I Spy “Flip” Junior Board Game: Real Life Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving I Spy Junior is a real-photo I Spy board game for 3- and 4-year-olds that builds Thanksgiving vocabulary, visual discrimination and expressive and receptive language through simple picture matching.

Flip a card, find the turkey and say its name! Each I Spy Junior board has just 10 real photos, so little ones can scan the whole board without getting overwhelmed and stay in the game turn after turn.

The 20 photos are split into two game sets. Set 1 has a turkey, pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, corn, gravy, stuffing, rolls, apple cider, apple pie and a vegetable tray. Set 2 adds a gourd, feathers, a pumpkin, a turkey, a garland, a cornucopia, a place setting, a centerpiece, a rolling pin and an apron.

Children don’t need to read to play. The words on the cards are there for the adult, so the vocabulary is always right in front of you.

Kids can point, touch, match or name the picture, which makes the game easy to adjust for different language skills. Use the picture-only cards when you want all eyes on the photo, or grab the cards with words when you’d like a quick vocabulary prompt.

How to Play the Thanksgiving I Spy Junior Game

1. Choose one game set and place one of its four I Spy boards where every child can see it.
2. Give each player a small face-down stack of that set’s picture cards, or use one shared pile for a larger group.
3. Everyone flips a card at the same time and searches the board for the matching photo.
4. The first player to point to or touch the match earns a token card. Keep playing until every card has been flipped.

Cooperative Play: Put all the cards face down in one pile. Children take turns flipping the top card and finding the photo together, and they can cover each match with a game marker.

Independent Play: Set out one board and a pile of cards. A child flips one card at a time, finds the photo and covers it with a marker.

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Easy Ways to Differentiate This Thanksgiving I Spy Junior Game

Three- and four-year-olds come to this game with very different skills. Some are still learning to scan a page and match a photo, some are building their first thanksgiving words and some can name every picture and are ready to describe it. Each set has the same 10 photos printed two ways, with words and without, so you can change the cards and the questions without changing the game.

For Children Who Need More Support:

• Start with 3 to 5 Thanksgiving cards from one set. A short game ends while kids are still having fun, and you can add cards as they get faster.
• Use the Thanksgiving cards without words. A plain photo is less to look at, so kids focus on the picture they are matching.
• Name the photo as the child flips it, like “turkey,” then let them point to the match. They hear the word right when they’re looking at the picture, and that’s how receptive vocabulary grows.
• Play the Thanksgiving game cooperatively from one shared pile. Without a race, the goal stays on looking and matching.

For On-Level Practice:

• Play with all 10 Thanksgiving cards from one set and have kids name each photo, like gourd, when they find it. Saying the word every turn moves kids toward using it.
• Switch to a different Thanksgiving board from the same set each round. The photos move, so kids keep scanning instead of remembering spots.
• Once kids know the first set, bring out the second one. New photos like gourd and cornucopia add vocabulary while the game itself stays familiar.
• Practice turn-taking words during the Thanksgiving game, like “My turn,” “Your turn” and “I found it!” Short phrases give young kids a script for play.

For an Extra Challenge:

• Pick a Thanksgiving card without showing it and give a clue, like “It is a bird people eat at Thanksgiving dinner”. Kids find the photo by listening.
• Have kids tell one thing about the Thanksgiving photo they found, like what color it is or who eats it at the table. Adding one detail stretches a one-word answer.
• Switch to the Thanksgiving cards with words and point to the word as you say it. Seeing the printed word next to the photo builds print awareness.
• Let a child give a clue about a Thanksgiving card while a partner searches. Thinking of a clue without saying the name is hard work and builds describing skills.

For Speech, OT, ELL or Special Education Support:

• Speech: say the same simple Thanksgiving word every time, during the flip, the search and the match. The cards with words are a steady prompt for adults.
• Fine motor: flip the Thanksgiving cards for a child who needs motor support, so their energy goes to looking and finding. Kids working on grasp can practice flipping on their own.
• ELL: name each Thanksgiving photo, like turkey, in English and invite families to share the word in their home language. Real photos make the meaning clear in either language.
• Early intervention: accept pointing, touching or words as the answer in the Thanksgiving game, then model the word. Any of these shows the child found the match.

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This Thanksgiving I Spy Junior Game Is Perfect For:

• Preschool and pre-K
• 3-4 year olds
• Thanksgiving and fall themes
• Small-group instruction
• Preschool learning centers
• Special education
• Early intervention
• Speech and language therapy
• ELL and multilingual learners
• Receptive and expressive vocabulary practice
• Life skills activities
• Morning tubs
• Independent matching practice
• Homeschool preschool
• Library activity stations

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