Festive Fun: Easy Christmas Ornaments Kids Craft Ideas

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. The Many Wonders of Christmas Ornament Crafting with Kids
3. Speech Blubs: Empowering Little Voices Through Play
4. Easy Christmas Ornaments Kids Craft Ideas for Every Age
5. Tips for a Successful Crafting Session (and Boosting Language!)
6. Making the Most of Your Speech Blubs Experience
7. Choosing the Right Speech Blubs Plan: Value and Features
8. Conclusion
9. FAQ

Introduction

As the festive season approaches, a unique magic fills the air, stirring up feelings of joy, warmth, and nostalgia. For many of us, the sight of a beloved, perhaps slightly lopsided, handmade ornament hanging on the Christmas tree instantly transports us back to cherished childhood moments. These aren’t just decorations; they’re tangible memories, tiny treasures that tell a story of small hands, big smiles, and the innocent wonder of the holidays. What if we told you that creating these treasured Christmas ornaments with your children offers far more than just a pretty bauble for the tree?

This comprehensive guide delves into a delightful world of easy Christmas ornaments kids craft ideas, designed to spark creativity, strengthen family bonds, and, most importantly, provide a rich, engaging platform for significant speech and language development. We’ll explore age-appropriate crafts, share invaluable tips for a successful crafting session, and reveal how these joyful activities, especially when paired with innovative tools like Speech Blubs, can empower your child to “speak their minds and hearts.” Get ready to transform simple craft supplies into cherished family heirlooms and profound learning experiences, all while making memories that will last a lifetime.

The Many Wonders of Christmas Ornament Crafting with Kids

Engaging in arts and crafts, particularly during the holidays, is a cornerstone of childhood development. When children create their own Christmas ornaments, they’re not just making something pretty; they’re embarking on a multi-sensory journey that nurtures a wide array of essential skills. This creative process lays crucial groundwork for their cognitive, physical, and emotional growth, all while providing rich opportunities for communication and expression.

Sensory Exploration and Engagement

Christmas crafts are a feast for the senses. From the cool, smooth feel of clay to the gritty texture of glitter, the sticky sensation of glue, or the fragrant aroma of cinnamon sticks, children encounter a diverse range of sensory inputs. This hands-on exploration helps them understand and process their environment, building neural connections and refining their sensory discrimination skills. Talking about these sensations—”This paint is slippery!” or “The pinecone is prickly and bumpy!”—enriches their vocabulary and descriptive language.

Refining Fine Motor Skills and Hand-Eye Coordination

Many ornament crafts involve intricate movements that are perfect for honing fine motor skills. Activities like cutting shapes, carefully squeezing glue, stringing beads, wrapping yarn, or painting delicate details require precision and control. These actions strengthen the small muscles in their hands and fingers, which are vital for future tasks like writing, tying shoelaces, and self-feeding. Simultaneously, these crafts enhance hand-eye coordination as children learn to direct their movements accurately to achieve a desired outcome.

Fostering Instruction Following and Problem-Solving

Every craft project, no matter how simple, comes with a set of steps. Children learn to listen, remember, and follow multi-step instructions, whether it’s “First, glue the cotton ball, then sprinkle the glitter.” When things don’t go exactly as planned (the glue drips, the glitter spills), they’re presented with gentle problem-solving opportunities. “How can we fix this?” or “What should we try next?” encourages critical thinking and adaptability, building resilience and a sense of agency.

Cultivating Creativity and Self-Expression

Crafting offers an invaluable outlet for children to express their unique ideas and personalities. There’s no single “right” way to decorate a salt dough star or a pinecone Santa. This freedom of expression boosts self-confidence and encourages imaginative thinking. When children see their creations proudly displayed, it validates their efforts and strengthens their sense of accomplishment. This creative freedom is crucial for developing a strong sense of self and learning to communicate unique thoughts and feelings.

Building Emotional Bonds and Cherished Memories

Perhaps one of the most heartwarming benefits of crafting Christmas ornaments is the opportunity for meaningful connection. Sitting side-by-side, sharing materials, laughing at glue-covered fingers, and celebrating each other’s creations creates precious moments that deepen family bonds. These shared experiences become the fabric of childhood memories, forming traditions that children will carry with them and perhaps even pass on to their own families one day. These are moments where children truly feel seen and heard, forming the foundation for them to “speak their minds and hearts.”

The Direct Link to Speech and Language Development

Beyond the general developmental benefits, Christmas ornament crafting is a goldmine for speech and language growth. Every step of the process offers a natural, low-pressure environment for expanding vocabulary, practicing articulation, and developing conversational skills.

