The festive season is always a fun and rewarding time, but it is not without its challenges. When you have young children, it can be a challenge to keep them entertained and engaged, especially when many of your set routines fall apart. With a little creativity, however, you can turn the Christmas holidays into a memorable mixture of fun, learning, and bonding for you and your child. We’ve compiled five engaging ways to keep your little ones entertained over Christmas.
What child doesn’t enjoy festive crafts? Christmas craft is a fantastic way to channel your little one’s creativity while embracing the festive spirit! Whether it’s making paper snowflakes, decorating baubles, or creating unique holiday cards, these activities are great for encouraging children to embrace their artistic side. You can gather simple supplies like coloured paper, glue, biodegradable glitter, and markers and let their imagination run wild. We will give you a gold star for sustainability if you reuse and repurpose items for this, like scraps from your wrapping paper and old cardboard boxes.
Not only are crafts entertaining for children, but they promote fine motor skills and patience and encourage them to use their creativity. For an added festive touch, encourage your children to create handmade gifts for family members to teach them the joy of giving. Or roll out some new brown wrapping paper and get them to completely decorate and draw all over it before wrapping family gifts in your bespoke paper.
Take advantage of our long, sunny summer days by organising an outdoor scavenger hunt! It’s a fun activity that can be tailored specifically to your children’s ages and interests, offering great possibilities for fun and learning while emphasising outdoor play. Start by creating a list of items for them to find in your backyard, at a local park, or by the beach. For younger children, keep it simple with items like birds, seashells, or flowers. For older children, make it more complex with ideas like “find something round” or “spot a leaf bigger than your hand.”
If you’re familiar with the area, personalise the list by including specific details, such as a particular flower you know grows in the park or landmarks they might encounter. You can even use the hunt as a teachable moment. For instance, adding “oysters” to a beach scavenger hunt can help you explain why it’s important to avoid stepping on them in the water.
To add an extra layer of interaction, include challenges or clues, such as “find something soft” or “spot an insect with wings.” This activity not only gets children outdoors and moving but also sharpens their observation and problem-solving skills while encouraging a deeper connection to their surroundings.
An obstacle course is a great way to keep your children entertained and active, whether you’re out in the sunshine or keeping out of the heat. Use anything from hula hoops to pillows and furniture to create safe hurdles, pathways, and challenges. For a Christmas twist, turn the obstacle course into Santa’s Training Academy, where kids need to complete different courses to ‘deliver presents’ all over the world. Not only does this encourage coordination and physical activity, but it will burn off excess energy and cause loads of laughter. You can thank us later.
Cooking during the festive period can feel like a chore, but it also offers a chance to involve your children in holiday preparation, just like we do in Little Zak’s Kitchen. Invite them to help you bake cookies, decorate cupcakes, measure ingredients, or put together simple salads. Even toddlers can get involved by stirring batter, using cookie cutters, or sprinkling decorations! If you’re looking for child-friendly recipes, check out our Instagram, where we’ve been sharing recipes every month. Cooking with your child teaches valuable life skills while making them feel valued and supported. Children are more likely to try new foods if they helped prepare them, too, which can be a bonus when it’s time to eat your Christmas lunch!
While it can be tempting to pack the holidays with activities, remember that young children also need downtime to rest and recharge, especially when their routines have been sidestepped. Balancing high-energy fun with quiet moments allows them to enjoy the season without becoming overwhelmed. Activities like reading Christmas stories, building a blanket fort, completing breathing exercises like in Zak’s Yoga Club, or simply lounging around in pyjamas are just as valuable as the more structured options.
While structured activities are great, it’s equally important to let kids experience moments of boredom. The modern world is constantly on, and children can be overstimulated with schedules and screens, leaving little room for unstructured play and daydreaming. Boredom allows children to tap into their imaginations, fostering creativity, resilience, and independence, which are important skills for development. If your child complains about being bored this Christmas, resist the urge to fill the gap immediately and fight the parental guilt you may feel. Give your child the space to discover the joy of free play and making their own fun. If your child resists this immediately, offer exciting activities like ‘cleaning their room’ and see how quickly they can entertain themselves.
Any festive event is made that much more special when young children are involved. By adding handfuls of creativity and adventure to your Christmas, you can keep your children entertained while supporting their growth and independence. More importantly, these moments will create lasting memories for you to cherish with your little one for years to come.
At Little Zak’s Academy, we remain open throughout the festive season, closing only on public holidays, to continue providing care for the children across our centres.
