Advent Activities for Kids: 24 No-Sweets Prompts
Open one slip a day and do one small thing together. No sweets, no mess and no hurry!
- About 2 to 10 minutes a day
- Paper, crayons, scissors, a box
- Indoors, with almost no mess
- 8 pages from our Christmas worksheets
Advent activities for kids can be as simple as one small prompt a day, with no chocolate behind the door. This guide gives you 24 of them, one for each day of a December countdown, and most take about two minutes. They are games, tiny crafts and kind jobs that need only paper, crayons and things you already have at home.
Advent calendars usually run from 1 to 24 December, so you have a few weeks to get ready. If your family does not celebrate Christmas, the same countdown works for any winter festival or simply for the days before the holidays. Eight of the prompts use real printable pages from our Christmas worksheets, so you can print as you go.
Day 5: two minutes of spotting differences.
What is an Advent countdown for kids?
An Advent countdown is a way to count the days before Christmas by opening one small surprise each day. Many families use a calendar with a sweet or a toy behind each door. A prompt countdown swaps the sweet for a short activity, so the surprise is something to do together rather than something to eat.
Children find it easy to understand time when it is counted down this way, because they can see the slips getting fewer. It also gives a calm few minutes of one-to-one attention every day, which is often what children want most in a busy month.
What can we do each day? 24 two-minute prompts
Take the prompts in order or shuffle the slips and let your child pick. If a day is busy, do the quick version or skip it and carry on tomorrow, because the countdown is meant to be fun, not another job.
Days 1 to 6: set up and get going
Write each prompt on a slip, or just read the day's prompt aloud from this page.
0 of 6 done
Number 24 paper slips or envelopes and stack them in a box, hang them on string or line them up on a shelf. Each morning your child opens one and does the prompt together with you. Let them decorate the box, and keep it somewhere they pass every day.
Print the Christmas pattern page and do just one row today. Your child says the pattern aloud (present, tree, present, tree) and circles the picture that comes next. Save the other rows for another day.
Cut scraps of old wrapping paper or use coloured paper, and ask your child to sort them into piles by colour. Count each pile together at the end.
Give your child a stack of cardboard boxes, books or soft toys and one minute to build the tallest tower that stays up. Count how many pieces it has, then try again with a different order.
Print the find-the-difference page and look at the two Santa pictures side by side. Your child finds and circles what has changed, and you can hunt for the gingerbread house differences tomorrow.
Scrunch a sheet of scrap paper into a ball. Take three steps back and toss it into a basket, then try to do it again without a sound. It is a game of aim and of listening.
You earned a sticker!
Six days done! The countdown is under way.
Days 7 to 12: look, make and move
Colour, count and dance your way through the second week.
0 of 6 done
Stand at a window and find one red thing, one green thing, one white thing and one gold or yellow thing. Ask your child to point first, and give a clue (it is round, it is tall) for any they cannot spot.
Print the Santa picture puzzle and colour two of the pieces today. The next day, cut them out and paste them where they belong, so one puzzle lasts several mornings.
Think of someone who helps you, such as a driver, a teacher, a neighbour or a grandparent. Your child draws them a quick picture or says a thank-you out loud, and you write the words under it.
Print the colour-by-number snowman and look at the number code together. Your child colours the hat, scarf and body by number, one part at a time.
Play a favourite winter or party song and dance until you pause it. Everyone freezes like a snowman, and the last one to freeze picks the next song.
Print the I Spy page and count one kind of picture, such as the stockings, then write the number in the box below. Pick one or two kinds today and the rest another day.
You earned a sticker!
Twelve days done, halfway there!
Days 13 to 18: snip, ask and help
A mix of paper play, questions and kind jobs.
0 of 6 done
Tip a pile of clean socks onto the floor and race to match them into pairs. Count how many pairs you made and how many are left on their own.
Fold a square of paper into quarters and let your child snip little shapes from the edges. Unfold it together and decide where to stick it up. Younger children can tear instead of cut.
Your child asks three people the same question, such as "What is your favourite thing about this time of year?" You write down the answers, then read them back.
Print the blend tree and read two of the words on the baubles aloud, for example crown and drum. Colour those baubles by the key and leave the rest for later.
Print the cut-and-paste tree. Your child cuts out two or three decorations and sticks them on the tree. Adults can cut for little ones.
Choose one small kind job to do without being asked, such as tidying the shoes, laying the table or watering a plant, and do it quietly. Later, see whether anyone noticed.
You earned a sticker!
Eighteen days done, only six to go!
Days 19 to 24: slow down and give
The last stretch is quieter and about giving.
0 of 6 done
Pick a favourite book and read it to a teddy or a doll, using a quiet voice. Ask the toy a question afterwards and let your child answer for it.
Print the Santa card page, cut out the pieces and build the card together. It makes a cheerful card for a grandparent, a friend or a neighbour.
Switch off the big light and use a torch or a phone light to make a shadow of a toy or hand on the wall. Guess what each shadow is. More ideas are in our light and shadow blog.
Everyone stands as still as a statue for thirty seconds, with slow breaths and a quiet face. Then swap, so your child watches the grown-up try.
Choose a book or a toy your child no longer plays with, wrap it in scrap paper and hide it for a brother, sister or friend to find tomorrow. Giving something does not have to mean buying something.
Look back over the countdown and ask your child to draw the favourite thing they did. Stick it on the wall or fridge, and talk about which prompt they would play again.
You earned a sticker!
All 24 days done! Well played, everyone.
How do I keep a countdown calm and low-effort?
- Keep each prompt short. Two minutes of full attention beats twenty minutes of hurry.
- Print only the pages you need on the day, so the pile does not become a chore.
- Let your child open the slip and read the picture clue, so they are in charge of the surprise.
- Skip any day you miss and never double up. A countdown with gaps still counts.
- Use scissors with a grown-up nearby for the snowflake, the puzzle and the Santa card.
What do these countdown prompts build?
Counting, patterns, fine motor skills and kindness
The prompts give children practice in counting and noticing patterns, in cutting, colouring and writing numbers, in listening and taking turns, and in thinking about other people. They are everyday play, not a test, so there is no right or wrong way to finish a day.
How can I make the countdown easier or harder?
Change the prompts to suit your child
Little ones
- Do the paper pages together and let your child tear and stick instead of cutting.
- Read each prompt aloud and show the picture on the slip, so there is nothing to read.
- Keep every day to one minute and stop when interest fades.
Older kids
- Let them write the slips themselves and hide them for a younger brother or sister.
- Ask them to invent the day's prompt for a friend.
- Add a thank-you note to the Thank a helper day and post it or hand it over.
Where can I find more Christmas printables and ideas?
The pages used in the countdown come from our free Christmas worksheets: the pattern page, the find the differences page, the Santa picture puzzle, the Christmas I Spy, the blend words tree, the Santa card craft, the colour by number snowman and the paper tree to decorate.
For more seasonal ideas, read our guide to Christmas and winter activities that combine fun and learning, and for a quiet day try the light and shadow games. Want a craft to make? Try our Christmas snow globe activity.
Questions parents ask about Advent activities
When does Advent start?
Can we do an Advent countdown without sweets?
What if we miss a day?
Do we need to celebrate Christmas to use these?
How many printables do I need?
Made for your child
Printables with your child's name on every page
7 packs for ages 2 to 14: pen control, phonics, spelling, maths, mazes and detective puzzles, each made from their name and the things they love.
See the personalised packsFree preview · free for members
Written by
Hemsweta Jain · Teacher Cheena
MBA and Early Childhood Educator, teaching since 2014 · Founder of RaisoActive, Mumbai
Published · Last reviewed
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