• Vocabulary Expansion: Introduce new words related to colors (crimson, emerald), shapes (hexagon, oval), textures (bumpy, smooth, rough, sparkly), actions (cut, glue, paint, sprinkle, tie), and festive objects (snowflake, reindeer, sleigh).
• Descriptive Language: Encourage children to describe their ornaments using adjectives. “My ornament is shiny and red.” “It’s a big, fluffy snowman.” This helps them learn to articulate observations and express themselves more fully.
• Following Directions: Explicitly state instructions and encourage children to repeat them. “First, cut the circle. Then, glue the eyes.” This reinforces comprehension and sequencing.
• Social Communication: Crafting naturally encourages turn-taking, asking for help (“Can you pass the glitter?”), making requests, and sharing opinions. These are fundamental social pragmatic skills.
• Narrative Skills: Encourage children to tell a “story” about their ornament. “I made this for Grandma, and it’s a star because she’s a star!” This helps them structure thoughts and communicate a sequence of events.

For a parent whose child is learning action verbs like ‘cut,’ ‘glue,’ or ‘paint’ during ornament crafting, our ‘Action Verbs’ section in the Speech Blubs app provides fun, engaging videos of real children performing those actions, helping solidify understanding and encourage imitation. These engaging activities make learning tangible and fun, reinforcing the words and actions practiced during craft time. Ready to see the difference? You can download Speech Blubs on the App Store or Google Play Store today and start your child’s communication journey.

Speech Blubs: Empowering Little Voices Through Play

At Speech Blubs, we deeply understand the challenges and triumphs of a child’s communication journey. Our company’s roots are personal; our founders all grew up with speech problems and were driven to create the very tool they wished they had as children. This personal connection fuels our mission: to empower children to “speak their minds and hearts,” providing an immediate, effective, and joyful solution for the 1 in 4 children who need speech support.

We believe that learning should be fun and engaging, which is why we blend scientific principles with play to create one-of-a-kind “smart screen time” experiences. Unlike passive viewing like cartoons, Speech Blubs offers an active, interactive, and screen-free alternative that truly connects families. Our unique approach is built on “video modeling,” where children learn by watching and imitating their peers. This methodology harnesses the power of mirror neurons in the brain, making speech and language acquisition a natural and intuitive process.

Imagine your child struggles with articulating certain sounds, perhaps the /f/ sound for “festive” or the /s/ sound for “star.” As they paint their salt dough ornament, you can use the app’s ‘Sounds’ section to practice these specific sounds. The direct application makes learning tangible and fun, reinforcing the words and actions practiced during craft time. This isn’t just theory; our method is backed by science, placing us in the top tier of speech apps worldwide for efficacy and engagement.

Speech Blubs acts as a powerful supplement to your child’s overall development plan and, when applicable, professional therapy. It’s a tool that provides endless opportunities for joyful family learning moments, helping children build confidence, reduce frustration, and develop key foundational communication skills.

Easy Christmas Ornaments Kids Craft Ideas for Every Age

To truly maximize the developmental and bonding benefits of crafting, it’s essential to choose projects that are appropriate for your child’s age and skill level. Here’s a breakdown of fun, easy, and engaging Christmas ornament crafts, categorized by age group.

For Toddlers (1-3 years): Sensory & Simple Actions

Toddlers thrive on sensory exploration and simple, repetitive actions. Focus on crafts that allow them to squish, smear, dab, and stick, without needing too much precision.

1. Salt Dough Ornaments

• Materials: Flour, salt, water, cookie cutters, paint, glitter, ribbon.
• How-to: Mix 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, and 1/2 cup water to form a dough. Let your child roll it out (great for gross motor skills!) and press cookie cutters into it. Bake at 250°F (120°C) until hard, then let them paint and decorate.
• Language Boost: “Roll the dough!” “Press the star!” “What color paint do you want?” “It’s soft then hard.”
• Relatable Scenario: For a late-talker toddler who loves exploring textures, the tactile experience of salt dough provides a perfect sensory input. As they knead and squish, you can practice action words like “squish,” “roll,” and “pat.” Our “Things That Move” section in Speech Blubs can then reinforce these actions with engaging videos.

2. Handprint/Footprint Ornaments

• Materials: Non-toxic paint, cardstock or salt dough, glitter, ribbon.
• How-to: Paint your child’s hand or foot and press it onto cardstock or a rolled-out piece of salt dough. Cut around the print (for older toddlers, they can help tear the paper) and decorate.
• Language Boost: “Show me your hand!” “Paint your foot!” “We made a print!” “It’s ticklish!”

