Cultivate Kids’ Thanksgiving Compassion With TeachKind’s ‘Disguise a Turkey’ Activity!

Suggested grade levels: K–2, homeschool 

Objectives: To gain an understanding that turkeys want to live free from harm and suffering by considering why they would want to be disguised for Thanksgiving. Children will practice empathetic thinking as they come up with creative disguises for their turkeys while learning interesting facts about these unique individuals. 

As the holiday season approaches, turkeys—who are loving, inquisitive, and intelligent animals—will almost certainly be front and center on many classroom worksheets, activities, and decorations. They’re unique individuals who, just like us, value their lives and want to live free from harm and suffering—but sadly, 45 million of them are killed every year for Thanksgiving alone. The “Disguise a Turkey” activity has been popular in classrooms for many years, but it has generally been viewed as a joke. This compassionate new twist on an old favorite aims to help teachers open their students’ eyes so they can see past the humor and take a deeper look into the “why” of disguising their turkeys. This year, foster compassion for turkeys in your students with this fun and thought-provoking activity in which young learners disguise their turkey friend in order to help them avoid becoming a Thanksgiving meal! 

Looking for more turkey-related activities for your classroom? Check out our “Truly Awesome Turkeys” Thanksgiving lesson.