What is a December Box? Kids’ Christmas activity ideas (& FREE printables!)

If you’re looking for some kids’ Christmas activity ideas then you’ve come to the right place – here’s everything you need to create an easy December box with FREE printables! So, what is a December box? Well it’s essentially a festive activity box filled with plenty of ideas and printables – it’ll keep the kids busy throughout December and help you to make inexpensive Christmas memories together. If you’re travelling over Christmas, loads of these activities are perfect for occupying the kids whilst on road trips, train journeys or flights too – you could even create a DIY Christmas travel bag instead!

Quite honestly, things received on Christmas Eve get a bit lost when the excitement of Christmas Day presents arrive the next morning, and doing Christmas activities after the event isn’t as fun. Plus if you’re buying clothes or PJS they’ll get a month’s wear out of them instead of a day or two – it just makes more sense. So, join me in ditching the Christmas Eve Box in favour of a December Box of goodies – you’ll have lots of festive activity ideas and printables to keep the kids busy for the whole month. You could even have the elf deliver it on December 1st with the kids’ advent calendars!

To make things super easy, I’ve included FREE printables of all of the kids’ Christmas activities that I made for my box so that you can organise yours in a flash – so check out my December box ideas, and let me know yours too! Most of these things are free, or cheap and cheerful, and you can tailor your box to suit the ages and interests of your little ones – my two are a bit older now, so here’s what I’ve included for them…

1. A Christmas craft pack

First up, I included a craft pack made from bits that we already had lurking in our craft supplies, so that it didn’t cost me a penny. I added some folded card in with it too, so that the kids have got everything ready for when they want to make Christmas cards for the family. You could also include bits from old Christmas cards, wrapping paper and print instructions for Christmas craft activities too.

2. North Pole hot chocolate

I washed up an old coffee jar and added our usual hot chocolate and a layer of marshmallows to make it look a little more special. Combined with my printable ‘North Pole Hot Chocolate’ label, and some ribbon from a present we got last year, it looks pretty cool if I do say so myself! Perfect for enjoying on a chilly afternoon or a Christmas movie night.

3. Christmas colouring pages

Take a look at my FREE printable Christmas colouring pages – I’ve included a range of different ones to suit different ages and themes. Pop a couple into your box, and you’ve got an easy activity to whip out when the kids are bored at home. Or, if you’re travelling to visit family over Christmas, pack some along with a tray and some pencils for the journey.

4. Paintable Christmas ornaments

Painting Christmas ornaments is one of my daughter’s favourite festive activities – we add them to the tree throughout December. I picked up some cheap paint-your-own Christmas decorations from Hobbycraft for £1-£2 each. They sell all sorts of similar things in Wilko, the bargain shops and The Range too, as well as online sites like Amazon if you need quick delivery. You could also add some salt and flour in a bag, ready to make your own salt-dough ornaments if you’d prefer to start from scratch.

5. Christmas recipe cards

Print my delicious gingerbread cookies recipe card – perfect to pop into the box with some cookie cutters. You could even prep the dry ingredients and make a cookie mix jar too – but my two love the weighing out so I’ll let them start from scratch. If your little ones aren’t fussed on gingerbread cookies, pop in a recipe for Christmas cupcakes or plain cookies instead. Or, if you’re feeling really adventurous, you could even try a gingerbread house kit!

6. Movie night coupons

Usually I scour the charity shops to find a Christmas movie for 50p-£1 to pop in the box to add to our collection – but we appear to have most of the oldies! 😂 So this year, I’ve popped in a homemade movie night coupon (just click to download and print) and some sweets – so we can hunt out something new on Netflix or Amazon Prime.

7. Festive clothes

Places like Preworn and Vinted do some excellent second-hand clothing. (Definitely check them out if you want a cheap Christmas jumper – they have loads to choose from!) So into the box went a brand-new-with-tags Christmas top which Lola will enjoy wearing throughout December. I’ve not done Christmas PJs this year, as Lola’s still got some that were too big from last year, and Finn’s too cool for them 😂 but they would make a great December Box item too. If your budget is tight, buy a cheap long-sleeve Christmas top and pop it with some PJ bottoms that the kids already have – shop second-hand, or head to somewhere cheap and cheerful like Primark.