3. Popsicle Stick Trees or Stars

• Materials: Popsicle sticks, glue, paint, glitter, small pom-poms or buttons.
• How-to: Glue popsicle sticks into simple shapes like a triangle (tree) or star. Once dry, let your child paint and embellish.
• Language Boost: “How many sticks?” “Let’s make a triangle!” “Where does the star go?” “Sticky glue!”

4. Felt Shapes with Glue

• Materials: Pre-cut felt shapes (trees, stars, circles), craft glue, small decorative elements like sequins or beads (large enough not to be a choking hazard).
• How-to: Let your child glue felt shapes onto a larger felt base or directly onto each other. They can then add small decorations.
• Language Boost: “What shape is that?” “Glue the red circle.” “Press it down.” “It’s soft felt.”

For Preschoolers (3-5 years): Developing Fine Motor & More Complex Steps

Preschoolers are ready for a bit more complexity, refining their fine motor skills and starting to follow multi-step instructions with greater independence.

1. Pasta Ornaments

• Materials: Various dry pasta shapes (penne, farfalle, wagon wheels), tempera paint, glitter, string.
• How-to: Have your child paint the pasta shapes. Once dry, they can string them together or glue them onto cardstock cutouts.
• Language Boost: “What kind of pasta is this?” “Paint it purple!” “String it through the hole.” “Look at the pattern!”
• Relatable Scenario: For a child focusing on color recognition and naming, painting pasta offers an engaging activity. As they choose and apply colors, you can practice “red,” “blue,” “green,” etc. The “Colors” section in Speech Blubs can then provide further visual and auditory practice with these concepts. If you’re wondering how to best support your child’s communication during these activities, or any time, take our quick 3-minute screener. It offers an assessment and next-steps plan to guide you.

2. Pinecone Ornaments

• Materials: Pinecones, small pom-poms, craft glue, glitter, ribbon or string.
• How-to: Gather pinecones from nature (a fun outdoor adventure!). Let your child glue small pom-poms into the crevices of the pinecone, add glitter, and tie a ribbon for hanging.
• Language Boost: “The pinecone is rough.” “Glue the little pom-pom.” “It’s a fancy ornament!”

3. Photo Ornaments

• Materials: Cardboard, family photos, craft glue, glitter, sequins, string.
• How-to: Cut cardboard into shapes (circle, star, square). Have your child glue a favorite family photo onto the center, then decorate the frame around it.
• Language Boost: “Who is this in the picture?” “That’s Grandma smiling!” “We are making a special ornament.”

4. Bead and Wire Ornaments

• Materials: Pipe cleaners, pony beads, string.
• How-to: Help your child bend pipe cleaners into shapes (star, candy cane, circle). Then, let them thread pony beads onto the pipe cleaner. Twist the ends to secure. (Adult supervision crucial for small beads.)
• Language Boost: “Pick a bead.” “Push it on.” “Look, a pattern!” “How many red beads?”

For Early School-Aged Kids (5+ years): Creativity & Multi-Step Projects

Older children can handle more complex instructions and enjoy adding their unique artistic flair. These crafts encourage independence and more detailed work.

1. DIY Clay Ornaments (Air Dry Clay)

• Materials: Air dry clay, cookie cutters, rolling pin, paint, sealant, string.
• How-to: Children can roll out the clay, use cookie cutters, and even sculpt freehand designs. Once dry, they can paint, add details, and seal their creations.
• Language Boost: “What will you sculpt?” “Make a swirly pattern.” “Describe your design to me.”
• Relatable Scenario: For a child who loves storytelling, creating characters or scenes out of clay provides a tactile way to bring their narratives to life. As they sculpt, encourage them to describe what they’re making and tell a short story about it. The “My Story” section in Speech Blubs can then help them structure their narratives and practice sequencing. Ready to foster these skills? Create your account and begin your 7-day free trial today!

2. Yarn Wrapped Ornaments

• Materials: Cardboard shapes (stars, circles, trees), yarn in various colors, craft glue.
• How-to: Apply a little glue to the cardboard shape to anchor the yarn, then let your child wrap the yarn tightly around the shape until it’s fully covered. They can switch colors for stripes or patterns.
• Language Boost: “Wrap it tightly.” “What color yarn next?” “Look at the stripes!” “It feels fuzzy.”

3. Button Ornaments

• Materials: Cardboard cutouts, assorted buttons, craft glue, ribbon.
• How-to: Children can glue buttons onto cardboard shapes in creative patterns, overlapping them to fill the space.
• Language Boost: “What size button is that?” “Find a matching button.” “How many blue buttons did you use?”

