Christmas Activities For The Classroom
For teachers, December can be challenging. The kids are excited and ready for their winter break, but you’ve still got to keep them engaged and learning. So make the most of this special time of the year with these easy Christmas-themed activities. Keep the learning going with holiday fun!
These fun activities are perfect to use in your classroom throughout December!
Create and write Christmas cards.
Christmas cards are an easy way to incorporate art. They’re seasonal and tie into many writing standards. Plus, they’re great for building real-world connections. Pair card-making with your friendly letter writing lessons and encourage students to write a friendly letter inside their cards.
Tip: Want to get more crafty? Pair card-making with these DIY photo gifts for parents and friends.
Build a Gingerbread House.
Gingerbread houses and gingerbread men are great for December. They’re fun and seasonal, but not specifically Christmas-themed.
Gingerbread houses are easy to build with milk cartons, graham crackers, and icing. You’ll need to attach the graham crackers to the milk cartons ahead of time and let them dry before the kids decorate their gingerbread houses.
Alternatively, you can simplify the prep work and hot glue the graham crackers to the milk cartons. Make sure the kids know not to eat the graham crackers!
Want to incorporate academic activities with your gingerbread-themed activities?
- Build academic connections by having students write paragraphs describing their gingerbread houses. Then, see if their classmates can correctly identify who built which house.
- Set up a store with decorations for the gingerbread homes. Give each child a budget to shop. Have them calculate the cost of decorating their house.
- Have students use graphing paper to create a floor plan for a life-sized gingerbread house. Then, ask them to calculate the area of each room.
Tip: Try pairing your gingerbread house decorating with these gingerbread-themed math worksheets. They review the 3rd-grade CCSS math standards with one standard per worksheet.
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“We used this during gingerbread week and my students loved it! Thank you!! :)”
– Priscilla ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Practice math skills with Christmas-themed review activities
Math skills are essential for success in school and life. No matter what math skills your students are working on, daily practice is important. These math activities are perfect for keeping them learning right up till vacation starts.
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“Great for my students. We use it in a multitude of ways.”
– Jill ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
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“So fun! A great way to keep the holiday energy rolling while reviewing key concepts.”
– Emily ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
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“My students enjoyed this activity! It is great for the last week/days leading up to Christmas break!”
– Molly ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Research and write about reindeer.
Reindeer are associated with Santa and Christmas. They’re also real-life arctic animals. Why not build your students’ informational writing skills with a research project focused on reindeer and other arctic animals?
Kids love learning about animals, and arctic animals make a great seasonal topic to research. Plus, these cute writing crafts make an excellent bulletin board display!
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“This was very helpful for my students to learn about different animals in the wild… It was so awesome to see them excited to learn!”
– Alli ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Learn about how Christmas is celebrated around the world.
There are different ways people celebrate Christmas around the world. In some countries, Christmas is a religious holiday, while others see it as a secular holiday. In some places, Christmas is a day off work, while others give gifts at Christmastime. Why not explore cultures from around the world with a Christmas around the world unit study?
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“These are great articles for the Holidays Around the World studies! They are engaging and informative! I’m getting great conversations from my students about what they are learning! The reading level of the passages is great for class!”
– Janet ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Don’t forget to grab the FREE reindeer craftivity!
Want the FREE printable reindeer craftivity? Simply, enter your personal email below. (Many schools block outside emails with attachments.) Then, I’ll send you the FREE reindeer craftivity!
Looking for more fun Christmas activities for the classroom?
Check out this post for ideas for your Christmas around the world unit, grab some gingerbread-themed printables, or get crafty with these DIY photo gift ideas.
