We all love the magic of the holidays, but let’s be real—the overwhelming visual clutter of flashing plastic toys can drive any parent up the wall. If you are craving a slower, quieter season, you aren’t alone! 🎄
This list is your “savior” solution. I’ve curated a collection of Montessori Christmas activities and natural Christmas crafts for kids that double as beautiful, Scandi-style decor. These ideas focus on fine motor skills, sensory play, and focus, all while using materials like wood, wool, and nature that look gorgeous left out on the coffee table. ✨
Say goodbye to over-stimulation and hello to a plastic-free playroom filled with meaningful play. These activities will keep your toddlers and preschoolers quietly engaged, building dexterity while you actually get to sip your coffee while it’s hot. Let’s make some memories! ✂️
🎄 My Top 3 Favorites
- Lowest Mess: Jingle Bell Tongs Transfer (Ideal for a quick toddler holiday shelfie)
- Most “High-End” Look: Dried Orange Slice Threading (Looks amazing in windows!)
- Best for Little Kids: Felt Tree “Posting” Box (Keeps them busy for ages)
20 Natural Christmas Crafts & Activities You’ll Love
1. Old-Fashioned Orange & Clove Pomanders ❄️
This is a classic sensory experience where children push dried cloves into fresh oranges. It engages the olfactory sense while requiring significant pincer grasp strength.
[Image-1: A close-up of small hands pushing cloves into an orange sitting on a wooden slice, with a blurred Christmas tree in the background.]
🐦 Why I love it: Grocery store spice jars are tiny and expensive; buying a larger container online ensures you have enough for a full bowl of oranges without running out. #NancyApproved
2. Wooden Bead “Candy Cane” Threading ❄️
Children thread red and natural wood beads onto pipe cleaners to create candy canes. This focuses on hand-eye coordination and patterning without the sugar crash.
[Image-2: A neutral beige/white photo showing the finished candy canes hanging on a branch in a vase.]
🐦 Why I love it: Most craft stores sell multi-color packs with colors you don’t need; this Amazon listing provides the specific “Scandi-Christmas” color palette of just red and natural wood. #NancyApproved
3. Jingle Bell Tongs Transfer ❄️
A quiet shelf activity where the child moves silver bells from one wooden bowl to another using sugar tongs. It’s perfect for a winter fine motor tray and helps develop grip strength.
[Image-3: An overhead shot of a wooden tray with two bowls, one filled with shiny bells, highlighting the texture contrast.]
🐦 Why I love it: Kitchen tongs are often too stiff for small hands; these bamboo toast tongs offer the perfect gentle resistance for toddler muscles. #NancyApproved
4. Wool Wrapping Pinecones ❄️
Children wrap colorful wool roving or yarn around the scales of pinecones. This mimics the “threading” motion but is much more forgiving for younger hands and adds texture to your decor.
[Image-4: A basket of pinecones wrapped in soft green, cream, and red wool sitting on a sheepskin rug.]
🐦 Why I love it: Offers a curated palette of natural earth tones (moss green, cream, brown) that fits the “Pinterest Aesthetic” better than bright synthetic craft store yarn. #NancyApproved
5. Cinnamon Stick Bundle Tying ❄️
A practical life skill activity where children stack 3-4 cinnamon sticks and practice wrapping and tying a ribbon around them. It smells divine!
[Image-5: A styled shot of the bundles being used as napkin rings on a holiday table setting.]
🐦 Why I love it: Buying cinnamon sticks in bulk (1lb bags) is significantly cheaper on Amazon than buying small expensive jars in the baking aisle. #NancyApproved
🎅 Quick Question!
Real tree or Artificial tree? Tell me in the comments!
6. Felt Tree “Posting” Box ❄️
Create a slot in a cardboard box or coffee tin and have the child “post” green felt triangles into the slot. This builds object permanence and is a great plastic-free Christmas activity.
[Image-6: A clean, white box with a green felt tree entering the slot, captured in action.]
🐦 Why I love it: Stiff felt is crucial for this activity (soft felt collapses); Amazon carries “Hard/Stiff” felt bundles that are difficult to find in general retailers. #NancyApproved
7. Dried Orange Slice Threading ❄️
Using a blunt tapestry needle to thread dried orange slices onto twine creates a stunning, natural garland. It focuses on sequence logic and creating beauty.
[Image-7: A shot of the garland draped across a window with sunlight streaming through the translucent orange slices.]
🐦 Why I love it: These needles are specifically designed for little hands—safe, blunt, and with eyes large enough for twine, unlike standard sharp sewing needles. #NancyApproved
8. Clay or Beeswax Ornament Stamping ❄️
Rolling out natural clay or warming beeswax and stamping impressions using evergreen sprigs builds amazing hand strength through kneading and rolling.
[Image-8: White clay stars with deep green pine needle impressions drying on a wire rack.]
🐦 Why I love it: Stockmar is the gold standard for Montessori/Waldorf supplies; it warms with hand heat and smells like honey, offering a superior sensory experience to Play-Doh. #NancyApproved
9. Color Sorting with Felt Balls ❄️
A simple sorting tray where children separate red, green, and white felt balls. This is excellent for visual discrimination and early math skills.
[Image-9: A divided wooden tray aesthetically organized by color, sitting on a white rug.]
