- Theme Packs
- Themes
-
Preschool Planning
- Preschool Teachers
Christian Christmas Theme for Preschool
"Oh Come, Let Us Adore Him" A Christian Christmas Preschool Theme!
In your Christian preschool classroom, you have the great opportunity to have a Christian Christmas theme!
Yes, you talk with the children about Jesus throughout the year...
You'll find more themes to help you with your planning on my preschool themes page.
But Christmas time!
This is the time to focus on the birth of our Lord and Savior- Jesus Christ!
Because you are talking about the baby Jesus, your preschoolers are already interested!
Babies are a fascination for most children of this age group.
More importantly- talking about His birth and coming into the world helps your preschoolers develop a close relationship with Him.
Why?
This exciting time of year lays the foundation for your preschoolers of God sending us His son, Jesus Christ- in the same way your preschoolers came into the world- as a new born baby!
Enjoy this very special time of year teaching about and celebrating the reason for the Christmas season- the birth of Jesus!
You are blessed indeed to be in an environment where you can celebrate a Christian Christmas at preschool! Let's ease into our Christian Christmas Theme planning!
Blessings to you and your children as you plan for Christmas together! It is an honor to share Christian Christmas ideas and activities with others who have the responsibility to share the Good News with preschool children!
You can either scroll down through this page to see all of the preschool activities for your Christmas theme or click the link below to go to specific preschool activity types you are looking for.
Click here for go from our Christian Christmas Theme Page to our GENERAL Christmas Theme Page
To read my Statement of Faith, click here.
CHRISTIAN CHRISTMAS THEME ACTIVITIES
Art Activities for Your Christian Christmas Theme
Happy Birthday, Jesus Balloons
Materials Needed: Balloons, assorted colors of yarn (pre-cut), liquid starch, bowl for each balloon; petroleum jelly (Vaseline).
1. Blow up balloons, 1 for each child. Rub with petroleum jelly and place in bowl (knotted side in bowl). 2. Show children how to dip yarn in liquid starch and then wrap balloon. 3. Have children cover quite a bit of the balloon. 4. Let starch dry. Pop balloon and remove. 5. Tie a bow on the bottom with a card that reads "Happy Birthday Jesus!" Write that phrase on large chart paper and encourage the children to write it themselves. If they cannot, try making dots in the shapes of the letters for the children to trace.
Hang balloons in classroom and use to decorate for your Christmas party! Then send home in time for the families to enjoy over Christmas as well!
Hand print Sheep
Materials Needed: Black finger paint, white cotton balls or tissue paper.
Paint one of the children's hands with black paint. Help them make a hand print on a piece of construction paper.
Turn the paper so that the thumb print is on the side and the other four finger prints are on the bottom of the paper (the sheep's legs).
Encourage children to fill the palm part of their print with cotton balls or tissue paper using glue.
EXTENSION: Give them a wiggle eye to glue onto the thumbprint for the sheep's eye!
Child of God Ornament
Remind children and families that they are children of God with this ornament!
Materials Needed: clear, plastic ornaments, chenille (pipe) cleaners; assorted colors of tissue paper precut into small pieces; white school glue; brushes; a printed out picture of each child--prior to this activity, glue (with a glue stick) their picture onto a star shape paper.
Children push a pipe cleaner into the ball to form a loop.
Children then brush the ball with glue and add on tissue paper pieces to cover the ball.
Children then glue on their picture that is on a star.
Let dry (I recommend using paper plates that you have put petroleum jelly on so that the ornaments don't stick to the plate.
Add a tag onto the pipe cleaner hook that reads "We are all children of God" with the child's name, age and the year the child made the ornament.
Christian Christmas Theme Block Center Ideas
Christmas Story
Provide little people, animals, angels, shepherds, hay, etc. in your block area along with a picture book of the Christmas story. If you have a plastic nativity set that can be used, that would be perfect!
Christian Christmas Circle Time Ideas
Circle Time is such a great time for children to learn the social skills of being together as a large group AND to learn more about your Christian Christmas Theme!
Silent Night
Materials Needed: In advance, write out the lyrics of the first verse of this song on chart paper. Find, or draw, appropriate pictures for each line. Or, use the following hand motions as you teach the children:
Silent Night (put finger on lips)
Holy Night (fold hands and bow head)
All is calm (finger over lips)
All is bright (point to star in sky)
Round yon virgin, mother and child (put hand up as though measuring tall person and then low as though measuring a child)
Holy infant so tender and mild (pretend to rock a baby)
Sleep in heavenly peace (raise both hands up to heaven)
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Snack Recipe Ideas to Cook Up for Your Christian Christmas Theme!
