9 DIY Acorn Crafts for Kids Easy Thanksgiving & Fall
Fall season is almost here and it is my favorite time of year with cooler temperatures and fall colors everywhere, outside festivals galore, fall activities, and lots of acorns on the ground for easy acorn crafts with my kids. My least favorite part of fall in Virginia is the massive amounts of leaves that fall from my big old oak trees and a LOT of acorns, I repeat a lot of acorns. But I have found a way to get some of the acorns picked up by my kids and turn them into great ideas for a fun Thanksgiving DIY craft!
DIY Acorn Crafts for Kids Easy Thanksgiving & Fall
Making acorn themed crafts is so much more than a fun school fall Thanksgiving craft, we like to make these easy crafts and then use them for place cards for Thanksgiving dinner. It is such a great way to get the kids involved in fall crafts and a great option for Thanksgiving decorating that has so much sentimental value. This Thanksgiving table acorn decorations idea is an easy way to keep kids busy while you are prepping for Thanksgiving meals as well. This could be done ahead of time or kids could gather and complete these Thanksgiving crafts on Thanksgiving to keep the kids busy and having fun while waiting for the meal!
These Thanksgiving acorn crafts for kids are a fun fall craft for kids of all ages to complete and a fabulous way to have various options for craft projects for students and family members to choose from. The craft items needed for these Thanksgiving DIY acorn crafts include natural materials and store-bought items or those you may already have on hand. If you want to prep ahead of time to have items ready for these Thanksgiving acorn DIY crafts grab these items on your next craft store or dollar store trip.
This FREE printable Thanksgiving Activity Place Mat Printable is a fun interactive way to keep kids entertained at the table when waiting for Thanksgiving meal.
Having a printable placement to color is awesome for children, especially young children which have a hard time staying in their seat. I find having multiple types of art supplies available on the table is great for a multitude of ages. If you are unsure of which art supplies to have available for children, check out this list which is really helpful here.
How to Clean / Preserve Acorns:
To start, wash the foraged acorns in a bowl of water to clean them. Then place them on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet and bake them in an oven on low heat (220F) for 30-60 minutes.
9 Fun DIY Acorn Crafts for Kids Easy Thanksgiving & Fall
1. Simple A is for Acorn Craft with Free Printable Template
Simple A is for Acorn Craft with Free Printable Template will have children work on hand eye coordination and fine motor skills by gluing the finished craft to a sheet of construction paper, if you’d like. For children working on cutting skills allow children to cut out the acorn top and letter a as well. This large acorn letter A is such a fun way to work on letter A for school, homeschool groups or parents and children at home!
2. Acorn DIY Necklace Craft
If you and your family or classroom want to get crafty, then this Thanksgiving inspired Acorn Necklace Craft is absolutely perfect for you. This DIY acorn necklace craft is perfect for fall! Children will strengthen fine motor muscles while they craft a necklace to wear all season long. This DIY acorn necklace craft is perfect for fall! Children will strengthen fine motor muscles while they craft a necklace to wear all season long. My son loved making this acorn necklace DIY acorn craft so much and made me an extra to wear him to match. This would be such a fun craft to have even the guests at your Thanksgiving meal looking extra festive or making for table fall decoration.
Hunt for acorn caps from real acorns (or buy some if you don’t have oak trees nearby)! Grab a few more than you need in case any break while you’re trying to make your hole for the twine to go through. Use a piece of twine to fish through the acorn cap hole. You will surprise students and children when you don't use acorns for the bottom piece but instead use crumbled paper and string craft supplies.
3. Acorn Jewelry and Keychains DIY
To start this fun DIY acorn jewelry project, remove the cap of the acorn and put them aside. Using the multi-surface paint and a small paintbrush, paint the acorn in any color of your choosing. We stuck with Halloween-themed colors for our jewelry. Add another 2-3 coats of paint for more coverage, leaving paint to dry fully between coats.
Next, create faces on the painted acorns using a fine tip marker. Using the pliers, use jewelry rings to connect the eyelet with the earring hardware or a chain link if making a keychain.
4. DIY Acorn Garland
If you are making a lot of the acorn garlands at once, you could use spray paint over a tarp or a shower liner. If you are creating just a few grab a glue gun and acrylic paint in thanksgiving hues to paint the bottoms of the acorns.