4. Cookie Cutter Stamped Ornaments

• Materials: Air dry clay or salt dough, cookie cutters with interesting shapes (stars, snowflakes, gingerbread men), acrylic paint.
• How-to: Children roll out the dough/clay, press cookie cutters to make shapes, then use smaller cookie cutters or stamps to create impressions on the surface. Once dry, they can paint the raised details.
• Language Boost: “What design are you stamping?” “Press it gently.” “It’s a gingerbread man!”

Tips for a Successful Crafting Session (and Boosting Language!)

Creating Christmas ornaments with your children should be a joyful and stress-free experience. Here are some key tips to ensure success and maximize those precious language-learning opportunities:

• Preparation is Key: Before your child even enters the crafting zone, gather all your materials. Lay out newspaper or a plastic tablecloth, have wipes or a damp cloth ready, and pre-cut any difficult shapes for younger children. A well-prepared space reduces frustration and keeps the focus on fun.
• Keep it Simple & Manage Expectations: Remember, it’s about the process, not a perfect, Pinterest-worthy outcome. For young children, the joy is in the exploration and creation, not the final product. Embrace the imperfections – they are part of the charm!
• Focus on the Process, Not Perfection: Encourage effort and creativity over flawless results. Praise their choices, their focus, and their willingness to try new things. “I love how you chose so many different colors!” or “You’re really concentrating on that cutting!”
• Engage in Rich Conversation: This is where the real magic for language development happens.
  • Ask Open-Ended Questions: Instead of “Do you like it?”, try “What do you like most about the color you chose?” or “Tell me about your shiny star.” These questions encourage more than a one-word answer.
  • Describe Actions & Observations: Narrate what you and your child are doing. “I am cutting the paper slowly.” “You are gluing the sparkly stars onto the felt.” This models rich vocabulary and sentence structure.
  • Model New Vocabulary: Introduce new words naturally. “This is a fir tree. It smells piney.” “The glitter is iridescent.”
  • Encourage Choices: “Do you want the red ribbon or the green ribbon?” “Which button should we put first?” Giving choices empowers children and practices comparative language.
• Sing Songs & Tell Stories: Connect crafting to festive songs (e.g., “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” while making star ornaments) or simple stories about Christmas traditions. This adds another layer of language engagement and cultural connection.
• Patience and Flexibility: Some days, your child might only want to craft for five minutes. That’s perfectly fine! Follow their lead and remember that the goal is connection and enjoyment. If they get frustrated, offer a break or simplify the task.
• Celebrate Their Work: Once the ornaments are dry, make a big deal about hanging them on the tree. Let your child choose where to place them and admire their creations together. This boosts their confidence and sense of pride.

By integrating these strategies, you’re not just creating decorations; you’re building a vibrant, language-rich environment that supports your child’s communication journey. If you’re wondering how to best support your child’s communication during these activities, or any time, take our quick 3-minute preliminary screener. It involves just 9 simple questions and provides an assessment and next-steps plan to guide you.

Making the Most of Your Speech Blubs Experience

While crafting offers incredible hands-on learning, Speech Blubs complements these real-world activities beautifully, providing a structured, engaging, and scientifically-backed platform to reinforce and expand language skills. Our commitment to combining scientific principles with play ensures that learning is always effective and enjoyable.

For example, after a crafting session where your child used many colors, you can dive into Speech Blubs’ “Colors” section. The app’s video modeling approach, where children watch their peers articulate words, makes learning highly relatable and motivating. This “smart screen time” ensures active engagement, promoting imitation and vocabulary acquisition far more effectively than passive cartoons.

We know how vital it is for parents to feel confident in the tools they choose for their children. That’s why our methods are not just fun, but also backed by science, confirming our high MARS scale rating. Our founders, having personally experienced speech challenges, designed Speech Blubs to be the immediate, effective solution they wished for—a powerful tool for family connection, reducing frustration, and empowering children to “speak their minds and hearts.”

Our app provides a fantastic opportunity for focused language practice that you can tie directly to your crafting experiences. Whether your child is working on specific sounds, expanding their vocabulary, or practicing sentence structures, Speech Blubs offers targeted activities that build foundational communication skills. Don’t just take our word for it; see what other parents are saying about the incredible progress their children have made.

Choosing the Right Speech Blubs Plan: Value and Features

We believe in transparent pricing and want to ensure you get the most out of your Speech Blubs experience. We offer two main subscription plans, each designed to fit different needs, but one stands out as the clear best value.

