🦃 Clinician Corner: Supporting Your Child Through Thanksgiving Dinner

Written By Kara Stacks

Practical, child-led tips for a joyful (and low-stress) holiday meal

Thanksgiving can be full of warmth, tradition, and connection — but it can also come with new foods, big gatherings, unfamiliar expectations, and a lot of sensory input. For neurodivergent children, this can sometimes make the holiday feel overwhelming.

Here are some clinician-approved, family-centered strategies to help your child feel safe, supported, and successful at the Thanksgiving table.

1. Preview the Experience — Not the Expectations

Instead of telling your child what they “should” do at dinner, focus on helping them understand what the day will feel like.

  • Show pictures of family members who may be visiting

  • Walk them through the sequence (arrive → play → dinner → dessert → home)

  • Let them know where their safe/quiet space will be

This helps reduce uncertainty without adding pressure.

2. Build a “Comfort Plate”

Thanksgiving doesn’t have to be an all-new-foods event.
Offer a plate with:

  • 1–2 favorite, familiar foods

  • 1 “optional explore” food

  • 1 “just looking” food (no pressure to taste)

This honors autonomy, supports sensory needs, and still gently introduces new experiences.

3. Create a Flexible Seating Plan

Sitting at a big table for a long meal can be hard.
Some options that work beautifully:

  • A “move and come back” seat

  • A smaller table with siblings or cousins

  • A quiet spot nearby where your child can regulate between bites

Participation doesn’t have to mean sitting still.

4. Prepare for Sensory Moments Before They Happen

Thanksgiving dinner can bring unfamiliar smells, textures, and noise.
Consider packing:

  • Headphones

  • A comforting scent (like a favorite lotion or essential-oil roller)

  • Fidgets or a comfort item

  • A preferred cup and utensils

Empower your child with tools that help them regulate, just as adults prepare their own comfort strategies.

5. Offer Scripts for Social Moments

Short, simple scripts can help reduce social pressure:

  • “Thank you!”

  • “No thank you.”

  • “I need a break.”

  • “I’m all done.”

These support communication without forcing interaction.

6. Keep Routines Where You Can

The day will naturally bring changes, but small consistencies help anchor your child:

  • Morning routine stays the same

  • Keep nap/quiet time

  • Offer the same bedtime sequence

Predictability = comfort.

7. Focus on Connection, Not Performance

Thanksgiving doesn’t need to be a moment where your child “shows skills.”
It’s a chance to:

  • Let them be themselves

  • Celebrate their unique strengths

  • Model compassion to extended family

Your holiday is successful if your child feels safe and supported — not if everything goes according to tradition.

8. Debrief Together After the Meal

After dinner, check in using simple, child-friendly prompts:

  • “What was your favorite part?”

  • “Was anything too loud or too busy?”

  • “What should we do the same or different next time?”

This builds self-awareness and helps future holidays go even smoother.

💛 From our team to your family

Thanksgiving is about connection, gratitude, and belonging. With a few thoughtful supports and a child-led mindset, holiday meals can become moments of joy — even if they don’t look “traditional.”

If you’d like help creating personalized strategies for your family, our clinicians are always here to support you.

The entire Prince ABA team wishes you and your family a warm, restful, and joy-filled Thanksgiving.

Kara Stacks
Next

Sensory Friendly Holiday