5 Fun winter themed and holiday classroom activities for students
It’s that time of year again for winter themed and holiday activities for students! Whether you are looking for quick morning warm-ups, common core winter and holiday themed lessons, or mini competition-based activities to support free time – Nearpod’s got you covered.
Pick and choose from these holiday-themed classroom activities to keep your students learning, laughing, creating, and exploring! Go beyond ice skating and snowball fights and dive into ideas that make the season special. From winter word problems to playing a great winter party game, these holiday activities for the classroom are perfect for engaging students in fun, educational ways. Get ready to make your classroom buzz with festive cheer and creative energy this winter!
New to Nearpod? If you’re interested in accessing these lessons, activities, and digital tools, teachers can sign up for a free Nearpod account. Administrators can schedule a call with an expert to unlock the full power of Nearpod for schools and districts.
5 Fun winter themed and holiday classroom activities for students
1. Teach core subjects with winter and holiday lessons
There is never a better time to learn about the changing seasons and rhythms of the year than when students can actually see and feel the changes occurring. Winter often brings a dramatic seasonal change that can support learning and curiosity. The learning doesn’t have to be limited to just the seasons. Make everyday learning relevant and engaging through winter holiday lessons and spark creativity through activities and games to play with students. Teach math word problems, vocabulary, historical figures, figurative languages, and creative writing with these winter lessons and holiday activities for the classroom.
- Word Problems: Winter Edition: (Math Kindergarten): In this lesson, students will use key words and the part-part-whole model to solve addition and subtraction word problems within 10.
- Education.com: Winter Hyperbole (ELA Grade 4): In this skill builder, students will explain what hyperbole is and its effect. The students will also practice writing their own hyperboles for winter.
- Origin of Everything: How Did Edison Invent Christmas Lights? (Social Studies: Grades 6-12): In this video, students learn about Thomas Edison and the legacy of science demonstrators, including how Edison invented Christmas lights and used his talent and the media for self-promotion.
- Exploring Poetry in Nature (ELA Grades 6-8): Strengthen students’ poetry skills by teaching them how authors use sensation and emotion in poems. Students will explore nature through virtual reality experiences as inspiration for writing their own poetry.
2. Explore with students the history and culture of various holidays
Take a deep dive into all the holidays that occur during this season with our holiday collection. We have a collection of lessons about various holidays: Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. And don’t forget our New Year lessons that are designed to support goal setting and reflection!
Here are some of our popular holiday lessons and fun activities before winter break! Click below to see more lessons across K-12 grade levels.
- Christmas Around the World (Available for grades K-5)
- Hanukkah (Available for grades K-5)
- Kwanzaa (Available for grades K-5)
3. Gamified and interactive holiday activities for students
Ready to bring some holiday cheer and fun into the classroom? Explore our interactive winter activities for kids to keep your students creating and exploring all season long.
Our educational game, Time to Climb, has a seasonal winter theme available during the month of December. Bring some holiday cheers to your exit tickets and mid-lesson reviews! Time to Climb is a perfect academic and fun game if you’re searching for holiday classroom party ideas. Use it with any Time to Climb quiz you create, or with one of our free pre-made Time to Climb activities.
We also have more interactive fun activities to use before winter break in your classroom, such as:
- Winter Holidays Around the World (Grades K-2): In this world cultures activity, students will show their understanding of winter holidays with Nearpod’s interactive quiz game, Time to Climb.
- Christmas Around the World (Grades 3-5): In this activity about Christmas, students answer questions using Nearpod’s interactive quiz game, Time to Climb. This is the perfect activity if you’re searching for Christmas games for the classroom since kids love Time to Climb.
- Hibernation (Science Grades 1-3): In this activity, students watch a video about hibernation after reviewing key vocabulary. Then, they practice identifying hibernating animals by completing a drawing assessment called Draw It.
- Holidays: Matching Pictures (Grade 1): In this Matching Pairs activity, students show their understanding of holidays by matching the holiday name with a pictorial representation of the holiday.
4. Build a (virtual) snowman from inside the classroom
Do you want to build a snowman? These winter classroom activities are for you! Bring your favorite snowman to life or create a new take on the icon winter character with this activity. Our Drag and Drop interactive activity is the perfect way to build winter characters without getting your hands cold! Create digital winter crafts and invite students to create their own snowmen. Provide creative writing prompts to keep the story going in their winter wonderland.
5. Winter-fy your slide presentations
Get into the holiday spirit by creating your own lessons and activities with our Winter Templates for Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint. You can even save the template and add it onto Nearpod to create your own presentations. With a Nearpod Gold, Platinum, or School account, you can access our Google-Slides Add On to embed interactive Nearpod slides and activities within Google Slides. Learn more about our Google Slides integration here. However, please note these slide templates can still be accessed for free. Click the links below to download your favorite!
Spread holiday cheer with Nearpod!
We hope you found these holiday and winter resources helpful! We’re so excited to see you use these indoor activities and resources in your classroom to celebrate the holiday season and the last few weeks of school with your students. Sit back, grab a hot chocolate, and save time lesson planning by accessing these winter holiday activities and lessons through a Nearpod account.
New to Nearpod? If you’re interested in using these lessons, activities, and digital tools, teachers can sign up for a free Nearpod account. Administrators can schedule a call with an expert to unlock the full power of Nearpod for schools and districts.
