults finish talking. Give them one phone and one of these games, and they'll entertain themselves first and the grown-ups after.

• Charades with the Thanksgiving deck. Little kids love acting out a turkey running away from the cook, and an older cousin can read the prompt to anyone who can't read yet.
• Draw & Guess. Drawing levels the field: a six-year-old's turkey is often easier to guess than an adult's.
• Who Am I? The yes-or-no questions are simple, and the Thanksgiving deck is full of foods the kids just ate.
• Simon Says for the youngest, since the phone reads every command out loud.

Kids who can read can run the game on their own. Put an older cousin in charge of the phone, and the adults get a few more minutes at the table.

Games for a big family with mixed ages

A table with a four-year-old, two teenagers and a great-grandmother needs games where nobody gets left out. The answer is usually teams, not easier games.

Mix ages on every team, so each one has a strong reader, a fearless actor and someone who knows the family stories. Use longer rounds, 90 seconds in Forehead Guess and 120 in charades, so the youngest and oldest players get a fair turn. For relatives who would rather stay seated, Imposter, Who Am I? and Would You Rather all work from a chair.

With more than a dozen people, see our party games for large groups. Fishbowl and team charades both handle a full room, and every round brings new people into the game.

Playing with family over video

Not everyone makes it home for Thanksgiving. A video call on the TV, or a laptop at the end of the table, lets them play too.

• Forehead Guess works best. The host opens it on a laptop and shares the screen, the guesser looks away, and family on both ends of the call shout clues.
• In charades, the actor can be on either end. Whoever is acting opens the game on their own phone, so the prompt stays private.
• Would You Rather and Most Likely To work if you share the card and have everyone answer at the same time, on three.
• Save Imposter for the people in the room, since every player needs to see a private card.

There are more setup tips in our video call games.

Tips for the host

• Charge the phone before guests arrive, and turn the brightness up for Forehead Guess.
• Pick the first game before people sit down. Asking a full table what they want to play is how you end up playing nothing.
• Keep the first rounds short. Two quick games beat one long one when people are hungry.
• Let the youngest player go first and the oldest pick the next game.
• Stop while people are still laughing, and save the rest for Christmas.

Questions