The holiday season is a magical time, and what better way to celebrate than by infusing the joy of Christmas into your elementary classroom? In this blog post, we'll explore a festive collection of fun and educational Christmas activities that will engage and inspire your students during this joyful season. From crafts to puzzles, there's something for everyone to enjoy while learning.
If you see something you love, just click the picture to get a closer look!
1. Christmas Crafts Galore
Kick off the Christmas spirit with a creative bang! From making personalized name crafts to disguising gingerbreads, there are endless possibilities for hands-on activities that promote fine motor skills and self-expression.
⭐️NAME CRAFTS⭐️
Students build their names by sorting, coloring and counting the letters.
⭐️GINGERBREAD DISGUISE CRAFTS⭐️
Can you save the gingerbread? Use one of the included disguises (like the little monster below) or create your own! Perfect as a family project or to complete in class.
⭐️GINGERBREAD GLYPH SEL CRAFT⭐️
Answer the questions to determine what your gingerbread will look like. An easy extension to this activity is a creative writing piece to explain the adventures your new gingerbread will go on. This activity is a great way to get to know your students, as well as creating a festive and personal bulletin board display.
⭐️REINDEER MATH CRAFT⭐️
Easily differentiate this craft by matching numbers, sums or differences. This is a great activity to complete on a Friday afternoon in December when little hands need to be busy with meaningful but exciting work!
2. Math Centers with a Holiday Twist
Make math exciting by incorporating Christmas-themed activities. Whether it's counting ornaments, holiday friends or gingerbread, students can practice their math skills while having a blast.
⭐️GINGERBREAD MATH CENTERS⭐️
Easy prep with high engagement is what all 4 activities in this set aim for. Students will count, measure and more. Perfect for math centers, morning tubs or fast finisher bins.
⭐️COUNT AND COVER MATH CENTERS⭐️
Grab your pom poms as you count and cover the numbers. Print the mat in black/white and post the task cards around the room for an instant "Count and Color" activity around the room. Perfect for when needing to incorporate movement.
3. Literacy Centers Filled with Cheer
Hands on learning is key when it comes to keeping primary students engaged and learning during the excitement of the holiday season. Combining familiar puzzle play with festive characters and symbols is a great way to keep students invested in their own learning. The Gingerbread Centers are also a great way to celebrate the winter season.
⭐️GINGERBREAD LITERACY CENTERS⭐️
This set includes 5 centers to practice letter formation, handwriting, beginning sounds, rhyming and more! Set these centers up once and rotate through them in the weeks leading up to winter break.
⭐️CHRISTMAS MYSTERY PUZZLES⭐️
Choose between letter match puzzles or sight word puzzles to best support your students. Students love matching the pieces to reveal the mystery pictures.
4. No Prep Activities
⭐️COLOR BY NUMBER⭐️
December is BUSY! As teachers, sometimes we just need a NO PREP activity that our students can engage with. Color by Code activities are always a hit, especially in the days right before winter break.
As a thank you for reading this blog post, I'd love to give you a free sample of my color by code resources. Click the picture below to download the freebie.
⭐️FREE PRINTABLE⭐️
Another No Prep activity that can double as a simple gift for parents is this little "Choo-Choo" printable. You can get it for free by clicking the picture.
5. Promoting Positive Classroom Community Vibes in December
With the exception of Halloween, there isn't much that compares to the excitement surrounding the holidays in an elementary classroom.
⭐️MANGEMENT SYSTEM⭐️
You may need to kick your management system into high gear so that chaos doesn't take over. These positive behavior charts include high student buy in with minimal teacher prep. Set goals and incentives and add the pieces to the chart to provide students with a visual tool to track progress.
⭐️EASY STUDENT GIFTS⭐️
While it is not necessary, if you are planning to give your students a little gift, these pop its from Amazon* pair perfectly with these gift tags.
⭐️FAVORITE HOLIDAY READ ALOUDS⭐️
There are SO many holiday read alouds that are fun and festive for little learners. Below is one of our absolute favorites because Little Pip is so much like my own kiddos, anxiously awaiting for the "big day" to arrive. You can browse ALL of our holiday favorites here or click the picture below.*
Christmas activities for elementary students offer more than just holiday cheer; they provide invaluable opportunities for learning, creativity, and bonding. So, this holiday season, spread the joy of learning and fun with these engaging Christmas activities in your classroom.
*As an Amazon affiliate, I may earn a small commission on purchases made at no additional cost to you.