Homeschool Advent Calendar: Tips & Ideas

Who thinks that the run up to Christmas is actually more exciting than Christmas day itself? It’s not just the festive feel or the Christmas lights that make it such a magical time, it’s the advent calendars too! 

We love the festive season for homeschooling because there are so many ways to bring the joy of the winter season and learning together. And creating your own homeschool advent calendar is one of them! It’s the perfect personal way to combine festive and educational activities with meaningful and memorable moments. 

Whether you’ve just started homeschooling or are a seasoned educator looking for ways to combine the fun of the holiday season with learning, here’s how to design your very own homeschool advent calendar, along with a list of ideas to inspire each day!

What Is a Homeschool Advent Calendar?

Okay, we all know what a traditional advent calendar is and a homeschool advent calendar is pretty self-explanatory. It’s an advent calendar with a creative twist! Nowadays, advent calendars can contain anything you like, not just chocolate! And the best thing about a homeschool advent calendar is that you’re able to sneak in some great learning activities and keep your kids engaged during the countdown to Christmas. 

Your calendar can include activities like:

• Winter-inspired activities and crafts
• Science experiments with a winter twist
• Holiday-related maths challenges
• Reading books or writing stories about Christmas or other cultural celebrations

You could even make a more personalised homeschool advent calendar for each of your children based on unique interests and topics. Whatever you decide to include, make sure it’s exciting! 

And the great thing about a homeschool advent calendar is that you can make it at any time of year, not just in December!

Step-by-Step Guide to Create a Homeschool Advent Calendar

1. Decide on a style of advent calendar

First, you’ll want to decide on a style of advent calendar to create. Here are some fun options to choose from:

• Hanging envelopes: Use string and safety pins to hang 24 numbered envelopes that each contain an idea or activity. 

• Gift bags or boxes: Fill small bags or boxes with not only an idea but also the materials for each activity. You could do this with paper cups too.

• Reusable wooden calendar: Buy or craft a wooden advent calendar with small drawers or compartments. 

• Digital calendar: If you prefer a more minimal setup, create a digital version with daily activities emailed each day or added to a shared document.

2. Pick your themes and ideas

It’s your choice whether to focus on a single theme or include a variety of ideas and activities for different subjects. What will keep your kids more engaged and excited to open their homeschool advent calendar every day? 

Here are some theme ideas:

• Holiday crafts: Make ornaments, garlands, and festive decorations.
• Seasonal science: Try winter-related experiments and learn about the science of winter.
• Global celebrations: Explore traditions from around the world.
• Festive storytelling: Read books, write stories, or act out scenes.
• Activities based on your child’s interests.

You could even include some fun facts for your child to read so that they are learning something new every day. 

3. Plan and organise your activities

Now it’s time to create your list of 24 activities and organise them by day. You could start with some basic fun activities that get more exciting with each day or you could mix and match ideas and topics to keep it exciting. The possibilities are endless and that’s what makes creating your own homeschool advent calendar so much fun!

Once you’ve planned your ideas and activities, gather the materials you need. Now you’re ready to start putting your calendar together!

4. Create and decorate your homeschool advent calendar

It’s time for the fun part, so get creating! Get those colours, ribbons and stickers out and let your kids decorate their own homeschool advent calendar while keeping what will be inside the calendar a surprise! Remember, make the last activity the best!

5. Launch the countdown

Start on December 1st (or earlier if you’re eager!) and get ready for the joy on your kids’ faces as they reveal a new activity each day. 

Homeschool Advent Calendar Ideas (By Subject)

Arts and Crafts

• Create a wreath using branches, flowers, candles, and other decorations while learning about the history of the advent wreath.
• Make handmade ornaments from clay, paper, or other materials. 
• Make Christmas cards.
• Make a garland for the tree and learn about garlands around the world.
• Build a mini snow scene with cotton, toy animals, and small figurines.
• Paint a winter scene and learn about unique art styles.

Reading and Literature

• Choose a new cosy book to read each day or pick chapters to read leading up to Christmas.
• Write a Christmas story.
• Create winter or Christmas-themed poems or haikus.
• Act out scenes from famous Christmas stories or plays.
• Read stories from different cultures about their holiday celebrations.

Maths and Logic

• Plan a hypothetical Christmas party and budget for the cost of it, including food, decorations, and gifts.
• Snowflake maths: Study symmetry by creating paper snowflakes and identifying patterns.
• Use candy canes to learn about patterns and sequences.
• Solve a holiday-themed maths puzzle each day, such as word problems or Sudoku.
• Hot chocolate fractions: Divide marshmallows into fractions to mix with hot chocolate.

Science Experiments

• Make ice lanterns out of ice and food colouring and test freezing points.
• Grow salt or borax crystals in the shape of snowflakes.
• Melting snowman: Test how different materials (salt, sugar, etc.) affect the melting rate of ice.
• Balloon rocket sleigh: Experiment with Newton’s laws by propelling a small sleigh with a balloon.
• Study how fireflies and other organisms glow, then create glow-in-the-dark decorations.

History

• Timeline of Christmas: Explore how Christmas traditions evolved over centuries.
• Learn about other cultural celebrations, like Hanukkah, and compare them to Christmas.
• Story of Saint Nicholas: Research the origins of Santa Claus.
• Holidays around the world: Pick a different country each day and learn how they celebrate the season.

Kindness and Giving

• Go through old toys and donate them to charity.
• Write down small ways to brighten someone’s day, like baking cookies or writing kind words to others.
• Start a gratitude journal and write down one thing you’re thankful for each day.
• Make homemade gifts for friends and family, such as bookmarks or candles.
• Volunteer together as a family.

Physical Activities

• Plan a mini winter olympics by doing fun outdoor activities like sledding or ice skating.
• Have a Christmas dance party.
• Create a holiday-themed scavenger hunt.
• Set up a holiday-themed indoor or outdoor obstacle course.

Tips for Creating Your Homeschool Advent Calendar

• Get your kids involved and keep the contents of the advent calendar a surprise.
• Pick activities that will appeal to your kids’ ages and interests.
• Use what you have at home to create activities and reduce cost and prep time.
• Create memorable family traditions that you can repeat each year.
• Always balance learning with fun.