Christmas Activities for Primary School Classrooms

Christmas Activities for Australian Primary Schools

Christmas in Australian schools is unlike anywhere else in the world. While classrooms in the Northern Hemisphere are rugging up for winter and dreaming of snow, Australian students are counting down to summer holidays, end-of-year concerts, and backyard cricket on Christmas Day.

This timing makes December a unique opportunity for teachers. Christmas falls right at the end of the school year, which means you can combine festive celebrations with meaningful end-of-year reflection, transition activities, and curriculum-linked learning. A well-planned Christmas unit can cover writing, maths, art, and HASS outcomes while still giving students the celebration they look forward to all year.

It's also worth being thoughtful about inclusivity. Australian classrooms are wonderfully diverse, and not all families celebrate Christmas. The best Christmas activities acknowledge this — framing December as a time of celebration, gratitude, and giving rather than focusing solely on religious traditions. Many of the ideas on this page can be adapted to include other end-of-year and cultural celebrations alongside Christmas.

For more seasonal classroom ideas, check out our Key Education Dates 2026 calendar or browse Easter Activities for Term 1 and 2 planning.

Christmas provides a ready-made context for authentic writing tasks across every text type in the Australian Curriculum. Students are motivated because the activities feel fun — but with the right framing, they also meet real literacy outcomes.

Foundation – Year 2

• Letter to Santa — This is persuasive writing in disguise. Students need to state what they want, give reasons why, and use persuasive language to convince their audience. Model the structure of a persuasive letter before students write their own.
• Christmas word lists and dictionaries — Build vocabulary by brainstorming Christmas words, sorting them alphabetically, and using them in sentences. Include Australian Christmas words like pavlova, cricket, bushfire safety, and cicada.
• Retelling The Night Before Christmas — After reading the poem together, students retell the story in their own words or create an Australian version. This practises sequencing, retelling, and creative adaptation.
• Acrostic poems — Using words like CHRISTMAS, SANTA, or SUMMER, students write acrostic poems that practise vocabulary, spelling, and creative expression. Display them alongside Christmas art for a festive classroom.

Year 3 – Year 6

• Christmas narrative writing prompts — "You wake up on Christmas morning and discover your family pet has eaten all the presents..." or "Write a Christmas story set in the Australian outback." For more narrative prompt ideas, see our Narrative Writing Prompts page.
• Procedural writing — "How to make a pavlova," "How to decorate a Christmas tree," or "How to wrap the perfect present." These are authentic procedural texts that students can actually follow.
• Information reports — How is Christmas celebrated around the world? Students research traditions in different countries and write information reports comparing them. Scootle has curriculum-aligned digital resources that can support this research. This links to HASS outcomes and cross-cultural understanding.
• Persuasive writing — "What is the best Australian Christmas tradition and why?" or "Should schools have Christmas concerts?" These prompts build persuasive writing skills with a topic students have genuine opinions about. See our Persuasive Writing page for more ideas.

Every activity above maps directly to Australian Curriculum v9 English content descriptors for creating and crafting texts. Christmas is the context — the learning is real literacy.

Maths and Christmas go together better than you might think. The festive season is full of real-world contexts for counting, measuring, budgeting, and problem-solving — and students are far more engaged when maths problems involve presents, decorations, and party food.

Foundation – Year 2

• Christmas counting and number recognition — Count presents under the tree, ornaments on a branch, or reindeer on the roof. Use Christmas manipulatives for hands-on counting, addition, and subtraction.
• Patterns with decorations — String decorations in AB, ABB, or ABC patterns. Use coloured baubles, paper chains, or stickers for a tactile patterning activity that doubles as classroom decoration.
• Shape Christmas trees — Build Christmas trees, stars, and presents using 2D shapes. Students identify and name the shapes they use, then describe their properties. Great for geometry outcomes.
• Addition and subtraction with presents — "Santa had 12 presents in his sack. He delivered 5. How many are left?" Simple word problems with a Christmas theme keep students practising computation in a fun context.

Year 3 – Year 6

• Christmas shopping budgets — Give students a catalogue (real or made-up) and a budget. They choose presents for family members, calculate totals, work out change, and stay within budget. This covers addition, subtraction, multiplication, and financial literacy.
• Gingerbread house measurement — Design and build gingerbread houses using measurement skills. Students measure ingredients, calculate dimensions, and use area and perimeter concepts. Even a paper-based design activity practises measurement and scale.
• Symmetry in decorations — Explore symmetry through Christmas stars, snowflakes (yes, even in Australia!), and ornament designs. Students create symmetrical decorations and identify lines of symmetry.
• Data collection and graphing — Survey the class on favourite Christmas food, best Christmas tradition, or preferred holiday activity. Students collect data, create graphs (pictographs, bar graphs, or pie charts depending on year level), and interpret results.

