December has a way of filling the calendar. School events, family visits and shopping lists compete with the simple wish to do something calm and festive with your child. A small stack of well-chosen Christmas printables can help: they cost little, need almost no preparation and slot neatly into the gaps.
This guide is about printables for fun and celebration: coloring, gift tags, countdowns and party games. If you are looking for skill-building pages, see our separate guide to Christmas worksheets for preschool and kindergarten.
The five types of Christmas printables worth printing
1. Coloring pages
Coloring is the classic. Children can colour a tree, stockings, cookies, snowmen or a nativity scene, and the finished pages double as decorations. Look for clear outlines and big enough shapes for the age. For toddlers, a single big picture with thick lines beats a busy scene.
Idea: tape a few finished pages to a window or string them on a ribbon as a garland.
2. Gift tags and cards
Gift tags let children join in the wrapping. A tag with a blank space or a simple outline invites them to draw a picture or write a name. Some printable books include a “draw your own gift tag” page, which saves you from preparing blanks.
Idea: have children colour a set of tags in one sitting, then cut them out and keep them in an envelope for wrapping day.
3. Countdown pages
A countdown chart makes the wait visible. Children colour or tick one square a day until the big day. Countdowns pair nicely with an activity calendar; see our list of advent calendar activities for kids if you want a daily idea to go with each square.
Idea: stick the countdown on the fridge and let your child choose the colour for each day.
4. Puzzles, mazes and dot-to-dots
Puzzle pages are perfect for quiet time or waiting. Mazes, find-the-difference pages and connect-the-dots pictures that reveal a Christmas shape are all good options. Our guide to free printable mazes for kids explains how to match maze difficulty to age, and the same thinking works for holiday-themed mazes.
For seek-and-find fans, our article on hidden pictures printables for kids shows how to introduce them and keep them fun.
Idea: keep a few puzzle pages in a bag for trips, appointments or restaurants.
5. Party and family games
Printable bingo, spot-the-difference sheets and “find the Christmas objects” pages work well when several children gather. They keep little hands busy while adults chat and cost nothing beyond paper.
Idea: print a few copies of the same page and race to finish, or have a “team up” round where everyone searches together.
How to choose the right page for each age
- Toddlers (about 2 to 3). Big pictures, thick outlines and few details. Expect scribbles rather than neat colouring, and enjoy the process.
- Preschoolers (about 3 to 5). Simple coloring, easy mazes, matching pages and tracing lines. Offer thick crayons or chunky pencils.
- Early school age (about 6 to 8). More detailed coloring, longer mazes, dot-to-dots with higher numbers, spot-the-difference and short word or number puzzles.
If a page feels too hard, cover part of it or work on it together. If it feels too easy, ask your child to add details, colour a background or invent a story about the picture.
Print smart
A few habits save time, paper and ink:
- Print little and often. A folder of five or six pages for the week is enough.
- Choose black-and-white outlines when you can, so your child provides the colour.
- Use draft mode for pages that will be coloured over.
- Keep a “ready” folder. Put printed pages in a folder or tray where your child can reach them, so you are not printing on demand.
- Reuse favourites. Some pages are fun twice. Print a second copy when a page proves popular.
- Check the print scale. Make sure the page prints at actual size, not shrunk, so mazes and puzzles stay readable.
A simple plan for December
Think by moment rather than date:
- After-school wind-down. A coloring page and a pencil on the table.
- Waiting moments. A puzzle page in a bag for appointments or travel.
- Weekend afternoon. A gift-tag session or a card-making session.
- Family gathering. A game page or a team seek-and-find.
- Daily ritual. The countdown chart, ticked off each morning or evening.
This approach keeps printables from becoming an extra chore. They fill small gaps rather than creating new obligations.
Where our printables fit in
If you prefer one source instead of searching for individual pages, a printable activity book can gather most of these types in one place.
The Christmas Activity & Coloring Book for Kids is a 25-page printable PDF for ages 3 to 8. It includes Christmas coloring pages (including a Christmas tree and cookies), countdown pages, puzzles and mazes such as Santa’s maze, find the differences and connect the dots, counting and early math including Santa’s hat addition, alphabet and word matching, tracing, a draw-your-gift-tag page, a Dear Santa letter and a make-your-own-ornament activity. It costs $4.99.
For children who enjoy searching, Cute Critters: Hidden Pictures & Seek-and-Find Activity Book for Kids is a printable PDF of critter illustrations to search and spot, at $4.99. It is a calm option for the quieter evenings, though it is not Christmas-specific.
For more on how to pick and use activity books, see our guide to printable activity books for kids.
Using printables well
- Sit with your child at the start. A few minutes together sets the tone, then step back.
- Praise effort, not neatness. A messy tree that took ten minutes of concentration is a success.
- Let children choose. A choice of two pages gives a sense of control.
- Turn finished pages into something. Cards, garlands, wrapping paper or window decorations give the work a purpose.
- Stop when interest fades. Half a page is fine. Come back to it later or let it go.
Sharing and licensing
Before you copy a printable for a class, party or group, check the terms. Many printables are for personal or family use only, while others allow classroom copies. If the terms are unclear, ask the creator rather than assume. It is also kind to credit the source when you share a favourite page with friends.
Keep it light
You do not need a complete printable plan to enjoy December. A few pages, a box of crayons and ten quiet minutes can be enough. Pick two or three types from this list, start small and let your child’s interest guide what comes next.
