Christmas Activities For Kids
Games And Crafts

Here are our top magical Christmas activities for kids which make the festive season so memorable.

There are so many games and crafts to choose from, you'll have trouble fitting Santa in!

Christmas presents for homeschoolers

You can also find perfect gifts which are both fun and educational.

DIY Christmas Tree Decorations

Christmas tree decorations handmade from jar lids

"We have been making jam jar lid ornaments for the Christmas tree. So pretty and inexpensive to make." ~ Simone

These wonderful Xmas tree ornaments are made by Simone from my Courageous Facebook Group. You can see how pretty they look in her video here:

"They look stunning on the tree and are like little windows into Christmas scenes from times gone by. We use these decorations every Christmas. They don't break as easily as baubles etc., are so cheap to make and the kids and I had so much fun making them."

~ Simone

She says all you need is to:

  • Paint the backs of the jars with chalk board paint so you can write individual messages
  • Cut some pictures out of Christmas cards to fit
  • Use some sparkly pipe cleaner (chenille stems) around the edge as a neat trim
  • Add little bits and bobs to decorate
  • Put a ribbon and a message on the back if you like
  • Using a hot glue gun is easiest, but PVA glue works too

"That's a brilliant idea." ~ Ruth

Kids Activities And Games Leading Up to Christmas

This is the time to get together a treasure chest of craft materials.

Kids activities and games always look so much better if you have top quality homeschool materials to hand.

christmas activities for kids

A basic homeschooling hoard of glitter, silver and gold spray paint, glue, tissue paper, sparkly pipe cleaners, pom-poms, sequins...

You don't have to do too much more for anything your child makes to look great!

Ice Crafts

Start with this lovely winter display:

winter ice crafts

Board Games

Board games have to be one of the best bits of Christmas activities for kids.

Educational board games

Come and find which board games get the best star rating from 2,000 homeschooling families who love to play!

Christmas Activities For Kids: Baking Cookies

Best Christmas cookie recipe

Check out this classic Christmas cookie recipe from Bianka and family.

"I've got a quick and easy recipe which is super easy for kids to make and the cookies can be decorated with absolutely anything from candy to sprinkles to choc chips and so on."

~ Bianka, Courageous Homeschooling Facebook support group

You can get Christiaan and Makayla's best Xmas cookie recipe here.

Homeschool Snowflakes

Snowflakes make fantastic homeschool Christmas activities for kids. There are lots of ways to make them look good.

  • A simple way is to draw a snowflake with glitter glue. They look good on transparent acetate, but cardstock would do fine.
  • Make a circle of tissue paper, fold into three and cut small pieces out of the edges. So long as you don't cut through the folds (!), your kids will open them up to reveal a beautiful homeschool snowflake.
  • Decorate with glitter glue.
Snowflake

Christmas Mini Trees

Christmas mini trees made from wire

This is one of those lovely easy Christmas activities for kids that appeals to all.

Spiral Christmas tree

All you need is some wire and some beads.

  1. Coil some wire in the shape of a spiral to make a tree shape.
  2. Slide some beads along the wire to make a mini Christmas  tree ornament.

Have a look at Bianka's family's lovely beaded trees for inspiration. She uses galvanized wire from a hardware store as it's easy to bend and keeps its form much better than bead wire.

"When we twisted the wire we wound it up on a flat surface to form a coil which you then just pull upwards to form a tree; you can bend and twist until it stands perfectly on its own. Pliers are handy to make a loop at the end to keep the beads in place.

We used large beads that have a big hole which makes them easy to string. So fun to make and they look so pretty as Christmas ornaments on display."

~ Bianka, Courageous Homeschooling Facebook group

Christmas Cards

Whatever your kids turn out, I am certain that whoever gets them will be infinitely more pleased than with the best shop-bought version. They also make fabulous homeschooling Christmas activities for kids.

  • Trees look less wobbly if you fold a piece of green card in half, draw half a tree and cut round the edge to open out a symmetrical version.
  • Decorate your homeschool tree with pompoms, glitter glue and sparkly pipe cleaners.
  • Hang presents and lights from the branches. Beads, sequins and buttons all work.
  • When it comes to decorating your real tree, you can use our homeschooling salt dough recipe for fun easy activities for kids making your own tree ornaments.

Make a Snow Globe

make a snow globe

Put Santa and a Snowman together with snow to make a magical Snow Globe scene in winter crafts for kids.

Write a Story

Another fun kids activity in the build up to the Day would be to use our free kids writing worksheets to write about your best present.

Christmas Science

christmas tree and reindeer in a lava lamp science experiment

One look at the trees and reindeer reminds you that the festive period is the perfect time to add a few science experiments into your Christmas activities for kids!

See what happens to the tree when you add it into a lava lamp!

Read A Christmas Story

Read a Christmas story

"We read a different story every night starting on the 1st. I haven't got around to wrapping them up this year but that's what we usually do so that we don't know which one is which."

~ Samie, Courageous Homeschooling Facebook group

Please note that the book links on this page are affiliate links so if you buy I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Pine Cones

The perfect answer to mini homeschool Christmas trees. They are beautiful just as they are, but one of the great festive homeschooling activities is to add a little extra sparkle. You can:

  • Add glue and sprinkle with salt to make snow-laden branches.
  • Make a homeschooling tree pot to stand them in using a juice lid.
  • Spray with gold or silver paint (fabulous).
  • Use glitter glue and sequins. Hang from your homeschooling tree by gluing on string loops.

Homemade Crackers

Christmas cracker

This takes a little effort, but it's one of those homeschooling Christmas activities for kids that rewards in many ways. It's great to do and adds to the fun and games of the day itself.

I have to say I cheat. I buy a pre-made cracker kit. It comes complete with a snap (which makes the bang), hats and a shiny foil case. You could certainly make homeschooling ones yourself, though maybe your crackers would have to be the silent version.

We enjoy:

  • Choosing small gifts to go inside. Sometimes we make them. Whatever your kids hide inside, they've got to be better than the standard key rings and whistles. One of those party poppers is good fun.
  • Find a joke to put in. The best bit in my opinion. How about:
  • Who hides in the bakery at Christmas?

    A mince spy!

  • Decorate the outside of your homeschool cracker. Add glitter and a shiny gift tag.

Christmas crackers look great on the table and the kids really look forward to pulling them.

Christmas Games For Kids

Math may not be the first thing you think of but many popular games, like Monopoly for example, use math.

kids math games

Here are the best board and card games for teaching math picked by a group of 2,000 homeschooling families.

Go present shopping, bake a chocolate log, (pumpkin pie is just as good), and sing The Twelve Days of Christmas - you'll see lots more homeschool Christmas games for kids here.

In a short page like this I can't possibly do justice to all the Christmas activities for kids you can choose from - my hope is that I've encouraged you to have a go yourself by giving you a small taste of Christmas.

Homeschool Christmas presents

I know it can be hard sometimes to find that extra special present which will light up your Christmas by being both fun and educational.

Here is a gift guide for those memorable presents. They are all presents which have come top of the list with our children William (now at Oxford University) and Catherine, or come highly recommended by over 12,000 Facebook fans.

Happy Christmas!

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