25 Screen-Free Christmas Activities for Kids (Ages 3–8)

December with little ones is wonderful, and long. Here are 25 simple, screen-free Christmas activities for kids aged 3 to 8, using things you already have at home plus a printer. Pick one a day and you have a whole advent of family fun.

Games for the whole family

1. Christmas picture bingo. Pictures instead of words, so 3-year-olds can play with grandparents. Our Christmas Picture Bingo has 32 different cards, so a whole class can play at once.
2. Indoor scavenger hunt. Hide-and-find for cold days: something striped, something that jingles, a wrapped present.
3. Christmas lights hunt. Take an evening walk or drive and tick off light-up reindeer, blow-up snowmen and the house with the MOST lights.
4. I Spy Christmas. Busy pictures, count each kind. Great for waiting rooms and restaurants. (Both hunts and three levels of I Spy are in our Scavenger Hunt & I Spy Pack.)
5. Would you rather, Christmas edition. "Would you rather be an elf or a reindeer?" Instant dinner-table giggles.
6. Family movie night. Make tickets, set up the sofa cinema and run a snack bar where popcorn costs one hug.

Christmas magic traditions

7. Elf arrival letter. Start the season with a letter from your elf. Our Elf & Santa Letters Kit has arrival and goodbye letters plus mini notes for busy mornings.
8. Write to Santa, and have Santa write back.
9. Make magic reindeer food. Oats and coloured sugar, no glitter (it harms birds).
10. A Christmas Eve box. New pyjamas, a book, hot cocoa and a checklist for the big night. See our Christmas Eve Box Printables.
11. A Nice List certificate on Christmas Eve, signed by Santa himself.
12. An advent activity calendar. One small family activity a day instead of chocolate. Our Advent Activity Calendar has 24 ready-made cards plus blanks for your own traditions.

Quiet time and colouring

13. Colouring pages with thick lines that little hands can manage. Try our 20-page Christmas Colouring Book, or grab the free snowman colouring page.
14. Christmas mazes: help the penguin get home.
15. Word searches for big kids (diagonals for ages 7+).
16. Dot-to-dot Christmas tree, then decorate it.
17. Write a Christmas story from a story starter.

Crafts and kindness

18. Paper chain countdown. Tear off one link a day.
19. Colour your own gift tags for the family presents.
20. Gift coupons kids give as presents: "one BIG hug", "breakfast in bed".
21. A kindness challenge: one kind act a day until Christmas.
22. Paper ornaments to colour, cut and hang.

Christmas Day and beyond

23. Kids' table placemats keep little hands busy between courses. Our Kids' Table Christmas Dinner Pack adds table talk cards and dinner bingo.
24. Thank-you notes for the cook and for gifts.
25. New Year's Eve countdown bags, one to open each hour, with a "midnight" at 8 pm. See our New Year's Eve Kids Pack.

Want it all in one go?

The Holiday Mega Bundle has every one of our Christmas and winter packs: 120+ pages, instant download, print as often as you like. And if you just want a taste, our free Christmas printables come straight to your inbox.