Cooking with children helps develop their math skills and helps them to learn how to follow directions. It also allows for some great conversation! Ask many questions while cooking with your children to encourage conversation! Be sure to ask specific Christmas theme questions while making these fun snacks!
Birthday Cake
Make a cake with the children for your Christmas Party. Write "Happy Birthday, Jesus" on the cake. Be sure to sing before eating!
Christian Christmas Theme Ideas to Transform Your Dramatic Play Area
The Stable in Bethlehem
Of course, have items available to act out the Christmas story as well. Hang a large star, provide a manger (box with hay). Put dried beans in it with the hay and provide stuffed animals (sheep, etc.). Show the children how the animals ate from it and discuss that the animals live in the stable--meaning they also go to the bathroom in there! It was a pretty dirty, smelly place. And the only place where Mary and Joseph could stay when they go there. It will give them a better idea of where our Lord spent His first night.
Christian Christmas Theme Ideas for Your Easel-- More Than Just Painting!
(Although that is always THE favorite in our classroom!)
Shape Scenes
Instead of paint, provide assorted pre-cut shapes and glue sticks at your easel. Encourage the children to make Christian Christmas scenes! Rectangles can be used for the stable, they can rip circles for the faces of Mary, Joseph, Jesus, etc.
Christian Christmas Theme Large Group Games To Help Your Preschoolers Build Their Muscles While They Have Fun Together!
Find That Star!
Use the knowledge your children are learning about the Wise men this Christmas season to create an obstacle course! Set up a course in a large area or in your classroom.
Crawl under the chair, find a star in the classroom. Or, have them go through an entire obstacle course (under the chair, around the table, through the tunnel, balance on the beam, etc.) and have it end at a Manger (box, filled with stars with numbers on them). They reach in, pull out a star and perform a certain movement that many times such as clap, jump, spin, etc. the number of times on the star!
Christian Christmas Theme Ideas for Your Library & Literacy Area!
Book Suggestions for the Library
(I LOVE Amazon, and some of the links below will take you to the Amazon website. If you do choose to purchase yours through Amazon, they do send me a few cents--which supports my coffee habit! )
Who is Coming to Our House? by Joseph Slate
The Tiny Star: The Greatest Star the World Has Ever Seen! by Art Ginolfi
This Is the Stable by Cynthia Cotten
God Gave Us Christmas by Lisa Tawn Bergren
Who's Hiding?: A Christmas Lift-the-Flap Book by Vicki Howie
The Usborne Children's Bible by Heather Amery
The Little Drummer Boy by Ezra Jack Keats
Tell Me the Christmas Story by Joni Walker
B Is for Bethlehem: A Christmas Alphabet Board Book by Isabel WilnerLibrary Wall Christian Christmas Theme Decor
Hang pictures on the wall of different terrain (desert, dirt roads, etc.) in Bible times as well as modes of travel such as donkeys and camels. Of course, many pictures of the manger, Wise men, shepherd, sheep, etc.
Hang glow in the dark stars on the wall and one LARGE star as well.
Christian Christmas Theme Activities To Help Your Preschoolers Develop Their Math Skills AND the Small Muscles in Their Hands!
Christian Christmas Cards
This activity will help the children to work on their scissor cutting skills and fine motor skills by manipulating the craft sticks and gluing them in place.
Materials Needed: 5 craft sticks per child; assortment of Christmas card fronts with Jesus in a manger or Mary, Joseph and Jesus in the stable scenes (preferably recycled from your collection of last years Christmas cards!); sturdy paper (card stock); glue; scissors; markers; hay (optional)
- To make their own Christmas Card, the children will:
- Use markers (or crayons to decorate their 5 craft sticks
- Glue 5 craft sticks into the shape of a house (2 for roof, 2 for sides, one for bottom) onto the stock paper or cardboard.
- Choose their recycled card front and cut it to fit into their frame.
- Glue hay (optional) on the bottom INSIDE the frame.
Christmas Tree
Provide a bin or box of rectangle strips in graduating lengths. Also provide triangles for the top of the tree. Provide many of each length. Encourage the children to place the strips from shortest to longest on their paper with the shortest on the top to make a tree.
EXTENSION: You could also make this into a birthday cake for Jesus!
VARIATION: Provide an assortment of lengths AND colors to allow children to follow a pattern or create their own pattern.
Christian Christmas Matching
Prepare in advance a duplicate set of cards measuring about 1 inch square. Use stickers or pictures from the internet to represent Christmas such as camels, angels, baby Jesus, stables, stars, etc.
The children try matching the pictures. Encourage them to discuss what each picture means as well!
