19 Easy Christmas Crafts for Toddlers and Preschoolers
Think your toddler’s too little to get in on the Christmas crafting? Think again! Toddlers love a good craft project, and for the most part they’re willing helpers. And of course, they love Christmas too! “My 4-year-old loves painting,” says Natalie Gontcharova, senior editor at The Bump and mom of one. “The more colorful, the better. Being lazy, I buy those premade ceramic kits—they are each around $5 at a store like Michaels and come with the figures, a set of paints and brushes. This season, we’ve already decorated gingerbread houses, Santas, ornaments and so much more.”
Need some more inspiration for toddler Christmas crafts? We’ve rounded up some of our favorite Christmas crafts for toddlers here, along with links to step-by-step instructions to eliminate the guesswork. Plus, we’ve also thrown in some fun preschool Christmas crafts for slightly older kiddos. Whether you’re simply looking to have fun together or hoping to come away with some DIY Christmas gifts, we’ve got you covered. (While you may not end up with exactly what you were going for, your little ones—and gift recipients—will probably be super proud of their creation.) Happy holiday crafting!
Our favorite Christmas craft ideas for toddlers and preschoolers are the ones you just know you’ll still be using and displaying proudly long after your kiddos have left the nest. And this ceramic “cookies for Santa” plate takes the cake (or maybe the cookie?). Using handprints from all family members along with your kiddo’s, this Santa plate from the Party Wowzy blog is sure to impress.
Materials: Acrylic paint, a Sharpie, a plate
Instructions: Paint your little one’s hand and let them stamp it onto the plate in whatever pattern they like. Then, they can decorate it more to their heart’s desire. To make your design safe to use, set your oven to 350 degrees and bake the plate for 30 minutes. For more details and ideas, check out Party Wowzy.
Why opt for one handprint when you can make a craft featuring a whole bunch? This popular preschool Christmas craft idea from Fox Farm Home will totally work for toddlers too. Of course, you’ll have to help them make the handprints, but they’ll have a blast decorating the tree they made with their own hands—literally.
Materials: Acrylic paint, a paintbrush, white cardstock or construction paper, Q-tips
Instructions: Paint your child’s hand green and start creating your tree. Once the hand prints have dried, they can decorate it with a Q-tip and paint. Don’t forget to add a trunk and tree topper! For more details and ideas, check out Fox Farm Home.
Looking for easy Christmas crafts for toddlers—even the youngest ones in the bunch? We’ve got it right here. This sweet craft from the A Dab of Glue Will Do blog lets your little one get their hands dirty by dotting fingerprints all over a sheet of paper. Remove the construction paper tree to reveal a negative space Christmas tree, and a masterpiece your toddler accomplished all by themselves!
Materials: White paper, colored paper, crayon (or something to trace with), scissors, tape, paint in Christmas colors
Instructions: Fold the colored paper in half and draw half of a Christmas tree shape along the folded side. Cut along the lines to complete the Christmas tree shape. Tape the Christmas tree down on the white paper (double-sided tape works well here). Now, it’s time for your child to dip their fingers into the paint and start making fingerprints! They can start by making fingerprints along the edge of the tree, and then start making scattered fingerprints all around the paper. Lastly, it’s time to peel up the shape and reveal your Christmas tree! For more details and ideas, check out A Dab of Glue Will Do.
Christmas tree crafts for toddlers are a great way to get your little ones psyched for the upcoming holiday. Here’s one they’re sure to love, since no toddler can resist playing with paper. Crafts on Sea makes one person’s trash another person’s treasure by transforming scrunched up tissue paper into beautiful ornaments on your construction paper trees.
Materials: Green cardstock, colored tissue paper, glue
Instructions: Cut a tree shape from the green cardstock. (You can also paint regular cardstock green.) Have your child put some glue dots on the tree. Then they’re ready to stick on the “baubles!” Crafts on Sea notes that tearing and scrunching the tissue paper is great for fine motor skills development. For more details and ideas, check out Crafts on Sea.
