13 Winter Holiday Crafts for Preschoolers
There are many different holidays sprinkled throughout the winter season. The Confident Classroom has creative ideas for you and your preschool class to celebrate them all!
Here are some Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and New Year’s crafts for the preschool classroom.
Christmas
Observed each year on December 25, Christmas is a religious and cultural holiday that celebrates the birth of Christ. Many children recognize the holiday by its festive decorations, making these cinnamon-scented ornaments a perfect Christmas craft for preschoolers. Using only five materials, the craft is cost-effective and children love using the ornaments as Christmas decor or gifting them to loved ones.
Another simple preschool Christmas craft is reindeer treat bags. Functional and cute, the bags can be displayed as a decoration before they are used to collect yummy goodies and gifts from their class party.
A child’s tiny handprints are timeless mementos of their childhood, and these Christmas handprint crafts are heartwarming keepsakes. With several options to choose from, the children can create handprint wreaths, Christmas trees, and more!
Looking for a craft that will bring warm holiday smiles to your preschool classroom on a chilly day? Try this “Ice-Pop Painting” activity from Preschool With a Purpose. Download your free activity!
Hanukkah
A Jewish holiday also known as the “festival of lights,” Hanukkah marks the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem. The dates of the holiday vary each year, but traditions like lighting an additional candle of the menorah for each of the eight consecutive nights remains consistent to Hanukkah celebrations. Preschoolers can make their own menorah using one of these craft ideas. The first involves cotton balls and colored water; the second uses washable paint and cotton swabs. Teacher Tip: for the first craft, outline the shape of a menorah with a thick marker on the cardboard to help children properly place their cotton balls. This ensures the finished product resembles a menorah!
This Star of David suncatcher craft uses the symbol of Jewish faith to create a beautiful hanging decoration. By pre-cutting the triangles, children can handle the rest of the materials on their own.
Pair the book My First Chanukah with a painting craft. Children learn about the different symbols of the holiday and then create with them! By dipping Hanukkah cookie cutters shaped like dreidels and Maccabee shields into washable paint, preschoolers make stamp art unique to the holiday.
Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa, a Swahili reference to “first fruits,” commemorates and sustains pan-African culture. Rooted in seven different principles—Unity, Self-Determination, Collective Work and Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity, and Faith—Kwanzaa is celebrated from December 26 through January 1. Children will learn more about the seven principles courtesy of the Smithsonian’s curated Kwanzaa booklist. Then, they can celebrate and decorate with these Kwanzaa coloring pages.
Like Hanukkah’s menorah, Kwanzaa uses a candelabra called a kinara to hold seven candles that represent the seven nights and seven principles of the holiday. Using only five materials, children make their own cardboard kinaras.
Kwanzaa unity bracelets are something children can wear all year long. As a bonus, stringing the red, black, yellow, and green beads is a helpful preschool fine motor skills activity!
New Year’s
Cultures from all over the world have been celebrating the new year for at least four millennia. Parties typically begin on December 31, New Year’s Eve, reach their height at midnight, and continue throughout New Year’s Day. Preschoolers can recreate New Year’s party traditions, like these fun party hats. Teacher Tip: Start with hats already assembled so children can focus on designing their festive headwear.
Fireworks, another New Year’s tradition, are featured in this exploding numbers craft. Tape the numbers of the year, 2025 for example, to a black piece of cardstock. Show students how to use outward strokes of paint so the final product looks like fireworks exploding in the night sky.
Complete the celebration with a simulated countdown which doubles as great practice for counting backwards. When the clock strikes midnight, encourage children to yell, “Happy New Year!” and use party noisemakers!
These widely celebrated winter holidays are terrific opportunities for preschoolers to learn about different cultures and traditions. The craft ideas can double as gifts for loved ones or simply as practice of important developmental skills.
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About the Author:
Stephanie Jankowski is an educator and author who lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. When she's not teaching or writing, she's spending time with her children, Brady, Ella, and Lyla, and marveling at just how short the years really are.