The holiday season is the perfect time to engage little kids in fun and educational activities. This post explores a variety of easy and engaging preschool Christmas activities that are sure to bring joy and excitement to the classroom or your home.
From Christmas sensory play to themed fine motor activities, these creative and hands-on projects are designed to make learning fun.
Whether you’re looking for Christmas learning activities for toddlers and preschoolers or just some engaging festive fun, these ideas will keep little ones happily occupied throughout the season.
Join us as we share the best preschool Christmas activities to make this holiday magical and memorable for your young learners.
Christmas-Themed Fine Motor Activities For Preschool
Christmas Tree Tinker Tray
Hands up if your preschoolers love to build? My 4 year old builds stuff out of everything and anything so building little Christmas trees with pipe cleaners, sticks and mini bells will be right up his street.
Such a simple and engaging fine motor Christmas activity for preschool.
Easy Christmas Tree Decorating
Preschoolers plus stickers is always a winning combination. I think you can get the idea from the picture just how easy and engaging this Christmas activity is.
Festive pompom sorting
Here’s a fun sorting and color-matching activity for preschool. Challenge older preschoolers to use different utensils for the pompom transfer for some easy Christmas-themed fine motor practice.
Make Some Festive Paper Chains
This is also a double win – keep those little hands busy and make some festive Christmas decorations for the classroom. Perfect for preschoolers that love to build and create!
Christmas Lights Sticker Activity
Sticker line tracing is such a fun and simple fine motor activity and one of my go-tos when I need a no-prep and engaging activity. (Hence, it’s included on this list of mess-free toddlers activities.)
And it’s easy to give it a festive spin. Sticking the lights on the tree is a must-do preschool Christmas activity.
Felt Christmas tree decorating
Get your preschoolers their very own Christmas tree to make a mess of decorate with an easy felt Christmas tree. Felt sticks to felt – so they can have endless (non-messy) fun sticking and re-sticking!
Pompom sorting eggbox Christmas tree
A simple preschool Christmas activity for little ones that loves to sort and color match. Skip the painting part so you can prep within that 5 minute window. (No one but you will know!)

Bracelet Making
Thread red, green and sparkly beads and some mini bells onto a pipe cleaner, twist to close the ends and you have a fun and festive bracelet for your preschoolers.
Pretty though it is, I don’t recommend using the sparkly pipe cleaners (see pictured above) as they’re very itchy…

Christmas Window Decorations
This preschool Christmas activity results in such cute decorations for your classroom windows. Or send your preschoolers home with them to display in their own windows.
This one does require a tiny bit more prep but since they make such fab Christmas decor, I reckon they’re worth the effort.
Contact paper, some construction paper or card (for the outlines) and some fun bits and bobs to stick inside are all you need.
Christmas-Themed STEM & Learning Activities
Christmas cookie cutter matching
Here’s an easy Christmas STEM activity for your preschoolers that practices the pre-maths skill of matching.
Simply draw around some Christmas cookies onto a giant-sized piece of paper (or several smaller ones) and have your toddler or preschooler match the correct cookie cutters to the correct shape outline. Easy peasy!

Winter magic milk experiment
This is another fun activity that fascinates kids way beyond preschooler years. It was actually my 9-year-old niece who did this experiment with my 3 and 4-year-old but I love this version from Mombrite which adds that festive element.
Christmas countdown candy cane
Preschoolers don’t have a good concept of time but this Christmas countdown activity will help in the long wait until the big day. It’s also a good way for them to practice counting and number recognition killing two birds with one stone!
Christmas Tree Name Puzzles
Here’s a fun Christmas-themed learning activity for your preschoolers that’s easy to adjust, dependent on the age and capability of the kids.
For little ones just starting out with scissors, draw straight lines for them to cut along; for older preschoolers, you can draw some wiggly lines and zigzags. Then write their name on, one letter per puzzle piece.
Even if your child hasn’t started on letters, exposure to those in their name can be a fun place to start. Mixing the pieces up and putting the puzzle back together is then the final element.
Bonus – this holiday activity takes less than 5 minutes to prep!
Christmas Sensory Play Activities For Preschoolers
Exploration of new textures, scooping, measuring, pouring can mean hours of fun for preschoolers. Plus, with their crazily active imaginations, your little one can be lost in a make-believe land far and away for a surprising amount of time…
So here are some easy to set-up Christmas sensory bins.
For supplies and materials for these festive activities check out our recommended product list.
Christmas tree playdough shapes
Green playdough, a Christmas tree cookie cutter and some kind of mini Christmas ornaments are all you need for this easy Christmas-themed activity. Tons of fun and great for fine motor skill development.
For younger toddlers use bigger things as tree ornaments, such as pompoms or large buttons, while preschoolers will probably manage something smaller, like the Hama beads shown in the photo above.

