24 Christmas Countdown Activities to Do With Your Grandkids

An advent calendar with a chocolate behind every door is lovely. An advent calendar with a grandparent behind every door is better.

That is the whole idea of a Christmas countdown with your grandkids: one small thing to do together every day in December. Some take two minutes. Some take a whole afternoon and a lot of flour. None of them need to be perfect, and if you skip a day, the countdown still works.

Every idea below has two versions. One for when you are together in the same room, and one for a video call. If your grandkids live close, you can mix both. If they live far away, you can do the whole month on the screen.

Before December 1

A countdown runs much more smoothly with a little planning.

• Talk to the parents first. December is busy. Ask which days and times suit them, and agree on how long a call should be. Ten minutes is plenty for most of these.
• Read through all 24 and swap freely. If your family doesn’t do Santa, or the kids hate singing, change those days. It is your countdown.
• Gather a few things. Flour and salt, paper and scissors, a few graham crackers or biscuits, popcorn, a ball of string. Nothing expensive.
• Plan the posting days. Day 8 means sending something by post, so leave time for the post office at Christmas.

Days 1 to 6: getting into the mood

1. Letters to Santa. Write your letters side by side and decorate them. Write one yourself too. On a call, help with the spelling, then read out the letter you would have written when you were their age.

2. Paper snowflakes. Fold a square of paper into a triangle twice, snip shapes out of the edges, and unfold. On a call, cut at the same time and do the big unfolding together in front of the camera.

3. A Christmas from your childhood. Tell them about one Christmas when you were their age. What was on the table? What did you hope to find under the tree? Who was there? This is the day you are the expert, and children love a real story much more than you might expect.

4. Paper chain. Make a chain with one link for every day left until Christmas, and tear one off each morning. On a call, you each make a chain and tear off a link together at every call.

5. Carol sing-along. Three carols, sung loudly. Wrong words are allowed. On a call, take turns choosing, and teach them one they have never heard.

6. Hot chocolate date. Make it properly, with marshmallows, and drink it slowly while you talk. On a call, make a mug at each end and raise them for a toast.

Days 7 to 12: making things

7. Christmas I Spy. “I spy something on the tree that is red and round.” On a call, play it with the decorations in your own rooms. The camera is the only window, so they have to guess what you can see.

8. Salt dough ornaments. Two cups of flour, one cup of salt, and about one cup of water. Knead, roll out, cut shapes, make a hole for the ribbon, and bake at a low heat for a couple of hours. Paint them the next day. If you live apart, each make an ornament and post it to the other for their tree. We explain this one step by step in our easy Christmas crafts.

9. ’Twas the Night Before Christmas. Read the poem together and act out the reindeer names. On a call, pause before each rhyme and let them finish the line.

10. Cards for a neighbour. Make Christmas cards for someone who lives alone, and deliver them together. On a call, each make one card for someone who lives near you, and show each other before you post them.

11. The story of your ornaments. Most trees have a few ornaments with a history: the one from your first Christmas together, the one their parent made at school. Tell them where each came from. On a call, give them a tour of your tree, one story per ornament.

12. Eyes-closed reindeer. Draw a reindeer with your eyes shut. Compare. Laugh. On a call, both draw at once and hold your reindeer up to the camera at the same time.

Days 13 to 18: the busy middle

13. Christmas film night. One film, one blanket, one big bowl of popcorn. If you live apart, press play at the same moment and message each other at the best bits.

14. Gingerbread house. Use graham crackers or plain biscuits, thick icing as glue, and a bowl of sweets. It does not have to stand up straight. On a call, build one at each end and give each other a tour.

15. Christmas lights walk. Wrap up warm and find the brightest house nearby. On a call, each show the best-lit house on your street and vote for the winner.

16. Wrapping practice. Teach them how to fold a neat corner, a skill most children never learn. On a call, have a wrapping race with something awkwardly shaped, like a spoon or a ball.

17. Christmas Would You Rather. “Would you rather ride in Santa’s sleigh or fly with the reindeer?” Take turns asking, and make the questions sillier every round.

18. Your Christmas playlist. Each choose three songs. Make sure one of yours is from your younger days, and tell them where you first heard it. On a call, play your song for them and ask them to play theirs for you.

Days 19 to 24: the last stretch

19. A secret kindness. Each of you does one kind thing that nobody will know about. At the next call, tell each other what you did.

20. Christmas charades. Act out a snowman, a reindeer, or Santa stuck in a chimney. No words, only actions. This one works especially well on a camera.

21. The family recipe. Every family has a dish that only appears at Christmas. Make it together, and teach them the secret step. On a call, cook it together, or post them the recipe in your own handwriting. One day that card will be precious.

22. A Christmas time capsule. Each write down what you love about this Christmas, then seal it until next year. On a call, write it together, and ask the parents to keep theirs safe.

23. Christmas Eve Eve. Set out a plate for Santa and a carrot for the reindeer, a day early, for practice. On a call, show each other where Santa will find the cookies.

24. Christmas Eve story. A story, a candle, and an early night. On a call, read them a Christmas story at bedtime, then follow Santa on the NORAD Santa Tracker map together. Our tips for bedtime stories on a video call work just as well on Christmas Eve.

If you miss a day

You will miss a day. Everyone does. A child gets a cold, a parent works late, the Wi-Fi gives up. Simply pick up the next day, or do two at once at the weekend. The point is not to finish all 24. The point is that every few days, your grandchild thinks: what are we doing with Grandma today?

Get the printable

We put all 24 days into a free printable Christmas Countdown: a calendar for the fridge with a star to colour in for every day, the 24 activity cards with both versions on each, and a page to write down your best moments, to keep with the decorations for next year.

Get the free Christmas Countdown

Which day do you think your grandkids will like best?