This DIY acorn garland is one of the most perfect Thanksgiving decorations and something I treasure creating with my boys each year for our mantle. It’s the perfect time of year to get outside and start foraging those acorns in your yard or around town. Have students bring in acorns to create for your classroom as well to create your beautiful, nature-made acorn garland for fall. Add it to your seasonal decor, fireplace mantel or centerpiece to enjoy or make a garland countdown to Thanksgiving too!
5. How to Make an Acorn Garland
You will not believe how plastic Easter Eggs could be repurposed into an acorn! Your students and children will need acrylic paint to paint the bottom part of the Easter Egg and twine to hot glue on the top of the acorn (top of the easter egg!) Whether you hang these ornaments onto a Christmas tree or you display on a mantle you truly cannot go wrong with this fun craft. Upcycled Plastic Egg Acorn Ornament Craft is such a fun activity for kids and families to do together!
6. DIY Acorn Paper Bag Craft
DIY Acorn paper bag craft is perfect for simple supplies and young children. Take simple brown paper bags and enjoy this simple DIY acorn Thanksgiving craft.
It’s perfect for kids of all ages, and it’s a great way to teach them how to follow instructions and be creative.
Plus, when they’re done they’ll have a beautiful self-made puppet to play with or give to a friend! This would be such a perfect bag for groups having a get together when they need to take items home with them to double as a puppet and a grab bag!
7. DIY Acorn Handprint Thanksgiving Craft
This handprint acorn craft is perfect for kids of all ages and requires no paint, making it a great indoor activity on chilly fall days. Simply gather some brown paper, scissors, and glue, and let your little ones get creative. They’ll love seeing their handprints transformed into cute acorn characters, and you’ll end up with a sweet keepsake to cherish for years to come. Parents will love comparing the last year handprint to the current year's in a Thanksgiving momento! These would make amazing gifts for teachers to complete with student and send home!
8. Cute Acorn Craft For Kids [FREE Template]
Just grab some paper, pipe cleaners, glue, and tape and you’re set! It’s a fun fall craft to make with preschoolers, pre k, and kindergarten children. This would be so much fun for children to make and then use on a felt board for story telling as well.
9. Squirrel & Acorn Sewing Cards (Free Printable
These free printable Squirrel and Acorn sewing cards are a perfect autumn hands-on activity for toddlers and kids, and a fun way to introduce sewing in a kid-friendly way!
These squirrel and acorn sewing cards are a fun way to practice threading a hole and lacing a string.
Sewing cards are a fun activity where kids get to practice using their hands and fingers to thread. Make sure to supervise young kids when they play with the long string.
To make the string or ribbon easier for my kids to lace, I like to tape the end of it. (Or you can just use a shoelace!)
Creating fun and DIY craft activities doesn't have to be expensive or complicated. Gather acorns for a gorgeous acorn vase with the ones you do not use for DIY crafts and place in a clear Pottery Barn glass container or a simple mason jar for a centerpiece!
If you are stil looking for other Thanksgiving crafts check out these tie Dye Turkeys in about 30 minutes with coloring and cutting help from the kiddos! Depending on the ages of your children, you could cut the time down to create the coffee filter turkeys by prepping a lot of the steps before hand. Your children will love this coffee filter turkey craft for Thanksgiving.
Clay pots transform into DIY Thanksgiving Turkeys to decorate your favorite shelf during this fall season. Take an everyday clay pot and make it a turkey decoration for your Thanksgiving table. This is a turkey craft DIY that is perfect for a classroom, book club, family project and so many more! This is a Thanksgiving clay pot craft you cannot miss out on.
Check out these delicious Thanksgiving inspired desserts - Rice Krispie Treats Mini Pumpkin Pies are such a fun way to kick off the fall season. I love these treats because they are so easy to make and makes about 12 mini pies for each batch of pumpkin pie inspired Rice Krispie treats. The Rice Krispie mini pumpkin pie desserts are perfect for classroom parties, friends or family gatherings, or gifts for someone who loves a sweet treat. I love these mini pumpkin pie Rice Krispie Treats for fun place settings too for a fall themed event.
Whether it is a Thanksgiving party at preschool, school, play date, or a themed dessert for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. or a yummy Thanksgiving inspired treat with your kids - these easy Thanksgiving turkey themed brownies are a definite MUST make as soon as possible.