Christian Christmas Theme Music and Movement Activities and Ideas to GEt Your Preschoolers Movin' and Groovin'!
Mary Had A Baby Boy sung to the tune of Mary Had A Little Lamb
Mary had a baby boy, baby boy, baby boy (Arms as though rocking a baby)
Mary had a baby boy, and she named Him Jesus.
Jesus gives great joy to us, joy to us, joy to us (Smile brightly!)
Jesus gives great joy to us, because He loves us so! (Hug self).
This is a traditional song for the children in both our 3 and 4 year old classrooms to sing each year.J-E-S-U-S Sung to the tune of B-I-N-G-O
On Christmas God gave us His son
And Jesus is His name-o
J-E-S-U-S, J-E-S-U-S, J-E-S-U-S and Jesus is His name-o
Christian Christmas Activities for Your Sand and Water Table
Exploring Hay and Sand
Materials Needed: Play sand and hay----that's it!
We talk a lot about the baby Jesus lying in a manger on a bed of hay. Give the children a chance to explore it! There are many types of hay available! Hay from a hay bale, Timothy hay (that rabbits eat!). Check out your local pet store and craft store for more options.
SAFETY NOTE: PLEASE check for allergies before doing this. Children with environmental allergies may react badly to having hay in the classroom. If this is the case with your class, purchase synthetic (plastic) versions of it at your local craft store.
EXTENSION: Add toy camels, donkeys, sheep and other animals to the table. Talk to your children about the type of land/terrain there was in Bethlehem.
Christian Christmas Themed Science Activities For Your Preschool Scientists In Training!
Three Wise men's Gifts and the Star
Materials Needed: 1 16 ounce plastic bottle with cover per child; food coloring; 1/2 cup vegetable oil per child; 1/2 tsp. gold glitter per child; 1 gold foil star (confetti) per child; water; 3 funnels; hot glue gun
Tell the children about the Magi, or wise men, who followed a star to find Jesus. They brought gifts to Jesus. They brought frankincense, myrrh and gold. Frankincense is an oil that smells like perfume and myrrh is also an oil that was used in medicines. They were both worth a lot in Bible times, as was gold.
The children are going to make a bottle to remind them of the Magi, their three gifts and the star they followed.
Set up the glitter, oil, water, food coloring and stars in a row at the science table with the appropriate measuring tools. Have a funnel available with the glitter, the oil and the water.
Help each child funnel the glitter in their bottle. This represents the gift of gold.
Help each child funnel 1/2 cup of oil into their bottle. This represents the frankincense.
Help each child funnel in water so that it is almost to the rim of the bottle.
Help each child choose a color of food coloring and squeeze a few drops in.
Help each child choose one confetti star to place in the bottle to remind them of the star that the Magi followed to find Jesus.
Have an adult hot glue the cap on.
Show children how to gently shake the bottles to mix it and watch the items swirl and separate.
Writing Activity Ideas for Your Preschool Classroom's Christian Christmas Theme!
Bingo dobber/stampers
In advance, print and laminate papers with Jesus name on them. Provide bingo daubers or Do-A-Dot markers and paper for the children to cover the name Jesus. You can also provide dry erase markers for them to trace with.
Miscellaneous Activities for Your Christian Christmas Preschool Theme
Christian Christmas Theme Classroom Visitors
There are many opportunities with a Christian Christmas theme for visitors to your classroom! Survey parents for opportunities as well as your local community!
Some ideas for visitors:
Local Pastor or Priest to talk about baby Jesus.
Local musician or a family member who can play an instrument to come in and play some Christmas songs with the children.
CLICK HERE for the General Christmas Theme Page
CLICK HERE for more Bible Theme Pages
Go to the main THEMES PAGE for more theme ideas!
Go to Preschool Plan It's Home Page
About This Site:
Hey there! Welcome to Preschool Plan It! I’m Cheryl, a preschool teacher of over 20 years.
I KNOW, I know, you spend hours of time developing your preschool themes, activities and preschool lesson plans each week. You are commited to planning preschool themes and activities that are engaging hands-on, interactive, fun AND meet the goal of supporting each child’s level of growth and development.
I am commited to providing you, the preschool teacher, with everything you need to develop preschool lesson plans and preschool activities for your classroom all in one place!
READ MORE
Join My Free Preschool Teacher Tips Newsletter
You’ll receive a weekly email with planning tips and teaching ideas.
You'll also receive (on the 1st of each month) a free theme starter pack with some printables and activity ideas to get you started planning a theme!Join Now and Get Your First Theme Right Away!
- Preschool Teachers
