35+ Best December Crafts for Kids
December is a busy month for parents and kids as everyone prepares for the holidays. For kids, that means being on their best behavior and getting antsy about the big day.
These 35-December crafts for kids are a great way to keep your littles busy and entertained as they anticipate the biggest holiday of the year. We’ve picked the best festive December crafts for your kids to do.
We tried to make them simple, with minimal supervision and the bare necessities for supplies. Check out our list and let us know in the comments which one your kid liked best.
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35 December Crafts for Kids
When you have kids underfoot, having an arsenal of crafts to give them can be the difference between sanity and a mental breakdown.
But no one wants to get their kids excited about doing a craft only to have to make a trip to the craft store for specific supplies. We love crafts that use up what you have at home.
Many of these crafts use household essentials, such as paper plates, empty toilet paper rolls, craft sticks, cotton, popsicle sticks, and milk jugs.
You’ll also need basic craft supplies like glue, scissors, paint, markers, pens, a ruler, ribbon, construction paper, cardstock, a home printer, pom poms, glue (often craft or hot gun), and pipe cleaners.
So grab your craft kits, the kids, and some hot cocoa, and have some fun making these 35 kids’ crafts for December.
1. Popsicle Stick Reindeer
These cute reindeer ornaments make for the perfect December craft activity! With the holidays right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to get into the festive spirit and create some fun decorations for your home.
2. Salt Dough Christmas Ornament
This salt dough handprint ornament is the perfect December craft. Made with just three simple ingredients, it is not only easy and fun to make but also serves as a special keepsake for years to come.
3. Paper Cup Santa Claus
Paper cup crafts are a fun and easy way to get creative with your kids. These simple projects are perfect for a snowy day or when you’re looking for an activity to do together. With just a few supplies, you can turn an ordinary paper cup into a Santa!
4. Handprint Reindeer Christmas Ornament
This charming little reindeer handprint ornament is way too adorable to pass up. I love how adorable and easy it is! Also, try out our favorite popsicle stick reindeer ornament!
5. Create Christmas Binoculars
These cute Christmas binoculars are the perfect way for kids to keep an eye for Santa. Kids of all ages will enjoy turning two cardboard toilet paper rolls into a Santa, snowman, and elf. You’ll also need some yarn and a hole puncher.
Related holiday crafts:
- 25 Best Winter Activities for Preschoolers
- 27 Easy Christmas Tree Crafts for Preschoolers
- 20 Printable Christmas Crafts Kids Can Make
- 21 Fun Winter Sensory Bin Ideas For Preschoolers
6. Construction Paper Christmas Crafts
If you have a surplus of construction paper on hand, these December characters are perfect for kids. All your kid needs is scissors and glue. Kids can learn about shapes, colors, and following instructions. Kids can make a snowman, an elf, Santa, and Rudolph.
7. Reindeer Headband
This DIY reindeer headband converts a basic headband into a fun, wearable set of reindeer antlers. You’ll need construction paper, glue (a craft and a glue gun), scissors, a black marker, and cardstock. You may need to help younger children with the hot glue assembly, making it a great family project.
8. Rudolph the Reindeer Puppet on a Stick
Puppet crafts are great for getting your children creative, not just by assembling their puppets but also by storytelling. Most puppet projects are simple for kids of most ages. Once you have the reindeer template, you’ll need tissue, googly eyes, paint, ribbon, a lollipop (real or faux), and construction paper.
9. Toilet Paper Roll Elves
Who knew leftover toilet paper roll tubes could make such cute, festive elves to decorate your home? You’ll likely have the supplies, like construction paper, glitter cardstock, pom poms, and a glue stick.
By Cutefetti
10. Rustic Wood Slice Christmas Ornament
You can provide wood ornaments if you want to add some rustic touches to your Christmas tree. You can get these at any craft store or Amazon with bells, twine, and green acrylic paint. You will need a hot glue gun to attach the bells to the wood slab, so younger children may need some parental assistance.
11. Candy Jar Ornaments
Sometimes, the best December crafts for your kids are ones where you don’t have to do anything. These simple candy jar ornaments perfectly solve an unsupervised kid’s craft. Supply your child with glass bottles with corks and some small candies. You may want to insert the screw eyes yourself. And going with red and green candy is a great way to stay festive. A ribbon and a tag can make awesome gifting.
12. Christmas Gnome Craft
Who doesn’t love gnomes? This is especially true in December when everyone already thinks of elves and the big red guy. For this project, you’ll need white thread, craft felt, medium and small pom poms, and some cotton batting. Assembly does include using a hot glue gun so that littles may need your help.
13. Wood Slice Thumprint Rudolph
These wood slabs make perfect bases to create personalized tree ornaments. Kids will love getting their hands messy to develop Rudolph, and you’ll love the fact that you don’t need much material. Of course, you’ll need red pom poms for Rudolph’s nose and brown paint for Rudolph. Add some glue, and your kids will be all set.
14. Clothespin Rudolph
Many people no longer use clothespins for their original purpose, thanks to dryers. But luckily, their versatile use makes them perfect for craft projects like these simple Rudolphs. The simple steps are to paint, wrap with a ribbon, and assemble with a hot glue gun.
15. Milk Jug Snowman
Empty plastic milk jugs are great products to upcycle into new things. These clear plastic jugs make great outdoor holiday lanterns. You can cut out the shapes from foam, felt, or construction paper. Create a handle from a chenille stick. A battery-operated tea light candle can make a great glow, or you can use glowsticks.
16. Stuffed Sock Snowman
Stuffed sock snowmen are great for younger children; they’re safe and easy to create. Your child will need a white sock, some string, and something to stuff the sock with, like cotton or fiberfill. Kids love to pull cotton balls out to make them fluffy. Once the socks are full, provide markers to decorate the snowmen.