If you’re the parent of a little one, then creating salt dough Christmas crafts with your toddler are probably near the top of your to-do list this Christmas. There’s nothing better than immortalizing those tiny fingers on your tree for years to come. We love this elegant one from You’re So Martha. It’s festive without being overdone—the perfect choice for your tree, and a great gift too!
Materials: For the salt dough, you’ll need 1 cup flour, ½ cup of salt and ½ cup water. You’ll need a string for the ornament.
Instructions: Mix the salt dough ingredients together, then knead for 7 to 10 minutes or until soft and smooth. Roll out the dough to your desired thickness on a floured surface. Then, have your child hand-stamp the ornament! Poke a hole in it for hanging. Bake at 200 degrees for a couple of hours (or air-dry for a few days). You can use a sealant to help it last and/or spray-paint it. For more details and ideas, check out You’re So Martha.
No list of toddler Christmas crafts is complete without a wreath, and we love this super-simple one from Fun Littles. A paper plate serves as the wreath; once you cut it out, you can let your toddler’s imagination run wild as they decorate it however they’d like.
Materials: Colorful pom poms, green paint, a paper plate (with the center cut out), glue
Instructions: Have your child paint the paper plate green. Then, they can dip the pom poms in glue and stick them in a circle (or whatever creative design they like) around the plate. Ta da! Now you can hang it on your front door. For more details and ideas, check out Fun Littles.
This iconic Christmas craft for toddlers has been around forever. Chances are, your parents still have a similar one you made in preschool! So grab those popsicle sticks and sit down with your tot to make this easy Christmas craft, courtesy of the One Little Project blog.
Materials: Three popsicle sticks (one with about 1 inch cut from it), a 1-by-1-inch square of brown cardstock, a star cut from glittery cardstock, a piece of twine, a hot glue gun, scissors and/or a utility knife, any decorations you like (little pom poms, pipe cleaners, jingle bells…)
Instructions: Position your top two longer popsicle sticks on top of the shorter one to make a “tree.” Glue the popsicle sticks together. Glue the twine to the top of the triangle so you can hang your tree. Attach the star to the top, and the cardstock “stump” to the bottom. Now, the trees are all set to decorate with pom poms and more! For more details and ideas, check out One Little Project.
Sometimes you want craft ideas that toddlers can do, without the final product looking like, well, a toddler made them. This beautiful reindeer fingerprint ornament from The Country Chic Cottage is for you. It still makes a fun Christmas craft for toddlers (or even older babies), since your little one can definitely help. But with a few simple finishing touches, you can create an elegant ornament that serves as a reminder of how little those fingers were. Bonus: This ornament makes an amazing gift!
Materials: A white ornament, brown craft paint, black and red paint pens, red pom poms, a ribbon or string to hang the ornament
Instructions: Have your child make two brown thumb prints on the ornament to shape the reindeer; then, let it dry. Use a black paint pen to draw the reindeer’s antlers, legs, tail and eyes. Add the “red nose” pom pom with glue; allow this to dry. You can add your child’s name and the year with a red (or another color) paint pen. Then, hang your ornament! For more details and ideas, check out The Country Chic Cottage.
If you’re in search of Christmas crafts for toddlers that are totally frame-worthy, this one, from The Chirping Moms, should be right up your alley. The word JOY is jubilantly written out with shiny Christmas-colored pom-poms affixed by your toddler. Your child learns about tracing, you end up with a beautiful sign to display—we’ll call that a Christmas miracle!
Materials: Paper, pom poms, scissors, glue
Instructions: Prep the craft by printing out big letters that say “JOY.” Then, cut them out and glue them onto another piece of paper (you can use contrasting colors, like red and white). Have your child glue pom poms onto the word. For more details and ideas, check out The Chirping Moms.
The Grinch, with all his crazy antics, is completely captivating for most toddlers. So if your little one would get a real kick out of doing a Grinch Christmas craft, head over to the Simply Today Life blog for this simple but cute option. A paper plate and construction paper make the infamous face of the green crafty character.
