Count It Down

Total Time Needed:: 1 Hour

Display this clever gizmo in a prominent spot, appoint an official clock turner, and your crowd will always know the answer to Thanksgiving Day's most-asked question.

Be sure to check out more ideas for a fun-filled Kids' Thanksgiving.

Materials

3 paper plates
Cardboard
Packing peanuts for carrots
Tissue paper for peas
Scissors
Cotton balls
Ruler

Pencil
Nail
Permanent marker
Glue
Paper fastener
Tacky glue
Plastic fork and knife

Instructions

For a custom clock, have your kids hunt down the perfect household items for making faux food that reflects your feast's menu. We used cardboard for turkey slices, trimmed and painted packing peanuts for carrots, and wadded tissue paper for peas. The cutout square from our clock's window made a perfect butter pat to top our cotton-ball mashed potatoes. Once you have the food assembled, create the clock:
With a ruler and pencil, determine the exact center point of three paper plates, then use a nail to poke a hole at the center point of each.
Cut the rim off one plate and, with a permanent marker, write numbers as shown, 1 inch from the circle's edge. (We wrote on the plate's white underside for better readability and used half-hour increments from 1/2 to 6.) Glue the circle onto one of the other plates.
Cut a square window in the remaining plate (size it to be a bit bigger than the numbers), then use the marker to write "When do we eat?" above the window and "Hours to go" under it.
Stack the plates and secure them with a paper fastener through their center holes, leaving it a bit loose so that the plates can rotate.
Use tacky glue to affix a plastic fork and knife and the faux food of your choice.