Christmas Snow Sensory Bin
Baking soda and white conditioner (in the ratio of 6 parts to 1) is all you need to make this easy snow sensory bin. Mixing the two together starts an endothermic reaction so the “snow” starts off icey cold.
Sadly the chill won’t last forever but the soft fluffy texture will. Time to start building some mini snowmen!
Sparkly Ice Sensory Bin
Ice cubes are another favorite with most little kids it would seem. If it’s probably bitterly cold outside just a few ice cubes will do. No need to get those fingers colder than necessary!
You can just grab ice straight out the freezer, but if you have a bit of forethought, make glittery ice the night before: sprinkle some glitter into a jug of water before pouring into ice cube trays. Some Christmas-themed ice cube trays would make this even more fun.
Christmas Decorations Sensory Bin
This one is perfect for a day or two before you put up the decorations. Simply let your preschoolers play with all that sparkly tinsel and baubles (as long as they’re not glass, of course).
Christmas-themed Rice Bin
Another fun texture that toddlers and preschoolers can’t get enough of is rice. Add in some bells, sparkly ribbons and something to scoop and pour with and let those little hands get to work!
(To dye rice, simply add vinegar and food coloring to uncooked rice in a plastic container, leave for an hour or so giving a stir once or twice. More detail on dyeing rice here.)
Old Wrapping Paper Ripping & Playing
Collect odds and ends of gift wrap paper and place in a large bin. Invite your preschoolers to rip the paper. You can also chuck in some Christmas figurines and for them to hide among the gift wrap and play with.
Festive nature prints
Pine cones, cinnamon sticks and even a short frond of a Christmas tree branch would make a lovely addition to this simple playdough printing activity.
Make Or Buy Christmas-scented Playdough
For a winning playdough recipe, mix the following together, heat gently and stir until you have a lump of the stuff – dead simple.
- flour – 2 cups
- salt – 1 cup
- cream of tartar – 4 tsp
- vegetable oil – 1 tbl
- one of the color and scent combinations below
Gingerbread: 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp cinnamon & brown food coloring
Peppermint: 1 tsp of peppermint extract & green food coloring
Sugar Cookie: Vanilla extract
Cinnamon: 1-2 tsp of cinnamon & red food coloring
Or buy some store-bought Christmas varieties.
Printable Christmas Activities for Preschoolers
These ones involve a bit more prep, mainly printing. But are good fun activities perfect for the classroom.
For supplies and materials for these festive activities check out our recommended product list.
Christmas Matching & Memory Game
Sorting and matching is a pre-math skill that little kids seem to get quite a kick out of once they get the idea.
What I love about this is that it can also be used as a simple matching activity for younger preschoolers and a memory game for older kids.
Christmas Bingo Game from Maple Planners
Christmas Bingo
A festive and preschooler-friendly version of a classic game. This’ll be such fun to do in the classroom or at daycare.
Christmas Scavenger Hunt
A fun Christmas activity to get busy preschoolers moving! Sometimes that’s exactly what they need. “Most of the time” is probably more accurate.
The pack linked above from Organized 321 has 4 different scavenger hunts for indoors and another 4 for outdoors – time to get printing!
Christmas Dot Marker Printable
Preschoolers love a simple dot marker activity so try this one with a festive spin.
Add this one to your printer queue now!
Christmas Printable Activity Pack
Here’s an easy Christmas-themed coloring activity for little ones, plus a cute maze.
Free Christmas Counting Printable
Santa’s beard needs to be completed cotton ball by cotton ball. You could follow the numbers in sequence or have your little one roll the dice and find the number.
So great for number recognition and practicing number order – a fun Christmas activity for preschool.
Color & Stick Christmas activities
Coloring printables with the added fun of sticking on Christmas tree decorations (colored pompoms), Santa’s beard (cotton wool balls) and holly berries (red pompoms).
Color-in 3d paper Christmas ornament templates
A bit of coloring in, then once done, cut, fold and stick to make a cute Christmas ornament. Or skip the coloring altogether and choose the Christmas animals ornament templates for an even simpler activity.
Click here for the free 3d Christmas paper ornament template.
More Easy Christmas Activities for Preschool
Pinecone Posting
“Posting” is one of those things that preschoolers love to do which helps them to understand how the world works.
By posting pinecones (or balls, toys, stuffies or a billion other things) through the cardboard Christmas tree, kids are figuring out “object permanence” – that something exists even if you can’t see it.
This easy Christmas activity will provide endless fun for toddlers and preschoolers.
Bottle Top Snowman Posting
Ok, I admit, this one is a lot more than 5 minutes prep – but the making of said snowman was a fun Christmas craft we enjoyed at “school with Mommy) the day before. The kids loved ripping and sticking the cotton wool…
This is just another version of the pinecone posting activity earlier. But this snowman has different sized holes – for mouth, eyes and button holes – for different sized bottle tops, so it ups the anti just a little bit.
I also intend to use this to practice number and letter recognition. Label each hole on the snowman with a different number or letter marked on the post-it and then write the same letters or numbers on bottle lids. Match and post.
Wrapped puzzle piece scavenger
This is a must-do Christmas activity for kids that love to unwrap things. Another one for that old Christmas gift wrap paper.
First, the puzzle pieces need to be wrapped. Dump out all the puzzle pieces and start wrapping. For older preschoolers, make this part of the activity.
Then go hide the pieces all around the classroom.
Then the scavenging and unwrapping begins. And finally the completion of the puzzles.
Make & Decorate Santa’s Postbox
I could have gone to town on this one and finished with a beautiful post box that looked like a Snowman or Santa but this was the almost zero prep version.
A large empty cardboard box with an opening for letters and some text. Then my two (2 and 3 years old at the time) had a blast painting and stamping it. Since we were at home in rural Africa until early December last year, where it’s summer, I let my two get to work with paint outside.
But if you’re indoors and you want to avoid mess, sharpies, stickers and any other craft materials you can get your hands will keep your little ones busy just as well.
Send Letters To Santa (FREE Letter Templates)
Santa’s post box can only mean one thing – you need to send him some letters! So try this preschool Christmas activity next.
Of course, at this age, drawing (aka scribbling) a picture of their gift of choice is much more realistic – 1 of the free templates accommodates is specifically designed with this purpose.
Remember to write underneath what the gift is underneath, just in case Santa (and anyone else) can’t decipher it!
These Santa letters will make such great keepsakes for parents too.
Click right here to get the free printables with three different letter writing options dependent on the age/stage of the kids.
Or grab the full Santa Letter Kit, complete with:
- A choice of 3 response letters from Santa, plus 1 blank if you’d rather write your own
- A choice of a “Nice List” or “Good List” certificates
- An envelope front with North Pole postmark
40+ easy activities handpicked for busy moms of kids aged 2 to 6 years – because Christmas needn’t be chaotic or cost a fortune!
Help your kids write Santa a letter and receive a reply
Click to grab the Santa Letter Kit here