Materials: A paper plate, green paint, a paintbrush, black and red markers, yellow construction paper, cotton balls, red felt, craft glue
Instructions: Paint one side of the paper plate green and let it dry. Cut out triangles of red felt for the Grinch’s Santa hat. Glue them together. Attach the Santa hat to your paper plate. Add cotton balls to decorate it. Cut out yellow eyes from construction paper and draw the inner part with a red marker. Finish off by drawing the Grinch’s mouth, nose and eyebrows with a black marker. For more details and ideas, check out Simply Today Life.
What makes this one of the best toddler Christmas crafts? They can do most of the work themselves! The Creative Family Fun blog shows you how to help your budding artist create a super-cute Christmas tree using a paper plate and some pom-poms. If you’re searching for Christmas tree crafts for toddlers and preschoolers, this is a perfect pick.
Materials: Paper plate (one per tree), green paint, clear tape, glue, pom poms (and/or other decorations)
Instructions: Cut out a quarter piece of a paper plate. Roll the plate into a cone shape and seal with tape. (Make sure to keep the tape on the inside.) Paint your cone green. Then, glue on your pom poms, sequins or other decorations. For more details and ideas, check out Creative Family Fun.
There’s nothing like a cup of hot chocolate on a cold day. If you and your little one have had enough Santa and Christmas tree crafts, it’s time to whip up this fun hot cocoa craft from the Crafty Morning blog. She incorporates red and green bows for a festive touch on this Christmas craft for toddlers.
Materials: Green, light brown and red paper; ribbon, white pom poms, glue, scissors
Instructions: Free-draw and cut out some hot chocolate mugs (or print some out on the computer) on the red and/or green paper. Cut out an oval from the brown paper for the hot cocoa. Add some pom poms on top to look like marshmallows. Tie a bow with a ribbon and stick it under the brown paper. Delicious! For more details and ideas, check out Crafty Morning.
There’s a lot to be said for easy Christmas crafts for toddlers, and this one is deliciously simple. Kiddos with good fine motor skills can slip beads and a bell onto a cord to create this fun jingle bell necklace from the PreKinders site. They’ll be decking the halls all day long! Just be sure to use a bell large enough to avoid a choking hazard and remove it come naptime.
Materials: Jingle bells, green and red pony beads, green craft cord
Instructions: String a jingle bell on the cord. Then, string some pony beads on each side of the bell. (This is a great opportunity to teach math and patterns.) Tie the ends, and you have a jingle bell necklace! For more details and ideas, check out PreKinders.
What to do when your little one is bored but your craft bin is dangerously low? No worries—one of the great things about Christmas crafts for toddlers is that you can easily source your materials from the great outdoors! Mel at Adventures of Mel shows you how to make adorable Christmas trees with pinecones, and even has a toddler-friendly tip so your kiddo can do it all by themselves. If Christmas tree crafts are on your to-do list this holiday season, definitely give this one a try!
Materials: Pinecones; glue; a small paintbrush; some glitter snow or glitter dust; pipe cleaners (the sparklier, the better!); pom poms, sequins, beads or other decorations
Instructions: Wrap pipe cleaners around and through your pinecones. Then, apply some glue to your pine cones and get decorating! You can finish off by applying some glitter snow or glitter dust with a small paintbrush. Let dry (it may need 24 hours). For more details and ideas, check out Adventures of Mel.
The best Christmas craft ideas for toddlers are the ones that keep things as simple as possible. That’s why we love this Santa craft from The Best Ideas for Kids blog. With a construction paper face and sparkly red cap, Santa is primed for your little one to glue on cotton balls to make his hair and big beard. It’s a fun introduction to the man in the red suit.
Materials: White cardstock, medium-sized googly eyes, a small red pom pom, a large white pom pom, cotton balls, paint for Santa’s face, red glitter paper, glue. You can use the free Santa template from The Best Ideas for Kids.