🐦 Why I love it: You can buy a specific “Christmas Color Mix” pack, saving you from buying a giant rainbow pack and having to pick out the holiday colors yourself. #NancyApproved
10. Tweezing Pine Needles from Playdough ❄️
Create a “Christmas Tree” out of green playdough and stick real pine needles into it. The child must use tweezers to extract them one by one—the ultimate precision pincer grasp work!
[Image-10: Close up of tweezers pulling a small pine sprig out of a lump of green dough.]
🐦 Why I love it: These specific tweezers are ergonomically designed for toddlers to develop the tripod grip needed for holding pencils later. #NancyApproved
11. Geoboard Snowflake ❄️
Using a wooden geoboard with pegs, children stretch white rubber bands to create symmetrical snowflake patterns. This supports geometry concepts and finger strength.
[Image-11: Top-down view of a wooden board with a complex white rubber band star/snowflake design.]
🐦 Why I love it: Comes with pattern cards included, which serves as a “control of error” (a key Montessori concept) so the child can self-correct. #NancyApproved
12. Button Christmas Tree Art ❄️
Children arrange green buttons of various sizes into a triangle shape on a canvas or board. This teaches size grading (sorting big to small).
[Image-12: A framed piece of art showing a button tree, emphasizing the monochrome texture.]
🐦 Why I love it: Finding a bulk pack of only green buttons in varied sizes is nearly impossible in stores; this Amazon pack is perfect for foliage crafts. #NancyApproved
13. Paper Strip “Ribbon” Cutting ❄️
Provide strips of green and red paper with marked lines. Children use safety scissors to cut along the lines to create Montessori fine motor skills confetti or chains.
[Image-13: A wooden tray holding paper strips and scissors, with a small pile of cut squares (“confetti”).]
🐦 Why I love it: These plastic safety scissors actually cut paper (unlike many cheap versions) but won’t cut skin or hair, making them the safest choice for beginners. #NancyApproved
14. Nutcracker Activity Tray ❄️
A supervised station where children use a wooden screw-style nutcracker to crack walnuts. This provides satisfying heavy work and builds immense hand strength.
[Image-14: Action shot of a child twisting the wooden mushroom screw to crack a nut.]
🐦 Why I love it: The mushroom shape fits perfectly in a child’s palm and is aesthetically pleasing compared to metal kitchen tools. #NancyApproved
15. Silverware Polishing Station ❄️
A classic Practical Life activity. Children use a non-toxic polish or baking soda paste to polish silver spoons for the holiday dinner. They feel so proud contributing to the family meal.
[Image-15: Before and after comparison of a spoon, with a small polishing station set up on a towel.]
🐦 Why I love it: These pre-moistened cloths are less messy than liquid polish bottles and easier for children to manipulate. #NancyApproved
16. Wooden Mitten Matching Game ❄️
A visual logic game where pairs of wooden mittens with slightly different patterns are mixed up, and the child must pair them.
[Image-16: A clothesline setup where the child pins the matching mittens together (adding a pinching skill!).]
🐦 Why I love it: Provides a uniform base for you to create your own custom matching game, which is cheaper and more durable than paper cards. #NancyApproved
17. Cranberry Scoop & Pour ❄️
Fresh cranberries floating in a bin of water creates a visually stunning sensory bin where children scoop berries into a jar.
[Image-17: Bright red berries floating in water with a child’s hand pouring water from a ladle.]
🐦 Why I love it: This set includes various tools (scoops, tongs, pots) specifically sized for sensory bins, offering better variety than raiding your kitchen drawer. #NancyApproved
18. Pipe Cleaner & Colander Tree ❄️
Turn a colander upside down and have children thread green pipe cleaners into the holes. This is wonderful for young toddlers (18m+) developing precision.
[Image-18: A metal colander covered in green fuzzy sticks, looking like a modern art forest.]
🐦 Why I love it: A bulk pack of only green ensures you can create a dense forest without wasting other colors. #NancyApproved
19. Gift Bow “Peel and Stick” ❄️
Draw a wreath circle on paper and have the child peel the backing off small gift bows and stick them onto the circle. The peeling action is incredible for fine motor dexterity.
[Image-19: A child’s hands sticking a metallic red bow onto a paper wreath outline.]
🐦 Why I love it: Buying “Mini” bows is key here—standard bows are too big for a paper craft. Amazon stocks the 1-inch mini size in bulk. #NancyApproved
20. Rosemary Wreath Napkin Rings ❄️
Children bend flexible rosemary sprigs into circles and tie them with twine. It engages sensory smell and touch while involving them in dinner prep.
[Image-20: A pristine white napkin with a simple green rosemary circle tied with brown twine.]
🐦 Why I love it: Standard jute twine from hardware stores can be chemically treated or smell like gasoline; this craft/garden twine is safer for items touching the dinner table. #NancyApproved
A Calm Holiday is Possible!
I hope these ideas help you slow down and enjoy the season with your little ones. Whether you try the orange pomanders or just set up a simple Jingle Bell tray, remember that the goal is connection, not perfection.
How to set up a Christmas Montessori shelf? Start small—pick just 2-3 of these activities, put them on a low shelf, and rotate them out weekly to keep interest high!
If you try any of these, tag me on Pinterest—I’d love to see your beautiful, plastic-free playrooms! 🎄✨
