10 best Christmas activities for kids.

Posted by smol on


Christmas injects our little ones with endless energy, and once school is out… it’s over to us! 

So what are your go-to festive family activities?

Of course there are the classic kid’s Christmas movies (pretty much compulsory), perhaps a trip to a pantomime or a visit to that man in the red suit… and then the decorating of the Christmas tree.

But once you’ve exhausted the traditional stuff… how about some more interesting things to do during the holidays that you may not have thought about? 

Read more: 15 best family Christmas movies

Try our top 10 best and inexpensive Christmas activities to feel more Fairy on the Tree, less Grinch. 

best Christmas activities for kids

1. make Christmas slime! 

One activity that kids love is making slime. It’s easy, quick and can be made using household ingredients. 

  1. Put 2 tablespoons of cornstarch into a bowl.

  2. Add 1 ½ tablespoons of washing up liquid. 

  3. Pop in some biodegradable glitter and food colouring.

  4. Stir until it’s non-stick but squidgy.

  5. Add more starch or washing up liquid if needed to get the right texture.

  6. Let the mix sit for 2 mins then it’s good to go! 

2. bake festive cookies together.

For the kids, for you, for Santa, for Grandparents, eat them all or give them away… who doesn’t love a Christmas biscuit in just 8 steps? 

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line baking tray with greaseproof paper. 

  2. Mix 200g butter, 200g caster sugar, 1 egg & ½ tsp vanilla extract.

  3. Add 400g plain flour and mix to a dough.

  4. Dust surface with flour and roll dough to half a cm thickness.

  5. Cut out your biscuit shapes and pop them on the tray.

  6. Bake for 8-10 mins until light brown and remove from the oven to cool.

  7. For easy icing, mix 30g icing sugar, 1 or 2 tsps of milk and 2 drops of food colouring.

  8. Spread on the biscuits and add any edible decorations before the icing dries.

3. Christmas light scavenger hunt.

Time to hit the streets after dark. But first… 

  1. Grab some paper and a pen; we’re brainstorming! 

  2. Think of as many Christmas-themed things as you can and write them down. 

  3. Create a master list, and give everyone a copy.

  4. Wrap up warm, take a torch, your list and a pencil.

  5. Head to that magical place in your neighbourhood where the houses have REALLY gone to town and start hunting for your Christmas objects in LIGHTS.

  6. The prize for whomever ticks off the most is up to you!

4. festive guess-who?

Kids love to play games during Christmas time! It’s a great guessing game with a Christmas twist so grab a pen and some post-it notes.

How to play? 

  1. Pick the first player!

  2. Everyone else must decide on a festive person, animal or thing.

  3. Write it on the post-it note and stick it to the player’s forehead… don’t let them see!

  4. Now they can ask questions and try to guess who they are.

  5. Only yes or no answers mind!

5. forage for a wreath. 

Want to spend some time in the fresh air as a family? Get hunting in the hedgerows and wandering the woods, your little ones will love collecting evergreen foliage and pine cones for their very own wreath.

  1. Draw round a large bowl onto some cardboard. 

  2. Place a slightly smaller bowl inside that circle and draw around it.

  3. You’ve drawn a ring! Cut it out.

  4. If you haven’t already, make one cut from the outer edge into the middle.

  5. Now you can loop rubber bands all the way around the ring.

  6. Weave your foliage and cones into the bands.

  7. Add Christmas tree decorations if you’ve got any spare.

  8. Tape up the slit you cut earlier and display for all to see!

6. Make Christmas playdough. 

Much like slime, you can make playdough using bits and bobs from your cupboard! 

  1. Mix 120g plain flour, 60g salt & 2 tbsps of cream of tartar in a bowl.

  2. Heat 250ml water & 2 tbsps of vegetable oil in a saucepan until it boils.

  3. Remove from heat and add a few drops of food colouring and biodegradable glitter.

  4. Add the flour mixture to the hot water and stir until you have a stiff dough.

  5. Take the dough out and once it’s cool, knead it until it is soft and squidgy!

7. make bubble christmas cards.

Another great kids activity during Christmas is…of course…making Christmas cards! Here’s a way you can do it with a twist… 

  1. Cover the bottom of a wide bowl or tray with water.

  2. Add food colouring, biodegradable glitter and several drops of washing-up liquid.

  3. Mix carefully.

  4. Hold a drinking straw in the water and blow until bubbles reach the rim of the bowl.

  5. Gently hold some paper against the bubbles until they pop.

  6. Admire the wonderful patterns, then use them to make your greetings cards!

8. Paint in the snow! 

Lucky enough to have some white stuff fall from the sky? Paint it!

  1. Fill an empty spray bottle with water. 

  2. Add 4-5 drops of food colouring and shake.

  3. Got lots of bottles? - make up lots of colours!

  4. Take your bottles outside and get creative on a blank snow canvas!

  5. Be sure to take some photos.

9. snowman knock-down. 

Let the competition begin!

  1. Raid the recycling for all those empty loo roll tubes.

  2. Paint them white and add a snowman face (don’t forget the carrot nose).

  3. Once dry, stand them up together and grab a tennis ball.

  4. Who can knock the most snowmen down? 

  5. Be sure to make the grownups do it blindfold!

10. Bake Christmas tree decorations. 

This salt dough is NOT for eating but it does make some great decorations.

  1. Heat the oven to its lowest setting and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.

  2. Mix 250g plain flour & 125g salt in a bowl.

  3. Add 125ml of water.

  4. Mix into a ball, then roll out on a floured surface.

  5. Cut out your Christmas shapes and prick through a small hole for hanging.

  6. Bake for 3 hours or until solid.

  7. Leave to cool… then paint and decorate before adding thread through the hole.

  8. Hang them on the tree and admire!


And there you have it! Which fun festive family activity will you try? 

 

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