Christmas Activities To Keep The Kids Busy

As a daycare owner I know how hard it can be to keep little ones busy and learning all through the cold months of winter. I have been doing research and creating with my little ones for over 10 years now so we are always welcoming new ideas and fun activities into our schedule. I have found that keeping a very thought out and well planned routine helps get through each and every day without any issues. 

Take a look at these great free printables you can use to create some Christmas magic!!

We learn through play here so adding fine motor, sensory, reading, and discovery to our days is a must. Creating age appropriate activities is always a challenge if you have a large group of different ages. Keep it simple and encourage the big kids to help the little kids with their activities and they will have a lot more fun! 

This week we did the 5 senses with pasta and it was a huge hit. 

See 

Watch how the pasta changes when it is cooked and how the ingredients turn into a dough, then a noodle, then an edible meal. We got to see the difference between cooked and uncooked pasta as well as dry and fresh. 

Hear

Hear the difference between a dry noodle and a fresh noodle. Listen to the sound the rolling pin makes as we roll out our dough. The water boils and makes a bubbling sound.

Smell

The pasta smells good when it is fresh but doesn’t have much of a smell when it is dry. We used herb infused olive oil that smells delicious when added to the pasta dough. The pasta dish smells great when it is fully cooked.

Taste 

The pasta tastes delicious when it is cooked and has sauce and cheese added to it. The dried pasta doesn’t have a taste until it is cooked.

Feel

We got to feel the ingredients turn into dough, roll out the dough and make noodles. We felt the difference between a dry pasta and a fresh pasta. 

We used this simple recipe to make our fresh pasta:

Homemade Pasta Recipe

After we made pasta we took the time to use some dry pasta and create a cute Christmas wreath with glue and paint it. 

We were looking for some great ideas for weekly themes and found this adorable list by Little Ones Learn.

We also found a great Christmas schedule to use in case you are unsure of what to do over the next few weeks. Take a look at Mrs. Plemons Kindergarten for some amazing ideas!

For the month of December we have so much planned it will be interesting to see what we accomplish. I try to pack the schedule with more than enough just to give us options especially if there are days when a certain activity doesn’t quite work with our group for the day. 

This toddler advent calendar by Crystals Crafties is great for parents to get their toddlers involved without costing a fortune or taking up too much time. 

I get a lot of my great ideas from Pinterest and share them on my profile you can find below!