Two years ago, I started doing a Christmas countdown and my boys loved it. This time, I decided to do it again but with simpler activities. This way, even busy mothers can participate and get crafty at home. The important thing is to focus and understand the story of the day based on Bible verses. As a Christian parent, I firmly believe that it’s our duty to share the life of Christ and it’s lessons to our kids. Christmas is the perfect time to share the true meaning of this event – it’s all about our savior Jesus Christ who died for our sins.
It took me a while to finish researching the activities (most I found from Pinterest) and to put it all together because of this very busy season. Nevertheless, I’m excited to start soon! Some of the activities are inspired by pictures I saw online. I tweaked some of the activities to make it more personal.
I used couple of my kids’ children’s Bible books like “The Beginner’s Bible ; Timeless Children’s Stories” and “The Action Bible” to read the stories to them before doing the activities. We also use this as a guide to help us decide which story of Jesus we want to discuss on a certain day.
Here are some of the craft activities to help my kids understand more about the story about Jesus.
DECEMBER ONE
An Angel Visit Mary (Luke 1:26-38)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Paper Plate
Drawing of a face
Glue/ Tape
Paper, Pencil and Scissor
Marker
DECEMBER TWO
Baby Jesus Is Born Luke 2:1-7
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Small Paper Bag
Scratch paper
Marker
Star sticker or yellow cardstock
Glue
Scissor
You can use popsicle stick or craft stick and wrap it up with tissue paper. Use pen to draw the face.
DECEMBER THREE
Shepherds Visit (Luke 2:8-20)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Cereal Box
White Paper
Black Marker
Cotton balls
Popsicle sticks
Glue
DECEMBER FOUR
The King of all kings (Matthew 2:1-12)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Yellow cardstock
Different colors of kraft paper (cut into small square size)
Glue
Crayons (optional)
Glitter Markers (optional)
DECEMBER FIVE
John Baptizes Jesus (Matthew 3:1-7; Mark 1:1-11; Luke 3:1-22)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
White paper plate (or any white cardstock)
Piece of orange paper
Eye decor
White feather (you may add more if you’d prefer)
Glue
DECEMBER SIX
Jesus chooses his disciples (Matthew 4:18-22; 9:9; 10:1-4; Mark 1-3; Luke 5-6)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Straws (cut in half)
Craft Papers, cut out of people as 12 disciples
Small bowl
DECEMBER SEVEN
Jesus’ First Miracle (John 2:1-11)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Water
Cup
Kool-Aid
DECEMBER 8
Jesus teaches on a mountain (Matthew 5:1-12)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Small Canvas or white card stock
Acrylic Paint (2-4 colors)
Cottons and Clothespins
Tape
Cut out heart shape using cardstock
DECEMBER NINE
Up on the roof (Mark 2:1-12)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Yarn / Twine
(2) Popsicle Sticks
Small cardstock or small fabric
Lego man
Small Box
DECEMBER TEN
Jesus calms the storm (Matthew 8:23-27)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Empty Large Bottle
Blue Glitters
Water
Toothpicks to make the boat
DECEMBER ELEVEN
The hungry crowd (John 6:1-14; Mark 6:30-44)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Printed fish and bread (or draw a simple drawing and cut it)
Glue
Paper Plate
Wire string
DECEMBER TWELVE
Jesus Walks on Water (Matthew 14:22-33; John 6:15-21; mark 6:45-52)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Boat Water Illustration
Wood Sticks /Popsicle sticks (2)
Peter and Jesus Illustration
DECEMBER THIRTEEN
Faith at First Sight (from action Bible; John 9:1-10:21)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Illustration of a man’s face
Brown paper
Tape
Blindfolds
DECEMBER FOURTEEN
A good Neighbor (Luke 10:25-37)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Illustration of a man
Crayons
Cotton and Glue (or you can use band-aid)
I’ll draw a wounded man on a piece of paper and let the kids do the coloring. Once done, I’ll color a red spot (wound) on the man’s body. The kids can be the good samaritan helping a stranger by attending to his wound with glue and cotton.
DECEMBER FIFTEEN
Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Marker
White cardstock
Crayon to color the ears
Tape
Scissor
DECEMBER SIXTEEN
The Lost Son (Luke 15:11-32)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(teaching kids forgiveness / source)
Materials:
Pencil
Scissor
Cardstock
Wiggle eyes
Glue
Twine
Marker
Printed Bible Verse: Ephesians 1:7
DECEMBER SEVENTEEN
Lazarus Lives Again ( John 11; Mark 10:13-22)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Cut out papers (tomb, man and white small strips of paper)
Wiggle Eyes
Glue or Double sided tape
DECEMBER EIGHTEEN
Man in a Tree (Luke 19:1-35; John 12:1-8)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Paper Plate
Green paper
Scissor
String
Popsicle stick
short man illustration
DECEMBER NINETEEN
The True King (Mathew 21:1-11; Luke 19:20-42; John 12:12-19)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Green craft papers
Popsicle sticks
Tape
Scissor
DECEMBER TWENTY
Washing the Disciples’ Feet (John 13:3-30)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Action figure (or doll)
Paint
Bowl of water
Papertowel
DECEMBER TWENTY-ONE
The Last Supper (Matthew 26:17-29)
Read: “The Beginner’s Bible”
(source)
Materials:
Cut out of brown paper as a bread
Cut out of white paper as wine cup
Purple crayon (Kids will color the cup)
Glue
DECEMBER TWENTY-TWO
On Trial (Matthew 26:57-27:2)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Red Paper for hand cut out
Round white paper
2 small triangle yellow paper
Pencil
Glue
Scissor
Popsicle stick
Wiggle eye
DECEMBER TWENTY-THREE
Death Sentence and Crucified
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials:
Salt dough (find the recipe here that I used before.I probably will double the ingredients)
Bag of Toothpicks
Oven
DECEMBER TWENTY-FOUR
The Sealed Tomb (Matthew 27:59-28:15)
Read: The Action Bible
(source)
Materials
Clothespin
Card stock (for one person and tomb)
Crayons
Scissor
glue
This activity is perfect for preschoolers. It teaches them to be more creative and resourceful. At the same time, they learn about a lot of things too, from vocabulary to storytelling. Expensive materials are not necessary for these activities. You can use anything that’s lying around your house. The important things is to share the story and meaning of Jesus Christ’s life.
How do you teach your kid’s the true meaning of Christmas?