Pretty much as soon as they can do anything to help. My (soon to be three year old) is unlikely to be able to carve the turkey (although I'm sure she'd have an amazing amount of fun trying) but she loves to help. Even if its just a matter of carrying plates into the dining room one by one. She'll even help lay the table as she knows that you need a fork and a knife (although not always which way round they go).

The important thing isn't that she's making things easier... in many ways her helping may make it take a little longer, but it good that she's involved and helping out makes her feel part of it.... and thats something I'm thankful for.

There are a number of chores and helpful activities for children of different ages to do during dinner preparation on Thanksgiving. Age appropriate tasks my include Preschoolers and Kindergarteners helping set the table (and including any creative constructions, such as a paper Turkey they made in school for decoration), First and Second Graders may help with the cleaning or drying of the dishes (loading plates, cups, and pans into the dishwasher. Careful: NO knives or forks, or other items that could hurt them), older children could start helping with meal preparation, such as seasoning the turkey (you may not want to let them touch to raw meat though, or if they want to rub the seasoning on, let them use disposable latex gloves), mashing up potatoes and adding milk and butter, or opening any canned goods and adding them to the appropriate bowls. Only allow teens access to the stove top, since children younger than that may not be mature (or tall) enough to understand the implications associated with a hot stove. For instance if you are working with a gas stove, your child may not yet understand how to turn on the burner (light first and then select heat setting) or how to carefully operate the stove top (not coming in close contact with the flame protruding underneath the pots and pans). Older children can also help pealing and cutting fruits and veggies that you may include in your Thanksgiving meal. Make sure you go over proper safety measures on how to use certain kitchen utensils properly. If you have enough time on your hands during meal preparation you can also let your younger children (ages 3-6) help by measuring and adding certain ingredients, since this would give them a great hands-on opportunity to learn about quantities, units of measure, and different ingredients used to create certain foods. Most children at these ages enjoy helping in the kitchen and love mixing the food themselves. Many who are allowed to help cooking are actually more likely to eat the foods they themselves prepared. Thanksgiving can be a great time to include your family members in meal preparation, since it not only helps them feel like they were able to positively contribute, but also teaches them about the responsibility of a family to work together to make a special event like Thanksgiving possible in the first place.

As soon as they are old enough to hold a spoon and help mix dough/salad/stuffing whatever with out spilling it. Letting them be a part of making the meal they are going to eat makes it that much better for them. I know it always did for me as a child. At 6 I was helping my grandmother roll out dough, make cookies, wash fruits and vegitables. By the time I was 8 I was peeling and slicing with her. It help me feel like I had done something to benifit my family. Watching people eat the dishes I helped prepare made me feel proud and accomplished. To this day I enjoy cooking, to the point where although I am in a different line of work at the momemt, I will be returning to school to become a chef.

I know it is an extra strain to have a child you must direct in the kitchen, but I feel in the long run it will benifit both you and them. By the time I reached 13 I could prepare a meal for my whole family (6 of us) between my brothers and sisters we could have dinner waiting for my parents when they got home from work. Just imagine the possibilities...

I think children should be included as soon as they are old enough to take directions and carry things. A four-year-old, for instance, should be able to put the napkins on the table, help put ingredients into a bowl, and do other small jobs like that. As they get older, and their motor skills increase, they should be tasked with progressively more difficult jobs. In the process, they'll learn to cook and bake, and more importantly, learn to help out and contribute to the family. Get them into it young and they'll think helping is a privilege.