Bake and/or decorate some cookies
One where you can use those festive cookie cutters for their intended purpose – try this simple cutout cookie recipe.
Or skip the potential mess and chaos and just decorate some store-bought cookies.

Festive potato stamping
This is a festive spin on age-old potato stamping. If you have some large butchers paper this might turn out good enough to use as wrapping paper.
Ornament toss from Lorena & Lennox
Ornament toss
This one is suited more to the younger and gentler toddler or preschooler, which counts my 4 year old right out; his throw is strong but very inaccurate! A recipe for disaster to have him throwing anything inside. Of course, plastic baubles only.

Giant floor Christmas tree
I love this simple festive-themed creative activity. All you need to do is use some masking tape to outline the Christmas tree shape and then supply your preschoolers with shiny stars, buttons, bottle tops – whatever is going – to fill in and decorate the tree.
Not for little ones that still put everything in their mouth, but good fun for older preschoolers.
Inspired to try some of these preschool Christmas activities?
Hope they bring fun, lots of wonderful memories to the classroom this holiday season.
Merry Christmas!
Looking for more Christmas arts and activities for your littles? Take a look at these:
- 55 cute Christmas crafts for toddlers
- 33+ Cute DIY Christmas Ornaments for Preschool
- 50 fun Christmas crafts for preschoolers
- 41 Easy Christmas Tree Crafts for Toddlers
- 41 Fun, Easy & Adorable Nativity Crafts
- 41 Easy Santa Claus crafts for toddlers
- 25 Easy Christmas ornaments made from nature
- 50 Christmas sensory activities & bins
For more easy toddler activities to keep your little ones busy indoors and out check out:
- 39 simple mess-free activities for toddlers & preschoolers
- 49 Simple & fun outdoor activities for preschoolers
- 50+ Indoor gross motor activities for 1,2 & 3 year olds
- 40 Fun & easy dinosaur activities for preschoolers
- 50 Fun Transportation Activities for Toddlers
- 100 fun & easy toilet paper roll crafts for 2 & 3 year olds
- 39 Fun & easy arts & crafts for 1 – 2 year olds
- 10+ Fun & simple dry messy play ideas
- 21 Easy Finger Painting Ideas For Babies