Instructions: Print out the Santa template, or free-hand the Santa shapes. Cut out the template elements. Then, trace around them on red glitter paper for the hat and white cardstock for the face. For the Santa face, fold the cardstock in half and trace the face part of the template so that the card opens up. Paint the face. Glue the hat to the top of the face. Add your cotton balls to make the hat brim and Santa’s beard; add a white pom pom for the hat. Glue on the two googly eyes and a small red pom pom for the nose. Write “Merry Christmas” or another special message inside the card. For more details and ideas, check out The Best Ideas for Kids.
This sweet little Christmas tree is a fun spin on salt dough Christmas crafts for toddlers. Courtesy of Mum in the Madhouse, this tree is actually made of air-drying clay, and features your toddler’s multi-colored fingerprints as festive Christmas lights. Super simple, and super adorable too.
Materials: A Christmas tree cookie cutter, air-drying clay, rolling pin, silicone mat, multicolored inkpad, baker’s twine or ribbon, gold and black Sharpies, a straw or hole punch
Instructions: Roll out your clay on a silicone mat and cut out your Christmas tree shapes using the cookie cutter. Make a hole for the twine or ribbon. Take turns pressing a finger into the clay to leave fingerprints. Then, remove the excess clay and allow your creation to dry. After that, you can dip your fingers in the inkpad to color over your fingerprint indent. Use a Sharpie to draw between your fingerprints and create a “string of lights.” Add the date on the trunk area, and hang them up. For more details and ideas, check out Mum in the Madhouse.
This Christmas tree suncatcher craft from the Everyday Fun and Learning blog is simple enough for your toddler to help with, but it’s totally display-worthy too! Once you’ve done the prep work, your little one will have a blast pasting on the colorful paper and shiny baubles. If you choose to use beads, be sure to supervise closely.
Materials: Contact paper, black construction paper, green tissue paper in various shades, scissors, glue stick, colorful plastic gems
Instructions: Sketch and cut out the shape of two identical Christmas trees on black construction paper. Poke a small hole in the trees and cut out the insides of the trees, leaving a half-inch thick border. Stick one of them onto your contact paper. In the meantime, your child can tear the green paper into small squares. Stick the green tissue paper squares on the outline of the tree. Stick the other black outline and another piece of contact paper on top. Then, decorate with gems. For more details and ideas, check out Everyday Fun and Learning.
Toddler Christmas crafts that double as gifts are a great way to check two things off your list at once. This sweet snowman handprint ornament from the 1-2-3 Homeschool 4 Me blog is one of our favorites. Here, your toddler’s handprint takes center stage as their fingerprints turn into five little snowmen.
Materials: A solid-colored ornament ball (unbreakable is best!), acrylic paint, a paintbrush
Instructions: Paint your child’s hands white. Put the ornament in your child’s hand and have them carefully wrap their fingers around it. Allow it to dry. Then, add any colorful details you want with paint to make the snowmen. For more details and ideas, check out 1-2-3 Homeschool 4 Me.
Another cute, easy preschool Christmas craft you can display on your tree is this one from the Parenting Chaos blog. It’s better for preschoolers and older kiddos who won’t be tempted to put the beads into their mouths. All your little one will need to do is knot the end of the pipe cleaner (they’ll likely need your help here), string alternating white and red beads onto the pipe cleaner and then gently bend it into the candy cane shape. Voila: You have a beautiful and festive ornament for your family tree.
Materials: Pipe cleaners, red and white beads
Instructions: Tie a knot on one end of a pipe cleaner (this can be tricky—you can also just twist it into a ball!). Have your child add the beads in an alternating pattern (or whatever pattern they wish). Tie a knot on the other end, and twist the pipe cleaner into a candy cane shape. For more details and ideas, check out Parenting Chaos.
Plus, more from The Bump:
Real-parent perspectives:
- Natalie Gontcharova, senior editor at The Bump and mom of one
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