• Monthly Plan: For $14.99 per month, you get access to our core speech and language activities. This plan is a good starting point if you want to try the app for a shorter period. However, it does not include some of our most valuable features.
• Yearly Plan: This is our most popular and highly recommended option, priced at just $59.99 per year. When broken down, that’s an incredible value of only $4.99 per month! By choosing the Yearly plan, you instantly save 66% compared to the monthly subscription.

Beyond the significant cost savings, the Yearly plan unlocks an exclusive suite of premium features designed to supercharge your child’s development:

• 7-Day Free Trial: The Yearly plan is the only way to access our generous 7-day free trial. This allows you and your child to explore the full breadth of Speech Blubs content, ensuring it’s the perfect fit before committing.
• The Extra Reading Blubs App: Included exclusively with the Yearly plan, Reading Blubs is a fantastic companion app that further supports early literacy skills, helping your child connect sounds to letters and build reading readiness.
• Early Access to New Updates: Be among the first to experience our latest features, activities, and content, ensuring your child always has fresh and engaging learning opportunities.
• 24-Hour Support Response Time: Get priority support from our dedicated team, ensuring any questions or technical issues are addressed promptly, minimizing disruptions to your child’s learning.

We wholeheartedly encourage you to choose the Yearly plan to get the best value, unlock the free trial, and access the full suite of features that will truly empower your child’s communication journey. It’s the most comprehensive and cost-effective way to give your child the tools they need to “speak their minds and hearts.”

Conclusion

The holiday season is a magical time, and crafting Christmas ornaments with your children offers a unique blend of festive fun, creative expression, and profound developmental benefits. From fostering fine motor skills and encouraging problem-solving to deepening family bonds and creating cherished memories, these simple activities are far more enriching than they appear. Crucially, they provide an organic, joyful environment for significant speech and language development, laying the groundwork for your child to confidently articulate their thoughts and feelings.

By intentionally engaging in conversation, describing actions, and modeling new vocabulary during crafting, you transform a simple art project into a powerful language-learning opportunity. And when combined with the innovative, scientifically-backed approach of Speech Blubs, these benefits are amplified. Our app’s unique video modeling methodology and “smart screen time” experiences empower children to learn by imitating their peers, complementing your hands-on efforts and building essential communication skills. Remember, we were founded on the personal experiences of overcoming speech challenges, and our mission is to empower every child to “speak their minds and hearts.”

Ready to create beautiful memories and foster your child’s communication journey? Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to blend festive fun with powerful learning. Download Speech Blubs on the App Store or Google Play today! To unlock your 7-day free trial and gain access to all premium features, including the Reading Blubs app and priority support, remember to choose the Yearly plan and save an incredible 66%. Start your journey towards a more articulate, confident, and joyful child this holiday season.

FAQ

Q1: What age are these Christmas ornament crafts suitable for?

A1: We’ve categorized the crafts into three main age groups: toddlers (1-3 years), preschoolers (3-5 years), and early school-aged children (5+ years). Each category focuses on age-appropriate skills, from simple sensory exploration for toddlers to more complex, multi-step projects for older children. Always supervise closely and choose non-toxic materials, especially for the youngest crafters.

Q2: How can I make these crafts more language-rich for my child?

A2: The key is active engagement and conversation. Narrate your actions (“I am cutting the paper”), describe materials (“This glitter is sparkly!”), ask open-ended questions (“What do you like about your star?”), and encourage choices (“Do you want the red or blue ribbon?”). Use descriptive words for colors, shapes, textures, and actions. These interactions naturally expand vocabulary, improve descriptive language, and enhance communication skills.

Q3: Is Speech Blubs a replacement for professional speech therapy?

A3: No, Speech Blubs is designed to be a powerful supplement to your child’s overall developmental plan and, when applicable, professional speech therapy. It provides engaging practice and reinforces skills learned with a therapist or through everyday interactions. Our app empowers parents with a tool to continue language development at home in a fun, interactive way, but it is not intended to replace personalized guidance from a qualified speech-language pathologist.

Q4: How does Speech Blubs’ “video modeling” methodology work?

A4: Our “video modeling” methodology is based on scientific principles that leverage children’s natural inclination to imitate. In Speech Blubs, children learn by watching short videos of their peers performing specific actions or articulating words. This engages “mirror neurons” in the brain, which are crucial for learning through observation. Seeing other children, rather than animated characters, makes the learning process more relatable, motivating, and effective, turning “smart screen time” into active, imitative learning.