8. Printable Christmas activities

If you’re looking for December box activity ideas for the older ones, printables like wordsearches are a great way to keep the kids busy and they’re handy if you’re travelling over the Christmas period too. My kids love word searches, so I’ve popped one into the box – just click on the picture below, and you’ll be able to download and print a word search for the perfect rainy day entertainment.

And, my kids are two old for this now, but I’ve also got a free Christmas activity booklet for the little ones – it’s full printables that you can pop into your December box for when you need some easy ideas to occupy them at home. (Or, again, these are perfect for a long journey over the Christmas period if you’re travelling with the kids!)

9. At home escape room

I was all set to hunt online for a printable Christmas themed escape room (and add my own touches) but I was saved by paperadventures.co.uk who sent us their at home Christmas Escape room to try – so into the box it went. With my two being older, escape rooms are a brilliant way to keep them entertained now they’re outgrowing toys. Amazon have some great ready-to-go home Escape Room options too!

10. Festive toys

Speaking of toys, you could pop some into the box – perhaps a Christmas train or an activity like a Christmas puzzle or board game might go down well. I’ve added a ‘Festive Night In’ games box that I picked up in the after Christmas sales from Wilko last year for about a quid! And, my two are still into Lego, so I’ve included a Polar Bear Lego set – don’t forget to check second-hand sites like Vinted or Preloved, or on social media selling pages – there are always lots of bargains to be found! You could add a festive book too.

11. Letter to Santa

My two are too old for letters now (sobs quietly! 😥) so I’ll be texting the North Pole on their behalf. But, if your littles ones are writing to Santa – pop one of my free, printable Letter to Santa templates into the box – just click through to pick your favourite, there are 10 to choose from.

12. Reindeer food

You might also want to put an envelope of reindeer food into your December Box, ready to sprinkle on the lawn on Christmas Eve (just make sure it’s safe for animals). Simply mix porridge oats or bird seed with edible glitter / ice-cream sprinkles / colourful cereal and pop into a small envelope – I just raid my pantry draw. Then print my free Reindeer food poem label to stick on the front so that the kids know what’s inside. Reindeer food is super cheap, quick and easy to make – but if you need to get sorted quickly, it can usually be purchased in a cute bag with a poem from places like garden centres, or on Amazon, for just a couple of quid. They often come in a set with reindeer food, a poem and a Santa key too.

13. Festive cake decorations

This year we’ve made our own fruit cake, so I purchased some cheap icing characters / decorations to use when we’re ready to decorate, and for any other baking we do too. Remember fruit cakes keep for weeks, and lots of other baked goods can be frozen until the big day if you’d like to get ahead and make December a family bake-off!

14. Printable Christmas decorations

If you’re looking for activity ideas that’ll fill a whole December afternoon – my colour-in Christmas bunting and paper chains are the perfect printables to add to the kids’ December box. You can print them as many times as you like to keep the kids entertained, and then pop them up around the room for an inexpensive, homemade decoration. It’ll only cost you a few bits of paper but they look so effective – the more it rains the longer our paper chains grow! 😂

15. Activity advent calendar

And last, but no means least, I’ve included a print out of my Activity Advent Calendar – to give us an activity idea for every day in December. We all love some festive fun to get us in a Christmassy mood, but it doesn’t need to cost the earth. There are so many cheap and cheerful (or free!) Christmas activities that you can do at home with the kids that won’t cost a fortune. So print your copy my Christmas Activity Advent Calendar to get started.

I hope that you’ve enjoyed my December Box activity ideas and hopefully the FREE printables will help you to organise the kid’s Christmas activities quickly and easily. Take a look around the blog for more festive fun, printables and day out ideas. Merry Christmas!🎄

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