The holiday season is the perfect time to bring your whole family together for fun activities. And you certainly get bonus points if those activities are educational or even result in homemade, inexpensive gifts! So, here’s a list of four enjoyable holiday activities that teach teamwork, truth, or both in the context of Christmastime.
Hot Chocolate Stir Sticks
The Unlikely Homeschool shares a super-easy and delicious activity that your whole family will love—hot chocolate stir sticks! These tasty treats are also ideal when you need some inexpensive gifts for friends and family members. Get the ingredient list and instructions on the blog, and remember to scroll down to the bottom of the page for more great holiday ideas!
A Christmas Carol Literature Unit
from Confessions of a Homeschooler
Are you looking to incorporate holiday-themed tales into your kids’ literature studies? The helpful blog Confessions of a Homeschooler describes how to do a literature unit on A Christmas Carol, complete with beautiful printable mini-books and comprehension questions. There’s even a video tutorial for creating the flip-up pocket lapbook to hold the story timeline and mini-books. The unit is adaptable for Grades 1–5.
Bottle-Cap Animal Craft
The Homeschool Scientist brings the holiday cheer to your science lovers with a delightful Christmas animal craft made with bottle caps. The free printable includes three colorful animals; there’s a link to an online tutorial that shows how to do it. Teach the kids about each kind of animal and its tracks while you’re creating keyrings, bag tags, or zipper pulls!
A Christmas Hymn Study
from Not Consumed
Homeschool blog NotConsumed.com brings us back to the lessons learned by hymnists gone before us in Still Singing: Hymn Stories for Every Season. This study will introduce your family to the histories of many of your favorite hymns, including Christmas carols. Learn the origins of over 20 hymns, in addition to four Christmas songs: “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” “Silent Night,” “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentleman,” and “Joy to the World.”
Looking for more Christmas crafts and activities? Try the four simple Christmas crafts at Life of a Homeschool Mom, or try making the suncatcher nativity scene from Peace Creek on the Prairie. Your Christmas season doesn’t have to be filled with a new activity every day. But when you keep it simple and highlight the true reason for Christmas, you create memories that last a lifetime.
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Rebecca is a work-at-home freelance writer, novelist, wife, and the mom of two bright-eyed little ones. She credits her success in writing and her love of books to her own mom, who homeschooled three kids from pre-K through high school.