If you are looking for Christmas activities for preschool, then you are in the right place. In the weeks leading up to Christmas, so many of us occupational therapists, teachers, and parents are looking for fun and easy holiday activities for preschoolers. First, check out our Christmas occupational therapy activities for skill-building this holiday season. Then, grab some ideas from our list of Christmas Fine Motor Activities.
Christmas Activities for Preschool
You’ve probably seen the Christmas excitement as kids get amped up for Santa, Christmas trees, candy canes, presents, and the upcoming holiday!
Why not mix therapy and learning with a Christmas theme and build on that excitement?
With the Christmas activities for preschoolers listed below, you’ll be able to add some learning or therapy work into holiday activities, all while getting into the Christmas spirit in the preschool classroom!
This collection of preschool activities with a Christmas theme is part of this week’s Christmas Activities week here on The OT Toolbox. Each day this week, we’re rounding up collections of holiday themed activities, crafts, games, and ideas to fill your therapy toolbox.
If you missed the previous collections this week, check out Monday’s post on Christmas Activities for Toddlers and Tuesday’s Christmas Crafts for Kids.
Be sure to stop back each day this week to catch all of the holiday fun!
Christmas Activities for Preschoolers
Now on to today’s collection of activities that preschoolers will love all while working on the skills your kids need!
Work on Scissor Skills- Preschoolers are just getting the hang of managing scissors in one hand and the paper in another, all while snipping along a line. This Icicle Scissor Skills Craft is perfect for the preschool age range. It’s got simple lines that can be adjusted in width to meet the child’s needs and can be a huge help in teaching preschoolers to manage and turn paper to cut angles. Then, hang those icicles in the window and your preschooler will feel so proud of their work!
Work on Bilateral Coordination- Kids in preschool are just learning to manage clothing, tools, and other tasks that require coordinated movement of both hands with greater precision. Tasks like buttoning and zippering clothing require bilateral coordination with fine motor work. This Recycled Lid Ornament Garland is a power tool in promoting bilateral coordination and refined dexterity in order to thread and create ornaments. This Christmas activity is another that a preschooler will be proud of. Hang the garland on a tree or across a window sill.
Work on Scissor Skills with a Christmas Tree Craft- Just like the icicle craft listed above, this Christmas Tree Scissor Skills Activity is perfect for preschoolers who are developing and refining their scissor skills. Use thicker paper like cardstock (or even green paper plates!) for younger kids who are still learning to work those scissors! You can encourage preschoolers to cut through to the edge instead of turning the paper when first learning to cut angled lines.
Looking for more Christmas activities? Stop back the rest of this week for more holiday ideas that boost development through movement and play.
Christmas Writing Activity
In preschool, children it is developmentally appropriate to work on letter recognition, saying letters, singing letters, and fine motor play with letters. So often, we see kiddos who are being asked to write letters or even words before they have developed the fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination to even manage a pencil. It happens very often, and it can lead to kids who struggle down the road with pencil grasp, visual motor skills in writing, letter formation, and other concerns.
I wanted to include in this post a link to Christmas paper for older kids. Note that the lined paper below is not recommended for the preschool age set. Even the pre-k kiddos who are 5 who may be working on letter formation, writing numbers, and name writing, shouldn’t be given the Christmas paper. The lines and spacing is just too much for this age.
I did want to include the paper here for our older kids. Many times therapists and parents are seeking out resources that fit a variety of needs in age ranges. The modified lined paper is Christmas and winter-themed for writing with awareness of spacing and lines. Remember that these lined paper resources shouldn’t be used with preschoolers, just school-aged kids on up!
Christmas Preschool Activities for Occupational Therapy
You’ll love incorporating these other activities and ideas into OT sessions with preschoolers:
Build a Christmas tree using clothes pins to develop hand strength, eye-hand coordination, and bilateral coordination skills.
Make a fine motor egg carton tree craft to support bilateral coordination, precision grasp, and graded resistance in fine motor skills.
Create a Fine Motor Christmas Card and work on precision, hand strength, scissor skills, and name writing. Kids will love to give this holiday card to friends and family!
Finally, use the holiday crafts and activities found in our Christmas Therapy Kit. It’s a great way to develop skills in OT sessions during the holiday season.
Looking for done-for you therapy activities this holiday season?
This print-and-go Christmas Therapy Kit includes no-prep, fine motor, gross motor, self-regulation, visual perceptual activities…and much more… to help kids develop functional grasp, dexterity, strength, and endurance. Use fun, Christmas-themed, motor activities so you can help children develop the skills they need.
This 100 page no-prep packet includes everything you need to guide fine motor skills in face-to-face AND virtual learning. You’ll find Christmas-themed activities for hand strength, pinch and grip, dexterity, eye-hand coordination, bilateral coordination, endurance, finger isolation, and more.
Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.