17. Construction Paper Christmas Tree
This simple Christmas tree craft reuses toilet paper rolls to create 3D tree trunks. Use construction paper or a paper plate to make the triangle tree. And decorate the tree with a paint marker pen, glitter, or sequins.
18. Snowman Christmas Countdown Calendar
This project lets your kids turn a plain paper plate into a countdown calendar, making counting down until the big day exciting. Kids will enjoy cutting and assembling the pieces into a cute snowman. This project also makes it easy for your kids to learn how to count down from 25 to 1.
19. Christmas Handprint Kindness Printables
These simple handprint printables will help your kids spread kindness during the Christmas season. Your kids can choose which projects they want to do using their hands or fingers. Kids will love the opportunity to get big and messy with their hands.
20. Cinnamon Cutout Ornaments
Cinnamon ornaments are great for making your home smell good without having to bake daily. And they’re fun to make for all ages of kids. Best of all, you only need two ingredients – applesauce and cinnamon.
21. Milk Carton Lid Christmas Decor
This upcycled December Christmas tree ornament turns milk carton lids into festive decor like a snowman, Santa, or Rudolph reindeer. For each craft, you’ll need three tops, a 12″ ribbon, paint, pipe cleaners, buttons or pom poms, and the printed template.
22. Printable Christmas Tree Template
This December craft project for children is as simple as printing off the template on paper. Your kids can customize the Christmas tree to their liking, reducing the friction of children who want it to look different from their siblings.
23. Printable Customizable Paper Stocking
Printable paper projects are fantastic crafts for kids to do when they’re bored, and you need a quick fix. These projects are as simple as printing and customizing them to your kid’s personality and preferences. Your kid’s colored stockings will look great on the fridge.
24. Paper Treat Box Christmas Advent Calendar
You can use different patterns of paper to create a festive advent calendar. Each day up to Christmas, your child will take a box and open it to enjoy the present inside. Wrapping paper makes a great paper to use for ease. You can display your advent calendar in various ways using clothespins or clips.
25. Fabric Scrap Christmas Tree Ornament
This fabric Christmas tree ornament is not only colorful and uses leftover fabric scraps that you might otherwise throw away, but it will also make your house smell festive from the cinnamon stick tree trunk. You will also need to supply some yellow buttons and twine.
26. Scandinavian-Inspired Paper Star Ornaments
This creative Scandinavian paper ornament uses a printed template, cardstock, paint, a hole punch, and string to hang once completed. Kids will have fun cutting, coloring, and assembling the pieces to make a pattern.
27. Printable Customizable Paper Christmas Ornaments
Your kids will love customizing these blank paper ornaments to add to the Christmas tree for personalized holiday cheer. Print the template on white cardstock and supply your kids with decorative materials, like stickers, glitter, beads, and paint. You’d also need a hole punch and a piece of twine.
28. Simple Toilet Paper Roll Santa Ornaments
You can turn your empty toilet paper rolls into festive Santa ornaments with little more than colored construction paper, cotton, red pom balls, a piece of string, and optionally, googly eyes and a hole puncher. You’ll also need basic craft supplies.
29. Paper Plate 3D Christmas Snow globe Ornament
This easy paper plate craft creates a festive 3D ornament out of a paper plate, construction and felt paper, basic craft supplies, some cotton, and a popsicle stick. With a little cutting and assembling, your kids can have a 3D snow globe with snow, a snowman, and a Christmas tree.
Related craft: 21 Cute Snow Globe Crafts Kids Can Make
30. Paper Plate Nativity Scene
With this nativity scene paper plate project, kids can learn about the reason for the season. You’ll need a paper plate, cutout template, foam dots, cardstock, and paint or markers. Younger children might need some help with assembly.
31. Layered Paper Christmas Tree
This incredible layered paper Christmas tree requires a printed copy of the template, basic craft supplies, a paper plate, cardstock, paint, pom poms, and markers or crayons. Smaller children may need some help with folding and gluing, so be sure to put something under your kids so it is less messy to clean up.
32. Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments
Homemade salt dough is a resourceful science experiment that teaches kids about measurements and following instructions. You’ll need to share your kitchen and the pantry with the littles for this one. You can make the dough yourself and let your kids decorate it.
33. Wooden Spoon Rudolph Craft
This simple December craft for kids is a great holiday gift from a little, and there’s little to do, so they need minimal supervision. You can get most of the supplies in your basic craft kit or at any craft store. You’ll need pipe cleaners, googly eyes, a plaid ribbon, and a wooden spoon.
34. Christmas Tree Name Craft
This neat paper Christmas tree craft is a great way to make up for the kids who need help finding their name on anything in a store. And it won’t require you to take a trip to the store for supplies since you only need colored paper and the printed Christmas tree.
35. Grinch Handprint Craft
This project is perfect for December because who doesn’t love the Grinch?! You only need colored paper, basic craft supplies, and the Grinch template. Then trace out your kid’s handprints and let them assemble the fun Grinch card.
36. Rudolph Handprint Craft
This simple handprint craft turns your child’s tiny hands into a festive Rudolph the reindeer, complete with a bright red nose. And best of all, you won’t need a trip to the craft store for special supplies. You only need cardstock and the printed template, along with basic supplies.
Entertain Your Kids With These December Crafts
Try out these December arts and crafts for kids to get your littles in the Christmas spirit. If you need ideas for other holiday crafts, don’t forget to check out our other kids’ craft ideas. Do your kids have a favorite craft for December that we didn’t include? Leave your thoughts in the comments!
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