Christmas crafts and decorations make wonderful last-minute projects for kids in your classroom, especially as winter break draws near and afternoons become chaotic with your kids. Following are four fun and creative Christmas crafts to complete with kids (try saying that five times fast)!
1. Head over and check out these Christmas decorations to make with primary school kids
2. This Christmas Handprint Wreath uses materials thatyou already have in your classroom and make a wonderful gift for parents
3. Have some sweet fun with your kids constructing these simple Christmas Graham Cracker Houses
4. A candy cane can be easily transformed into one of Santa's reindeer using the materials in this Candy Cane Reindeer Ornament Craft
Santa's mysterious and fascinating presence can be quite the motivator for good behavior in kids this time of year. Embrace 
the cultural tradition of Santa Claus, but use the following lesson plans to give Santa and his reindeer more of a kick in your classroom this holiday season!
1. Before kids can craft a letter to Santa, they need to decide what they want. Use this What I Want for Christmas in Five Paragraphs writing lesson plan with your kids, differentiating as needed for skill level.
2. Once kids have decided what they want, have them write final drafts of their letters on the Free Letter to Santa template.
3. Have some fun with younger kids by making this free Santa Paper Bag Puppet Printable or this Christmas Activity Placemat.
4. Don't forget Santa's reindeer! Pass out the materials for this Reindeer Race Craft and Game for an afternoon of fun in your classroom and print out this Writer's Workshop Reindeer Puppet and Mini Book for some independent creative learning.
There are many inexpensive ways for kids to create Christmas gifts to give to their parents this holiday season. The following activities are simple, quick and fun ways for kids of all ages to create a work of art to give as gifts to their parents on Christmas Day!
The celebration of Christmas provides students the opportunity to practice concepts and skills in the context of the season, 
increasing the chance of engagement in the classroom. These Christmas-themed activities encourage students to use skills in reading, writing and social studies while having some fun at the same time!
1. Lead your students in a study of diversity with Christmas Around the World, combining Social Studies, Reading, Writing, Speaking and Technology activities along with a printable packet and process grid that's ready to use.
2. As kids grow more restless and excited due to the Christmas season, use these Christmas Games for the Classroom, including Mad-Libs, Bingo and Group Building Games!
3. Incorporate a readers-theater style exploration with this Classroom Holiday Puppet Theater idea that includes scripts for download.
4. Plan ahead for the upcoming vacation with Homework Ideas for Christmas Break and provide fun Christmas-themed activities that allow students to build their skills.
Just in case you hadn't realized, it's December - we're deep into excitement territory for kids in our classrooms. This month
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could prove to be quite challenging, but the following simple tips and humorous observations will help keep you in the Christmas spirit while maintaining your sanity!
1. First, stop by Surviving December in the Classroom With Sanity to solidify your plans for next few weeks in your classroom. Building this foundation will give you the freedom to make changes without any added stress.
2. If you plan to write newsletters for the Christmas holiday and winter season, check out this December Newsletter Template, which contains both versions.
3. Do you need a quick and easy holiday-themed bulletin board idea? Head over to December Bulletin Board Ideas and use one of them with your students' help to celebrate the fun of the season.
4. Should we be afraid to celebrate Christmas with students in our classrooms. This article, Is Christmas a Bad Word?, makes a case for using the dreaded word "Christmas" with our kids.
5. And finally, a ounce of laughter is worth a pound of sanity. Here's my own personal list of favorites regarding the Top 10 Reasons Teachers Love December!
It's December 1st already, and just in case you forgot...Christmas is in 24 days!
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We can be sure that our students are well aware of this fact concerning the calendar. These classroom management ideas have helpful tips and useful reminders about how to create a calmer December with your kids.
1. Head over to Classroom Management and Holidays for ideas on how to use your face and voice to help kids maintain self-control in the classroom, as well as a couple of useful tips on engaging students as the excitement of the holidays sets in.
2. Plan now for homework provisions for the break. Two weeks is a long time to go without some structure and learning opportunities for kids, and Homework Ideas for Winter Break contains printables and additional ideas to send home with kids as Christmas break begins.
3. This time of year provides a valuable opportunity to build relationships with your students through gift giving. However, as teachers, we don't have money for gifts for students. Wrap those worries way - Free Gifts to Give Students provides fun and simple ideas for Christmas gifts you can offer the students in your classroom!
With the festive season approaching, why don’t consider some new and fun things to do with your kids in order to keep the Christmas excitement strong and have a memorable Christmas experience!
Create a Good Deeds Christmas Calendar
With kids in the classroom or at home, create a "Good Deeds Calendar" that follows the pattern of the advent calendar to count down the days until the Christmas holiday. For each day, have children decide different good deeds that they could participate in, with a bit of chocolate or dried fruit and nuts to celebrate the good behavior.
This Good Deeds Calendar can help focus their behavior during the exciting Christmas season and encourage the spirit and practice of giving to others. An important rule of thumb is to be consistent when it comes to using the calendar. When the calendar is finished and Christmas has arrived, you can share their good deeds with family members, and perhaps have Santa Claus write a little note for your children to go with their gifts at home to thank them for participating in the spirit of giving.
Plan for Christmas Shopping for Parents and Kids
It is nice to involve children with planning Christmas shopping in order to encourage the spirit of giving. In the classroom, this can involve making wild "wish lists" of presents that kids would buy family and friends, then figuring out the cost of each using store ads to compare prices and find the best way to save money. Once this is done, it's important to address the practical realities of gift-giving as a child. Since kids actually have little or no money, it's important to give them a few choices of Christmas gifts to make in the classroom or at home for the people on their lists.
