Crafts

1. Coloring pages

Have various Christmas coloring pages for the kids to color.

2. Christmas Presents

The children made a handprint poem craft for their parents.  They added there handprint and picture to go with it.  We also painted and decorated wooden angel ornaments.

Poem

My Handprint

Sometimes you get discouraged
Because I am so small
And always leave my fingerprints
On furniture and walls
But everyday I'm growing big
And soon I'll be very tall
Then all my little handprints
Will be hard to recall
So here's a special handprint
Just so that you can say
this is how my fingers looked
when I placed them here today.

3. Hand and Footprint Reindeer

Trace around the child's foot using brown construction paper. This will be the reindeer's head.

Trace around the child's hands using tan construction paper. These 2 pieces will be the reindeer's antlers.

Glue the handprint "antlers" to the top of the reindeer. Add a bright red paper nose, a paper (or drawn) mouth, and googly eyes (or paper eyes) to the reindeer's head.

You can now decorate your house for Christmas with these cute reindeers. Don't forget to put the child's name and age on the back of the reindeer.

Songs

1. Jingle Bells

Dashing through the snow

In a one-horse open sleigh

Through the fields we go

Laughing all the way.

Bells on bob-tail ring

Making spirits bright

What fun it is to ride and sing

A sleighing song tonight.

chorus:

Jingle bells, jingle bells

Jingle all the way,

Oh what fun it is to ride

In a one-horse open sleigh, O

Jingle bells, jingle bells

Jingle all the way,

Oh what fun it is to ride

In a one-horse open sleigh.

2. Rudolph the red nose reindeer

Rudolph the red-nose reindeer

Had a very shiny nose

And if you ever saw it

You would even say it glows

All of the other reindeer

Used to laugh and call him names

They never let poor Rudolph

Join in any reindeer games

Then one foggy Christmas Eve

Santa came to say

Rudolph with your nose so bright

Won't you guide my sleigh tonight?

Then all the reideer loved to him

And they shouted out with glee

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

You'll go down in history

3. Frosty the Snowman

Frosty the Snowman

Was a jolly happy soul

With a corncob pipe and a button nose

And two eyes made out of coal

Frosty the Snowman

Is a fairytale they say

He was made of snow

But the children know

How he came to life one day

There must have been some magic

In that old silk hat they found

For when they placed it on his head

He began to dance around

Frosty the Snowman

Was alive as he could be

And the children say

He could laugh and play

Just the same as you and me

Frosty the Snowman

Knew the sun was hot that day

So he said let's run

And we'll have some fun

Now before I melt away

Down to the village

With a broomstick in his hand

Running here and there all around the square

Saying catch me if you can

He led them down the streets of town

Right to the traffic cop

And he only paused a moment when

He heard him holler stop

Frosty the Snowman

Had to hurry on his way

But he waved goodbye

Saying don't you cry

I'll be back again some day

Thumpety thump thump

Thumpety thump thump

Look at Frosty go

Thumpety thump thump

Thumpety thump thump

Over the hills of snow

Activities

1. Christmas

Talk to the children about the meaning of Christmas.  What does Christmas mean to them?  What did they ask for Christmas?  Introduce Christmas words to them such as making presents, love, family, Christmas tree, Santa Claus, elves.

2. Reindeer pokey (hoofs, bushy tail, antlers, red nose)

3. Ring, Ring, Ring the Bells

As you sing this song, let the children play instruments.

tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"

Ring, ring, ring the bells,

Ring them loud and clear.

Tell the people everywhere

That Christmas time is near.

Also use drum, tambourine, and shakers

Stories

1.   Rudolph the red nose reindeer- Story about how Rudolph gets teased and no one wants to play with him.  Santa Claus notices his red nose and wants him to guide his sleigh.  The reindeers then start to play with Rudolph.   That made Rudolph very happy.

2.  The Santa Claus Book- Santa Claus is getting ready checking his list and preparing his bag of toys for Christmas.  Then he feels a puppy tugging on his list.  A lost puppy.  He found out where the puppy belonged and put him in the child’s stocking and laid him next to the child in his bed.

3.  The happiest Christmas- It’s a rhyming poem, story. One of the reindeer gets lots in a snow drift.  The Forest animals are helping Santa Claus look for him.  They eventually find him when Christmas is over.  Reindeer was feeling sad because he missed pulling the sleigh for Santa.   Santa just chuckled and said why you have missed the happiest Christmas of all.