Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year! I love all of the excitement and traditions that go along with it! I also LOVE all of the ways you can get your kiddos engaged in your classroom activities by taking advantage of their excitement for the season. And, circle time is one of my favorite times to do just that! These Christmas circle time games will keep your kiddos excited about learning letters and sounds because they will just think they’re playing some super fun Christmas games!
Reindeer, Reindeer on the Ground
If you’ve followed me for any length of time at all, you already know how much I love “On the Ground” games! They are so simple, so adorable, and SO MUCH FUN!! What I really love about them is watching the kiddos use them in centers after we’ve played them together during circle time. They love to get them out and play them over and over again!
Playing is very simple! All you need is a set of reindeer with the letters on them! Just lay them out on the floor in the middle of your circle, and you are ready to start!
If you are working on letter sounds with your kiddos, teach them this chant:
Reindeer, reindeer, on the ground,
Pick up a reindeer and make the sound!
If you are working on letter recognition with your kiddos, teach them this chant:
Reindeer, reindeer, they’re not all the same.
Pick up a reindeer and say the name!
Say the chant together, choose a kiddo to pick a reindeer card, and ask her the letter/sound on the reindeer. If she gets it right, she can keep it. If not, she puts it back in the middle. BUT… I always, always, ALWAYS offer support when needed so that EVERYONE gets the right letter/sound by guess #3 and gets to keep their cards!
Santa Ho! Ho! Ho!
If you’re familiar with Snap! games then this one will be familiar to you as well! Santa Ho! Ho! Ho! is a new version of that classroom favorite!
Here’s how it works. You’ll need to start by getting present with the letters on them attached to craft sticks. (Moment of truth here: I always use [amazon_textlink asin=’B01HN4LJEQ’ text=’colored craft sticks’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’mrsasroom-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’41dc63ff-f317-11e8-9eba-e19112fe0728′], but I didn’t have enough when I made this set. But, they are WAY more cute with the colored ones!) You’ll also need a few sticks that have Santa attached to them. Put all of the sticks into a cup or a can with the picture sides down so the kiddos can’t see them.
Pass the can around the circle and let your kiddos pick a stick one at a time. When a kiddo pulls out a stick, he looks at the letter and tells you the letter name and/or sound (your choice on that one!). If he gets it right, he keeps the stick. (Again… lots of support with that to make them all successful!) But… if he chooses a Santa stick (this is the part that makes the game so much fun!) everyone says “Ho! Ho! Ho!” (I always let them get loud!) and all the sticks go back into the can.
Your kiddos will watch every stick being pulled out in anticipation of seeing Santa and getting to yell “Ho! Ho! Ho!” I love to watch them and their reactions when they’re playing!
The game usually ends when all the sticks are out of the can. But, this can get a little lengthy. So, you may not want to play for that long. The easiest way to determine how long the game will take is by deciding how many Santas you’re including. If you remove them from the can after a kiddos picks it, the game will start coming to an end after the last one is selected. So, the more Santas you use, the longer the game will take.
Rudolph, Rudolph, Where’s Your Nose?
Rudolph’s nose has stopped glowing, and your kiddos have to help so he can light the way for Santa!
As you can see, Rudolph’s nose is black and dark. But, there are lots of bright red noses available! Lay them all out on the floor in your circle with Rudolph right in the middle. Teach your kiddos this chant:
Rudolph, Rudolph, where's your nose? We can't see it unless it glows! Santa needs it to be bright! Say the letter to make it light! (If you're working on letter sounds, change the last line to "Say the sound...")
After you say the chant, choose a kiddo to pick a nose and say the letter/sound. If she gets it right (support, support, support!) then she gets to put it on Rudolph to light up his nose!
Christmas Circle Time Games Set
All of these games are available in my TPT store ready to print and use! Just click on the product cover to go straight to my store to grab your own copy!
But, if you’re also wanting some super fun Christmas circle time games that focus on numbers, counting, shapes, colors, and movement, you’ll definitely want to check out my circle time games bundle instead! It’s also available in my TPT store, and you can get it by clicking on the bundle cover!
I’ve got lots of other ideas for your Christmas & winter themes that you might want to check out! Here are some quick links:
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I love this! Where did you get the graphics?
Thank you! I have so much clip art, it’s ridiculous! Lol! So, I’m sure where each of these specifically came from, but my favorites are Whimsy Clips, Krista Walden, Creating 4 the Classroom, P4 Trioriginals, Graphics from the Pond, and Educlips. I get all of it on TPT. Hope that helps!