Holiday Activities Your Children Will Love

Get in the holiday spirit with our fun-filled list of holiday activities for children! From creating festive crafts to baking delicious treats, we’ve got everything you need to keep the good times rolling. Perfect for creating lasting memories with your loved ones.

Happy December, friends!

The holiday season is here, and I know that us parents are eager to keep our children entertained during this time. I’ve put together a list of 10 fun holiday activities that are sure to get your children into the festive spirit.

You can also check out my list of old and new holiday traditions for even more ideas!

Decorate the Christmas tree –

Get your children involved in decorating the Christmas tree this year. Let them choose the decorations and have fun putting them up.

My son is only 15 months, so this one is a bit tricky to execute. My husband and I have had our nieces and nephews help us decorate our tree in the past, and they always had the best time.Put on some Christmas music and enjoy!

If you have an Amazon plug you can use it to connect to your Alexa – we have it programmed for our lights to turn on when we say “Alexa, Merry Christmas” (I still get excited 3 years later lol)

Bake some holiday treats –

Baking is a fun and delicious way to get into the holiday spirit. Let your children help you bake some cookies or holiday treats.

This is a fun activity for children of all ages. They can help mix the dough, cut out the shapes, and decorate with frosting and sprinkles. It’s a great way to bond as a family and create delicious treats for the holidays.

Baking sugar cookies and then having them decorate their own with icing will always be a huge hit. Yeah it might be a little more messy this way, but our littles won’t always be little – embrace the mess!

Make homemade ornaments –

Making homemade ornaments is a great way to get creative and personalize your holiday decorations. There are plenty of ideas online for easy DIY ornaments that your children will love making.

Your children can create their own ornaments for the Christmas tree or for gift giving. Use materials such as paper, glitter, glue, and paint to make unique and creative ornaments. You can also head to the nearest arts and crafts store and grab some DIY kits!

I just tried this one out with my son earlier this month and overall I think it was pretty successful. He did try to run off with the paint and the brush, but he focused long enough to get a couple strokes of different colors on his ornament.

It’s a memory I will treasure forever.

Write letters to Santa –

Let your children write letters to Santa Claus. This is a great way to get them excited about the holiday season and teach them the spirit of giving. We all hope the magic of Christmas doesn’t leave us too soon, or at all.

I know many families don’t do the whole Santa Claus thing, even if they do celebrate Christmas. My mom always told me and my siblings that Santa is someone who loves you 365 days of the year.

And, that explanation alone gave me the magic that is still within to this day. I hope to do the same for my child.

Watch holiday movies –

Watching holiday movies is a great way to spend a cozy night in with your family. Make some popcorn, cuddle up under a blanket, and enjoy a classic holiday movie.

You can’t go wrong with this one, folks. It is a tried and true favorite for the holiday season. Pick out a movie (if your children can do this without fighting have them agree on one lol) and make it a party.

Pizza, popcorn, hot chocolate bar – pull out all the stops if you want, because why not?

Watching Elf (my favorite Christmas movie) is always great, but adding hot cocoa, fuzzy socks, and a cozy blanket makes it 20 times more enjoyable.

The atmosphere, the ambiance, the vibes – whatever you want to call it, it takes it to another level.

Go ice skating –

Ice skating is a fun winter activity that the whole family can enjoy. Find a local ice skating rink and spend an afternoon gliding on the ice.

Even if you’re not good at skating, helping each other balance and trying not to fall is the perfect bonding activity.

Have a holiday craft day –

Get creative with your children by having a holiday craft day. There are so many ideas online for easy and fun holiday crafts that your children will love.

My son isn’t old enough yet for crafts that last more than five minutes – we’re finally getting into painting and I use that word loosely, but he’s getting there!

There are tons of age appropriate crafts that you can do with your children, and most items are probably already in your house!

*attention span may vary

Go on a holiday lights tour –

Take a drive or a walk around your neighborhood to look at all the holiday lights. This is a great way to get into the holiday spirit and see some beautiful decorations.

My husband and I took our son to see the holiday lights at our zoo, and he loved it. We had to pick an evening where it wasn’t freezing because he’s still so little. But, he had a blast!

If you have younger ones who can’t weather the colder temps for that long a drive through holiday lights event is perfect. Or if the event is outside making sure there are places to warm up if they need to is ideal.

Make homemade hot cocoa –

Warm up on a cold winter day with some homemade hot cocoa. Let your children help you make it and add some fun toppings like whipped cream and marshmallows.

We setup a hot chocolate bar at our house, and it is so fun. I have also perfected hot cocoa bombs, so we’re making them all season long in my household!

Try not to make the mistake of getting the unsweetened hot cocoa mix like I did – my husband tried it and was not a fan.

Have a holiday sing-along –

Nothing gets you into the holiday spirit like singing some classic holiday songs. Have a sing-along with your children and enjoy the festive music together.

My husband passed down his love for music, and I passed down my love for musicals so our child is always in the mood for a good dance party. Allow the holiday spirit to work its magic!

I hope these holiday activities help keep your children entertained and get them into the holiday spirit.

Remember, the most important thing is to spend time together as a family and create cherished memories that will last a lifetime.

Tis the season!