Dinovember is a month-long observance in November, invented by Susan and Refe Tuma in 2012.^[1][2] During Dinovember, toy dinosaurs 'come to life' at night and get up to mischief, and then are discovered by the kids of the household in the morning, frozen in place.^[2] Dinovember has been compared to Elf on a Shelf, but has not been commercialized.

Dinovember has a small but dedicated following. As of November 2023,^[3] more than 200,000 people follow the antics of the Tuma dinosaurs via their Facebook page. A smaller but unknown number of other households around the world also participate via their own toy dinosaurs.^[3]

According to Dinovember lore, the dinosaurs are woken up on November 1st by the smell of fresh Halloween candy, and put back to sleep on November 30 by the first signs of Christmas.^[3]

Susan and Refe Tuma, an American couple from Kansas City, Missouri, began Dinovember in 2012.^[4][5] Their youngest child often did not sleep through the night, so Susan began setting up scenes with their children's toy dinosaurs to pass the time at night.^[4][5] Their older children reacted positively, spurring the two to continue.^[4][5]

The following year, the project went viral after the couple wrote a Medium essay on the topic.^[6] Following the online support, the couple encouraged other parents to adopt the tradition.^[6]

Refe and Susan Tuma wrote a book about Dinovember, called What the Dinosaurs Did Last Night,^[7] which was released in 2014.^[4]

The idea has been picked up around the world by venues that cater to kids,^[8][9] including public libraries,^[10][11] teachers,^[12] and museums,^[13] such as the Royal Saskatchewan Museum.^[14]