No Christmas unit is complete without some hands-on craft and art activities. These are the activities students remember years later — and they make wonderful gifts for families, too. The key is choosing projects that are manageable in a busy classroom without requiring hours of prep or industrial-scale cleanup.

Classic Christmas Crafts

• Paper plate wreaths — Paint a paper plate green, cut out the centre, and decorate with pom-poms, sequins, or torn paper for berries. Quick, satisfying, and suitable for all ages.
• Christmas card making — Students design and create Christmas cards for family members. This combines art skills with writing (a short message inside) and makes a meaningful take-home gift.
• Ornament decorating — Use clear baubles, salt dough, or cardboard cut-outs as a base. Students decorate with paint, glitter, and markers. Punch a hole, add a ribbon, and it's a tree-ready ornament.
• Reindeer and Santa crafts — Handprint reindeer, paper bag puppets, cotton ball Santa beards, and peg-leg reindeer are all classroom staples for a reason. They work, they're fun, and they require minimal materials.

Australian-Themed Christmas Crafts

Give your Christmas crafts a distinctly Australian twist:

• Australian animals in Santa hats — Students draw or paint a kangaroo, koala, platypus, or wombat wearing a Santa hat. For inspiration, explore the Australian art collections at the National Gallery of Australia for examples of how Australian artists depict native wildlife. These are always a hit and celebrate Australian identity alongside the festive season.
• Beach Christmas scenes — Create collage or painted scenes of Christmas at the beach — surfing Santas, sandcastle Christmas trees, and seagulls stealing chips. Perfect for exploring the uniqueness of an Australian summer Christmas.
• Native flower wreaths — Instead of holly and pine, make wreaths using Australian native flowers: waratah, banksia, eucalyptus, and wattle. Use paper, fabric, or real dried leaves and flowers for a beautiful, culturally connected craft.

Prep tip: Set up craft activities as stations with clear instructions at each table. Pre-cut materials where possible, lay down newspaper or plastic tablecloths, and have a designated drying area. A parent helper or two makes a world of difference on craft day.

Because Christmas falls at the end of the Australian school year, many teachers combine festive activities with meaningful end-of-year reflection and celebration. These activities help students process the year, celebrate their growth, and prepare for the transition ahead — whether that's moving to a new class, a new school, or a new stage of learning.

Class Party Planning

Turn the class party into a cross-curricular project. Students can plan the menu (budgeting and measurement), write invitations (letter writing), create decorations (art), and organise games (procedural writing and teamwork). Student-led party planning is one of the best real-world maths activities you'll run all year.

Year-in-Review Activities

• Memory books or scrapbooks — Students compile their favourite work samples, photos, and written reflections from the year into a keepsake book. This is a wonderful way to celebrate growth and make a meaningful take-home item for families.
• "My Year in Numbers" — How many books did I read? How many days at school? How many teeth did I lose? Students collect and present data about their year — a fun data and statistics activity.
• Class time capsule — Students write letters to their future selves, draw self-portraits, and record their favourite things from the year. Seal them in an envelope to be opened at the end of next year.

Gift-Making for Families

Low-cost, handmade gifts are a beautiful tradition in many classrooms:

• Decorated photo frames with a class photo
• Painted rocks or pebbles with messages
• Handprint art or fingerprint Christmas trees
• Bookmarks with student artwork
• Recipe cards for a class-favourite recipe

Class Awards and Celebrations

Celebrate every student with personalised awards or certificates. Move beyond "best at maths" to recognise effort, kindness, improvement, creativity, resilience, and humour. When every student receives a meaningful, specific award, it builds belonging and self-esteem.

Transition Activities

• Letters to next year's class — Students write advice and encouragement for the students who will sit in their seats next year. New students love reading these on their first day.
• Goal setting for next year — Reflect on this year's achievements and set goals for the year ahead. This creates a bridge between school years and gives students a sense of forward momentum.
• Meet the new teacher — If possible, arrange a brief visit to next year's classroom or a meet-and-greet with the new teacher. This reduces anxiety and builds excitement for the year ahead.