Last year, I shared a collection of winter themed activities that quickly became favorites. This year, those winter classics are back, but I’ve added something new! Whether you teach littles, big kids, or grown ups, I hope you’ll find something here that brings joy, sparks curiosity, and adds a little seasonal glow to your classroom.
For 2025, I’m rolling out FIVE fresh Christmas activities, plus a bonus winter activity, to make my merry and bright catalog even more festive. No matter how you celebrate the season, you will discover fun ways to boost joy, creativity, and critical thinking in your classroom. For more details on previously created activities, please visit last year’s blog.
🎄 CHRISTMAS ACTIVITIES
🆕 1. Unscramble the Holiday Shows & Movies
Here’s the first brand new activity: Unscramble the Holiday Shows and Movies! Get ready for 13 twisted titles that hide the names of familiar holiday shows and movies. Ten are true Christmas classics and three might make you stop and say, wait is that really a holiday movie?
🆕 2. Which One Doesn’t Belong – Christmas Edition
The WODB-Christmas edition is a ready-to-go resource that can be used as is or customized to fit your needs. Each of the 16 slides features four Christmas-themed options, and the participant decides which one doesn’t belong. For most slides, there isn’t just one correct answer, which makes the reasoning even more fun to hear. Invite students to share why they chose their item—and cheers to lively, merry, and bright holiday discussions!
🆕 3. Wintry Words Edition 2
Say hello to Wintery Words: Tree, Star, and Light Edition. This year’s Canva slide deck features three themed sections of vocabulary—each filled with words and phrases containing “tree,” “star,” or “light.” It’s perfect for warming up your lessons, sparking creative thinking, or adding a little winter glow to your day.
🆕 4. Gold or Silver?
A new twist on my Red, Green, or Both 2024 activity, this version gives players a clue and they must decide whether the item is associated with gold or silver. Think Hershey’s Kisses, The DeLorean Time Machine, or Willy Wonka’s magical ticket.
5. Christmas Connections
Flippity.net’s Group Game Maker makes it easy to create your own “NYT-esque Connections” activities, so I’ve built two Christmas-themed versions for you to try out below. If you’d like more ideas for using Connections in the classroom, you can explore that here.
6. Red, Green, or Both?
An activity where players determine whether an item is red, green, or both.
7. Christmas Would You Rather?
A set of 22 holiday-themed WYR questions that spark conversation, quick decision-making, and classroom laughter. Easy to use with any age group.
8. Unscramble the Christmas Carols
Eighteen classic Christmas songs rewritten with synonyms or altered titles. Students guess the real carol, making this a perfect seasonal warm-up.
9. Putting a New Spin on The Twelve Days of Christmas
Students use Emoji Kitchen to generate quirky creatures or combinations, then rewrite their own imaginative version of the traditional carol.
❄️ WINTER ACTIVITIES
🆕 1. Which One Doesn’t Belong? Winter Edition
One spanking-new activity for Winter. This is a ready-to-go activity for your use, and you can modify the template to suit your needs. Each of the 19 slides has four winter-themed options, and the participant decides which option doesn’t belong. For most, there isn’t just one correct answer! It’s always interesting to hear which item students choose and why. Have your students share their reasoning, and cheers to lively, frosty, winter discussions!
2. Wintry Words
A Canva slide deck featuring words and phrases containing ice, cold, and snow.
2. Winter Connections Games (Flippity Group Game)
Two sets of 16 winter-themed words that students sort into four groups, similar to the NYT Connections game. Created in flippity.net
3. Winter Celebrations Around the World (Presentation + Breakout)
A Canva presentation introducing seven global winter celebrations, paired with an included seven-lock flippity.net virtual breakout that reinforces learning through puzzles.
4. Winter Trivia
A 15-question Canva deck with bright graphics.
5. Vanishing Vowels – Winter Edition
Twenty winter-themed words appear without vowels; students decode them, then check the complete word with picture support.
6. Winter Syllacrostic Puzzle
An 18-word puzzle where students combine syllables to form winter words based on three clues per word—phrase association, syllable count, and letter count.
7. Holidays Jeopardy (Flippity)
A quiz-show style game with winter-themed categories including symbols, food, clothing, actions, traditions, and even a “cheese” category.
8. Winter Digital Breakout
A beginner-friendly digital escape room with five locks (word, color, number, direction, letter). Great for breakout beginners or younger learners.
9. Snowstorm Stumper Digital Breakout
A more advanced digital breakout with four locks and subtle hidden clues. Excellent for upper grades or classes familiar with digital escape rooms. And remember for the breakouts you can email me, preimers@tcea.org for the answers.
With new Christmas puzzles, winter challenges, and creative wordplay, you now have a full sleigh of activities to carry you through the season. Mix them, match them, or sprinkle in just one for added sparkle. If you need breakout or syllacrostic answers, you know where to find me (in the comments or at preimers@tcea.org).
Happy holidays and happy teaching. ~Peggy