During a shopping trip, parents can have their children help purchase items on a list, including certain ornaments, lights, fake snow and other Christmas-related items. This fun activity teaches children about budgeting, making and following lists, finding the best prices and quality of items, and using money to purchase products. It's also fun, regardless of the age of the children involved. For younger children, include notes with pictures of the items you need and have them look for it in the store. This will also prevent your children from wanting other stuff as they are pre occupied with the things they need to get that is on their list.
Decorations for Home and Garden Sheds
It's easy for kids to create Christmas decorations to give as gifts, but decorating for the garden can also be fun during this 
time of year. Have children in the classroom make stepping stones that feature reindeer tracks or festive holiday messages. For the kids at home, string multi-colored lights and create Santa’s grotto out of an ordinary garden shed, where you can also have Santa Claus drop the Christmas gifts. To make it even more special, have Santa’s foot prints in the snow, and leave a little note from Santa Claus on the garden door! This is a great way to spend quality time with your kids as most parents often stay inside when the kids are out to play in the snow. Decorating the garden shed is a lovely family experience, whereby you can be outside with your children for the Christmas excitement!
Here are a few great ideas that you can do with your primary school classes during the buzz and anticipation that inevitably happens during the build up of breaking up from school for Christmas.
Each Christmas decoration below also includes a list of the suggested items you will need to make them.
Festive Fruit-Inspired Decorations
Oranges are traditional for many during the Christmas season, in appearance as well as practice. By drying out orange 
slices in the oven, you can make a variety of individual Christmas decorations perfect for the Christmas season.
Slices on their own can be fixed to create door wreaths, hung from doors in a pendant-like fashion, or used to decorate Christmas trees when combined with simple loops made from string or pipe cleaners.
You can even create orange skin spirals using a vegetable peeler, making sure not to cut the piece away from the rest of the orange prematurely - 4 to 5 rotations usually look best. These can then be hung as decorations in their own right using string tried to one end (carefully punch a hole using scissors) or combined in numbers to create decorative hanging mobiles.
You will need 1-2 oranges per a student, craft glue, ribbon or coloured string and scissors. For slicing the orange or cutting spirals it will be necessary to use a sharp knife or instrument and we highly recommend an adult or teacher do this on their behalf.
Glitter Cones
Our natural surroundings are full of great beauty once you know where to look!Endless sources of inspiration will be revealed to you and your kids for creating fun, crafty, Christmas decorations in your classroom this Christmas.
Pine Forests are abundant in many locations and ideal places to collect pine cones for use in creative projects such as this simple Christmas craft. The cones respond to both heat and moisture. Store them in a warm, dry place to cause the cones to arc open into their familiar shape. Your kids can paint them green to turn them into Christmas trees or white for snowmen. Coat them in glue and sprinkle with glitter to make mystical eggs, but first soak them in water to cause them to close again.
If you don’t live near any forests, you can look at what’s available from your local park or even the school yard. Twigs blown from trees, acorns, or even holy sprigs if you’re lucky!
You will need: Pine cones (enough for 1 each), craft glue, paint brushes, paint and beads as desired.
Crafty Snowflakes
During the Christmas season, snowflakes are never really far away! A number of craft stores and general hardware stores will sell pipe cleaners pre-coated in a layer of shimmery tinsel, or your students can create a similar effect yourself with simple glitter and glue. For a more modest snowflake, normal pipe cleaners can be covered in white tissue paper.
Take 1 of the pipe cleaners, and then overlap 2 more pipe cleaners bending them around the center of the axis in order to fix together a star shape with 6 spokes. Take an additional 2 pipe cleaners and cut them down to size into 2 inch strips. Bend these small strips in the middle to form triangle shapes. These can then be glued at intervals along each of the 6 spokes to create a variety of flake like patterns, each one as individual as the students in your classroom!
You will need: pipe cleaners (5-6 per student), scissors, glitter & glue (optional), string and soft craft tissue paper (optional)
Christmas Jar Lanterns
Painted jars make great candle lanterns with some fun and simple customizations. Before starting the craft, ask your 
students to start collecting clear glass jars and ask them to bring them in to store in your classroom.
You will need to pre-purchase a selection of brightly colored ceramic paints or tinted glass varnishes to use for this craft - take a look around your classroom to take inventory of paint that you already have.
Let your students loose when it comes to painting a particular pattern or using a variety of color, though you might like to suggest Christmas themes. Once your students have painted and created a unique design they are happy with, the jars can be fired off in a regular oven to set the paint.
Once this is done and the jars have been allowed to cool, you can create a cradle and handle so that these Christmas lanterns can be carried round. This will vary depending on the size of the jar, so you may wish to help them with this step. Cut enough wire to create a ring that snugly fits the circumference of the top part of the jar, where the lid grooves are and tie this off, cutting off any excess wire. Taking a second section of wire, bend in the middle sufficiently enough to create a simple handle and fix each end to the ring at opposite ends of the jar by wrapping the wire round.
You will need: 1 or 2 glass jars (per student), ceramic paint, paint brushes and soft coated craft wire.
This article was written on behalf of Christmas Trees and Lights who sell a selection of artificial Christmas trees and Christmas fairy lights.
This slideshow was my first attempt at putting one together, and I created one based on the myths of Christmas. Check them out!
Giving gifts to students in your classroom doesn't have to cost a lot of money. Here are four suggestions that cost next to nothing but reap great benefits when it comes to better relationships with your students!
Christmas crafts and decorations make wonderful last-minute projects for kids in your classroom, especially as winter break draws near and afternoons become chaotic with your kids. Following are four fun and creative Christmas crafts to complete with kids (try saying that five times fast)!
