Decorations

There are so many easy ways to make beautiful festive decorations for home or school, and they are perfect for stimulating children’s creativity and imagination. You can start off small and simple, with paper chains, which require only coloured paper and glue. If they so wish, children can decorate each link of"Slice up a few oranges and dry the slices out in an oven for a few hours." the chain with pens, glitter or sequins. At Christmas time, the more sparkle, the better!

For a very traditional look, and an absolutely beautiful scent, try some classic dried orange decorations. Slice up a few oranges and dry the slices out in an oven for a few hours. Then thread them individually with sparkly ribbon for tree decorations, or make a garland. Tie on a few cinnamon sticks for that irresistible yuletide smell. These fruit decorations are both practical and pretty!

Salt dough decorations are an old favourite, because of their versatility and durability. With a bit of TLC these could last years and years. Whip up the dough in minutes from a mix of two parts flour, one part salt and one part water. If making a day of activities, allow the children to cut their own shapes, which can then be dried and decorated in the afternoon. If not, pre-prepare a bunch of different shapes for children to paint in one session.

Gifts

Creativity is the key to gifting on a budget, and these handmade craft ideas will open children’s minds to the possibilities of their own skills. Bake and decorate batches of gingerbread cookies. The standard gingerbread person shape is fine, but they can also be made up to look like Santa, Frosty the Snowman, or whoever else you can think of. Children could also cut and stick their own gift boxes to bring their cookies home in.

Air dry clay is a brilliant and versatile material, and can be used for any number of crafty gifts. Give each child a tennis ball-sized lump of clay and press a tea-light into it to form a basic candle-holder shape. Once dry, children can paint and otherwise decorate them. Finish them off with a coloured or sparkly tea-light and wrap them in tissue paper. Alternatively, some special glass or acrylic paints can be used to decorate recycled glass jars from home, and finished off around the top with some pretty ribbon.

Cross-stitch is a manageable introduction to basic sewing skills, and is safe and simple enough for "Children could also cut and stick their own gift boxes to bring their cookies home in."children to try. There are many easy seasonal designs that can be taught and drawn out on paper. Mistakes can be quite easily rectified, and once completed, cross-stitch designs can be framed or even made into greetings cards.

No other annual festival offers such scope for crafting and making. This Christmas is most definitely the time to explore crafting, and think outside the box. Why not even put together a class advent calendar, and allocate a day to each child? Work on a class Nativity scene, and have each child create a different piece or character. Bring everyone together, and get making some crafts that families will treasure for years!

What activities do you bust out for Christmas? Let us know below-ho-ho (sorry…).