1.  Sort colored plastic eggs into an empty egg carton. Find matching craft pom poms and sort them into the eggs. Toddlers love to find the “little chicks”

2.  Wrapping paper with dots can become a great game board. If you don’t have wrapping paper, draw colored circles the size of Easter eggs on a large sheet of paper.  Match colored Easter egg halves to the colored dots.  Two children can have a race getting their eggs onto the dots.

• Add craft pom poms of the same color. Toss the pom poms on the game board and quickly sort them to their matching dots.
• Play “catch the bunnies”. Toss the poms on the board and then catch them in matching halves of the Easter eggs and quickly find their matching dots. Race to catch the bunnies.
• Match colored jelly beans or chocolate kisses onto the colored circles. Use them as a “checker board” to play Easter checkers. When a checker is captured, player can eat it.

3.  Make a quick and easy Easter basket by cutting the top from a “Spring” patterned square tissue box. Punch a hole in two sides and string a ribbon handle onto the box. Opt.-run a length of colored electrical tape along the top edge.

Christmas is over, but that doesn’t have to end the fun. Grab that left over ribbon and wrapping paper and join in the fun!

Wrapping Paper

Match Game/Memory Game: Pick a printed paper with characters or figures you can cut out. If possible, cut them into squares, but you can also glue characters onto index cards or a 4×4 paper.

Memory Game

Place the “cards” upside down on a table and turn over two at a time to “match”. If they don’t match, turn back and the next person takes a turn. You can play this “solitaire” also, by just continuing to turn over and match.

Match Game

Cut the printed characters or objects from the paper. Match them to an uncut section of the wrapping paper. Mix them up and begin again. Race to get faster at matching.

Go Fish and Old Santa (Old Maid)

Using a wrapping paper design that has at least two of each character/object, cut the objects out and glue onto index cards or other paper to make your “deck”. Pass out the cards and play Go Fish or Old Maid as per game rules for each.

Collage

Using scraps of the wrapping paper, glue pieces over lapping onto a large construction paper or card stock. This makes an interesting art project and wall hanging!

Glue wrapping paper pieces around a nut or coffee can to make a fun pencil/crayon holder. Make your glue from flour and water to add to the fun. Overlap layers of tissue paper to make a stained glass look.

Ribbons and Bows

Twist a pipe cleaner (chenille wire) around one loop of a package bow. Continue with three or four more to make a bouquet. Place in a recycled and decorated container for a nice decoration.

Attach bows to a simple head band for a decorative hair piece. Twist colored ribbon around a hair band to decorate and change the color.

Juice Bottle Toy Soldier

Christmas decoration activities for young children should be quick, easy, and engaging. This little Toy Soldier is just the thing! Get that empty juice bottle out of the trash, wash it and start transforming.

What you’ll need:

• 1 empty “Simply Juice” plastic container or similar bottle
• Sticky felt in the colors of red or green, blue, white, or black (construction paper works too)
• Marker

Directions:

1. Cut a simple shirt pattern that fit’s the top half of the bottle. Do the same with pants.

2. Cut the clothes from sticky felt. I suggest red or green for the shirt and blue for the pants.

3. Using the black felt, cut half circle boots for the end of the pants and cuffs for the shirt.

4. Cut two small rectangles as straps that cross on the shirt. An oval of white felt makes a nice face. Draw a face on the white oval with permanent marker. Stick on all the pieces to “dress” your toy soldier.

5. Optional play: When finished, allow your child to fill the bottle with jingle bells; confetti; small toys; small Christmas balls or whatever you can come up with together.

Note: If the Soldier is weighted with beans or rice inside you can play “bowling” with it.

Real Mini Christmas Wreath

Young children love to find nature items around the yard. Use branches from an evergreen tree in your yard or cuts from your Christmas tree to make this little wreath to hang on the tree. Add small pine cones, nuts or berries that you find outside to decorate.

What you’ll need:

• 1 sheet of card stock weight paper (red or green if possible)
• Small boughs of pine from a live Christmas tree
• Christmas ribbon
• Berries or small pine cones

Directions:

1. Trace a 4-6 inch circle on the cardstock paper and cut it out. Trace a smaller circle in the middle of this one and cut it out to form a wreath shape.

2. Using a length of ribbon about 24 inches long, tie it to the wreath to secure and then begin wrapping the wreath with wraps about ½ to 1 inch apart. Secure again when you get to the end. Cut extra length away.

3. Begin threading 4-6 inch lengths of pine branches under the ribbon wraps. Overlay them around the circle of the wreath until all of the cardstock is covered. Pull some of the needles loose from the ribbon to help fill in the wreath. Lace small branches with berries into the ribbon in about four places or glue small nuts or pinecones on for decoration.

4. Tie a ribbon at the top and loop it for a hanger. Sweet!