We have finally made it to the end of the semester and are ready for some Holiday fun. Students have worked hard and we are all exhausted. Let’s dive in and explore some ways to have fun with students for the holidays!

“We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup.”

Elf

Holiday Fun with Competitions

Gingerbread House Building Contest

Get those creative juices flowing with a Gingerbread House building contest. Students can practice STEM skills, communication skills, creativity, and working together.

There are gingerbread house kits available at the store, but many options exist. Students can use graham crackers, or you can build large houses out of cardboard.

There are plenty of options for your competition. Students can compete in small groups in your classroom. Another option would be a school-wide competition. Each class can create a gingerbread house. Then allow students to vote on the winning houses.

Hallway/Door Decorating

Continue the competition spirit with creativity and group work by having a Hallway or Door Decorating competition. Set a theme for each year’s competition then let the creative juices flow. Students will enjoy the fun decorations and the change of pace.

Reindeer Games

Set up a Reindeer Games competition between classes. Take it a step further by having students plan the competitions. You can hold your competition like a school-wide assembly or field day.

Students and staff can compete in games such as snowball toss, jingle bells obstacle course, or reindeer ring toss. The games are endless. This is an excellent opportunity for students to have fun with their teachers. Consider having students vs. staff teams.

Holiday Fun with Reward Parties

Reward students for their good behavior and hard work by throwing a reward party. You can get student involvement by allowing them to vote on the activities.

Cookie Decorating

Try a cookie decorating party where students can decorate their own cookies before eating them. Our middle school students LOVE our cookie decorating party. Throw on some short Christmas movies or music and allow students to decorate away!

Lump of Coal

Classroom gifts can be fun when you give them in a Lump of “Coal”. Think of a giant ball of plastic wrap that is wrapped around the small gifts. Each student takes a turn unwrapping the “coal” until a small gift falls out, passing it to the next student. Gifts can be things like a homework pass, a piece of candy, or a small fidget.

Minute to Win it Games

Students love playing games and winning prizes. Set up stations of Minute to Win it games for students to participate in. A fun Holiday Minute to Win it game is done with candy canes. Give each student a candy cane. They will hold it in their mouth at the long end. Using the hook they will try to scoop up as many candy canes as they can in a minute and put them in a bucket.

Minute to Win it games are an excellent way to practice social skills, fine motor skills, and group work.

Holiday Fun with Classroom Activities

Holiday Trivia

Learning About the history of Christmas and other winter Holidays can be fun with trivia. Start your class with a 5-minute trivia game leading up to the holidays. Learn about holidays around the world and why they are celebrated the way they are.

Name that Tune

Name that Tune is a fun way to start class. Get students laughing and build relationships with a little friendly competition. You can divide the class in half or use groups. The class can also guess as a hole and try to stump the teacher. There are many Name that Tune options on YouTube.

Giving Project

Work with your students to think about others. What can they do to brighten someone else’s Christmas? Students can practice their writing and communication skills by writing Christmas Cards. Cards can be sent to community members, family, other classes, nursing homes, public safety personnel, or Military personnel.

Classwork

Try a holiday word search, crossword, mazes, or Mad Libs when you need a filler activity. You can even have holiday coloring pictures available. Students might enjoy doing these while they are waiting on the class to begin, once they have finished their work, or as a station during a holiday party.

Try creating a Holiday Escape Room as a fun activity for students. Escape rooms are great at helping students practice critical thinking skills, communication skills, and group work skills.

Scavenger Hunts are also fun activities to do with students to help them work on their communication skills. Incorporate content that you have been teaching in class to create your clues. Have students work through the clues to find something for their Holiday party.

SEL Unfiltered

Do you want to hear more? Check out the rest of our SEL and the Holidays series on our SEL Unfiltered podcast, wherever you stream your podcasts.

Check out other episodes in our SEL and the Holidays series, including Teaching Gratitude, Ways to Give, Supporting Students’ Holiday Needs, Holiday Diversity, and Holiday Self-Care.

Game of the Week

Every week on SEL Unfiltered we like to bring you a game or activity. You can use the game with your students, in the classroom, or in a small group. This week Kaitlin and I played a round of Holiday Heads Up!

Holiday Heads Up is a fun way to engage your students while they are practicing communication and critical thinking skills. You can download the app on your phone or tablet for free. Accessing additional decks is a fee.

One player holds the phone to their forehead while their team gives them clues to guess the word on the screen. Each round is timed and the team with the most points wins the game. This is a fun game to play in a small group, but it works well with an entire class! Be prepared to laugh!