Building community is such an important part of homeschooling and holiday parties are an easy opportunity for that! It can feel a little intimidating to host, but it doesn’t have to be! Here are 3 easy Christmas parties to do with homeschool friends or co-ops!
1. Craft Christmas Parties
Some of you might be picturing chaos or worst of all glitter, but fear not! This really might be the easiest party idea of all. My go-to for simple, seasonal crafts is Hobby Lobby. They always have craft kits that make 6, 12, or even 24 depending on the craft. They’re usually less than $5 for the whole pack (and they have 50% off sales all the time). So, the price can’t be beat! Grab whatever looks festive and manageable to you! They have wooden ornaments you can color, sticker ornament kits, nutcrackers to paint, and endless other options. After that, grab a couple of themed table clothes, ask everyone to bring a snack to share, and you’ve got a party!
2. Cookie Christmas Parties
There’s two ways to do this party and only one involves giving kids sprinkles! First, you can have a cookie decorating party. You can bake some sugar cookies in holiday shapes, make some icing bags, and grab some sprinkles. You can also usually find kits with all of this pre-made in big box stores! This party can sound like a big mess, but I’ve got a few hacks that can minimize that! Spread out cheap table clothes on the floor or at the kitchen table and give each child a paper plate to contain the mess. Then just wrap everything up in the table cloth and throw it away when the fun is over.
The second way to do this party is to have everyone bring a favorite holiday cookie recipe. With this party, I would recommend to plan a simple activity to go along with it. If I were planning this today I would probably add a gingerbread hunt. Cut out some gingerbread shapes on brown construction paper and hide them around the house for kids to hunt. For older kids, you could write one letter on each gingerbread man and let them unscramble a phrase once all the gingerbread are found! Like “Joy To The World” or “Merry Christmas!” Think of this like a rebranded egg hunt lol.
3. Ornament or Book Exchange
Plan an ornament or book exchange! Have each child brings one ornament or book and make sure they’re wrapped to keep the suspense. Then, have everyone pick a number out of a cup and go in order to pick one wrapped ornament or book. Wait to unwrap until everyone has picked! Have everyone unwrap their ornament or book at once and enjoy the surprise! An alternate way to do this would be to have everyone pick a name in advance of the party and do this as a Secret Santa exchange. This requires a little more preplanning, but it can be an excellent way to introduce thinking specifically for the recipient you’re buying for when getting a gift.
The most important thing to remember:
Christmas is such a fun time of year! But we want the joy of the season to point back to our reason for joy, the birth of our savior! Make sure your holiday party helps instill this by taking time to sing Christmas carols, read scripture, or even act out the Christmas story. You could even theme the party as Jesus’ Birthday party, complete with singing Him Happy Birthday of course!
Bonus party tip:
Whenever I plan a party, I think through four categories to make sure it’s fun and well planned. Having a good plan for these four things guarantees a memorable party!
1. What will my house smell like when my guests get here? (cookies, oranges, peppermint) This may seem minor but certain smells can really enhance the atmosphere!
2. What will they hear?
3. What will they eat?
4. What will they do?
