Christmas dinner is a time for families to come together and celebrate the holiday season, but let’s be real – it can be a long and sometimes boring event for kids. Whether you choose to stay at home for a traditional Christmas, or explore offers for your next cruise adventure and escape the cold on a festive getaway, you’ll still want to have Christmas dinner, and you’ll still need to keep the little ones entertained.
To help your kids enjoy themselves as much as possible during dinner, try incorporating some of these fun activities into the evening. Be warned – you might have to relax a few normal rules of table manners in the interests of having a good time!
Christmas-themed scavenger hunt
A scavenger hunt is always a popular activity for kids and adding a Christmas theme to the mix makes it even more fun. Create a list of holiday-related items for your kids to find around the house or yard and challenge them to find them all. These could include items like a specific Christmas tree ornament, a stocking, or a Santa hat. Set your kids a time limit and see who can find the most in the time available. A scavenger hunt will keep your kids entertained, help them burn off any restless energy, and give the adults at the table a short break! If you want some specific scavenger hunt ideas of some clues, do check out some of the KiddyCharts resources for this. We’ve got a Christmas present scavenger hunt too.
DIY Christmas crafts
Set up a craft station near the dining table with plentiful supplies of construction paper, scissors, glue, and glitter, and let your kids get creative. Give them a few pointers about things they could make like decorations or gifts, and let them express their artistic side.
“Guess the holiday carol” game
In between courses, why not play a game where you sing or play a snippet of a Christmas carol or holiday song, and see if your kids can guess what it is? You can add extra layers to the game by singing out of tune (you can claim it is deliberate…!) or customize the lyrics to make them relevant to your family.
Holiday movie marathon
Something to look forward to after dinner rather than entertainment during the meal itself, a movie marathon is a great way to get your kids to eat up their greens! Set up a movie station with a big screen, blankets, and pillows for a cozy night in, and let your kids pick a selection of Christmas classics to watch! You can let the little ones leave the table as soon as dinner is finished, leaving the grown-ups to enjoy more adult conversation over after-dinner drinks.
As you can see, there are plenty of ways to keep your kids entertained during Christmas dinner. You could even try our Turkey game as well if you want! While you might have to be a little flexible about letting your little ones leave the table or do things that might not normally be allowed during mealtimes, it is all in a good cause and will help create more memorable moments and a fun and exciting Christmas for everyone!
We’ve got lots of Christmas printables for you on the site too, so why not check some of those out as well?
More Christmas printables we know you'll love
Here are some more amazing printables that we have on KiddyCharts that are focused on Christmas fun!
Free Christmas present gift tags
Gift tags for you to print out and add to your presents whenever you want.
Christmas coloring and activities: 25 Christmas Tree themed coloring and activities for your kids #KiddyChartsAdvent
25 amazing activities for the kids to get stuck in to for Christmas - with a tree theme as well!
Christmas games for kids: Christmas tree iSpy
A Christmas tree iSpy game that the children will adore.
Christmas bucket list
What would you like to do this Christmas - we've got LOADS of Christmassy ideas for you to try this year.
Free printable Elf adoption certificate for your Elf on the Shelf
Do you have an Elf - make sure he is REALLY part of the family with this wonderful adoption certificate for him or her!
There are more things for you to do here as well, off site:
Christmas Printables from the Web
Some more ideas for Christmas Printable fun from the internet. Why not nip off my site and check them out? But DO come back afterwards!
Free Christmas Playdough Mats
Playdough is always a winner, so why not check out these Christmas themed playdough mats for the kids?
Printable Thaumatrope for Christmas - Red Ted Art - Make crafting with kids easy & fun
Have you heard of Thaumatropes? They are wonderful for the kids, and oh so simple to make. Check them out on Red Ted Art.
Free Preschool Printable Worksheets: Christmas Do A Dot Printables
Do a Dot printable are a wonderful activity for pre-schoolers, and here are some gorgeous Christmas themed ones to try with the little ones.
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Helen
This is a partnered post.
Helen
Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine! Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time. KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10. It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania. Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on. Get in touch TODAY!