Kids with no school and lots of time on their hands need some fun things to do during holiday break, especially if they live in a part of the country that is prone to frigid outdoor weather. This post is all about fun things that you can do with kids or that they can do on their own–Christmas activities for kids. Some of the ideas teach the true meaning of Christmas, while others are just entertaining ways for children to spend time. And for Christmas you can substitute any winter holiday you celebrate. I celebrate Christmas so that’s what I used here.
Christmas Coloring Pages
Years ago, I discovered I could download really cute coloring pages from many online sources. This is such a fun thing to do with little kids and so simple–and cheap. Printer paper. Crayons. Your time. I love to color! Just search for Christmas coloring pages. You’ll find plenty!
Ornament making kits
I’ve seen them everywhere, including online, at craft stores and discount stores. A simple, ornament making kit can keep children busy for an entire afternoon, and if they’re old enough, all you have to do is supervise. With younger children, it’s fun to help them with glitter and glue. The kits run between $9 and $20 and are a fun way to let kids make their own Christmas ornaments for the tree. Ir can even be a new tradition, something you do together every year.
Make a holiday pomander
This is way fun and makes a house smell so good. Here’s how:
What you need
1 medium orange
Whole cloves (1-2 ounces per orange, chaper if you buy bulk from health food store or buy online)
Piercing tool – paper piercer or ice pick
Ribbon
Paper towel
To make it pretty, you’ll need to cross-tie the ribbon around the orange.
Center ribbon on the top of orange
Hold ribbon in place and turn orange over
Cross the ribbon and pull tight against orange
Turn orange over and bring ribbon together at top to tie a bow.
With piercing tool, poke holes in the exposed skin of the orange, spared fairly far apart. This can be messy, so do it over a paper towel.
Insert whole cloves into the holes. The orange will shrink as it dries, so the holes can be fairly far apart.
Make cards to bring to a nursing home
Kids love making cards, so why not let them brighten the holiday of older people, many of whom are alone at a tough time of year? It’s a great lesson for children, too.
Paint your own holiday plates
If you don’t want to go to a ceramic painting place, you can do it at home. Kits run around $10 and can be found online or at craft stores. Children do love to paint plates (or figurines). And if they’re young, why not let them do handprints on the plates and give to grandparents or parents as holiday gifts?
Have a Random Act of Kindness Day
Ask children to be on the lookout for ways they can do a random act of kindness. Open the door for a stranger. Say “happy holidays” to people on the street. Model the behavior for them by letting someone check out ahead of you at the grocery or turn in front of you on a street–then talk with the children about what you just did and why being kind is important. Ask them to find ways to be kind, themselves. (This has to be my favorite idea.)
Christmas Bells
Here’s an easy one. Buy some bells and red and green ribbon and have kids string bells and hang them around the house. Maybe not every door, or you’ll be driven nuts with ringing, but in other places, too.
Buy Toys and Donate to a program collecting toys for disadvantaged kids
Bring children with you to a toy store to buy toys for kids who wouldn’t have anything at Christmas. What a great opportunity for kids to learn about disadvantaged families and to do something for others.
Make a snow globe with older children
This is a little more complicated so it’s for older kids–you can find directions online. Here’s one site with directions. Save a few glass jars for this craft. I think it sounds like fun!
I love this! I remember scheduling a lot of fun activities when my son was young over the holidays. Groups of us would take our kids to the movies and then out for ice cream (even in the cold they love that). Or we’d have craft time at one of our homes or at one of the kids sculpture stores that were just beginning to open up back then. I had as much fun as the kids!
Oh, I love all of these but especially the pomander! I remember making these in Girl Scouts back in the day. I am NOT crafty, but my girls are. They will love this post. 🙂
Love this list, Carol. From small childhood up until about Cait’s 8th grade year, I hosted an annual “Holiday Craft Party” for my children and all their friends. I usually had anywhere from 12-20 kids in my home and I would set up 5-8 different craft stations. The kids could make something for their parents, for friends, for themselves, to give charitably (like a senior home) and something yummy to eat. It was great fun for all, but I think it was most fun for me. 🙂
[…] HERE are some fun things I came up with years ago. The post may be older, but the ideas are evergreen: everything from making a holiday pomander to having a fun random acts of kindness day for kids. Share these ideas with your grown children or even do some with grandchildren. […]
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I love this! I remember scheduling a lot of fun activities when my son was young over the holidays. Groups of us would take our kids to the movies and then out for ice cream (even in the cold they love that). Or we’d have craft time at one of our homes or at one of the kids sculpture stores that were just beginning to open up back then. I had as much fun as the kids!
Great ideas, Carol. Brings back memories.
My mother never did that, but I did it with young people I knew and it was way fun!
Great ideas Carol, I’d like to try a few of these myself!
Great stuff! I’m sending it along to my daughter. Reminds me of the old days with gingerbread houses and snickerdoodles….
Lots of great ideas here – even for us Jews! Random Acts of Kindness work across all religions, all holidays, all year.
Amazing ideas! And I need all the help I can get!
Oh, I love all of these but especially the pomander! I remember making these in Girl Scouts back in the day. I am NOT crafty, but my girls are. They will love this post. 🙂
Who cares about kids???? I want to do these!
Love this list, Carol. From small childhood up until about Cait’s 8th grade year, I hosted an annual “Holiday Craft Party” for my children and all their friends. I usually had anywhere from 12-20 kids in my home and I would set up 5-8 different craft stations. The kids could make something for their parents, for friends, for themselves, to give charitably (like a senior home) and something yummy to eat. It was great fun for all, but I think it was most fun for me. 🙂
Great ideas. I remember scrambling to find activities to keep my kids occupied over Christmas break. These would have come in handy.
Great ideas. We will be having out of town guest with young children. Thank you Carol for doing the work for me to keep them entertained!
Love the suggestions especially making cards and bringing them to a nursing home. We all could do that -not just kids!
Oh yeah! Great stuff! There’s nothing quite like making things to get a child excited.