Planning a holiday celebration for children should feel festive, not stressful! When kids are cooped up indoors during the winter holidays, energetic games are the secret to keeping laughter up and tantrums down.

Whether you are hosting a classroom holiday party, a neighborhood cookie exchange, or Christmas Eve family gathering, these 25 games are guaranteed crowd-pleasers.

Quick Game Jump List

  1. The Candy Cane Relay — Fast-paced tooth-held baton race
  2. Jingle Bell Shake — Tissue box hip-shaking frenzy
  3. Snowball Stacking Challenge — 1-minute marshmallow tower
  4. Santa's Hat Stack — Plastic cup coordination game
  5. Christmas Movie Pictionary — Drawing holiday classics
  6. Reindeer Antler Ring Toss — Inflatable ring showdown

1. The Candy Cane Relay

  • Players: 4 to 16
  • Ages: 5+
  • Time: 10 minutes
  • Materials: 2 boxes of mini candy canes, 4 plastic bowls.

How to Play:

  1. Divide the kids into two equal teams lined up single file.
  2. Place a bowl filled with mini candy canes at the front of each line and an empty bowl at the end.
  3. Every player places the straight end of a candy cane into their mouth with the curved hook facing out.
  4. On "GO", the first player scoops a loose candy cane from the bowl using only their hooked cane and passes it hook-to-hook down the line without using hands!
  5. If the candy drops, it goes back to the start. The first team to pass 5 canes wins.

💡 Pro-Tip: For toddlers under 5, let them hold the candy cane with one hand while walking to build confidence without frustration.

2. The Jingle Bell Shake (Minute to Win It)

  • Players: 2 to 10
  • Ages: All ages
  • Time: 5 minutes
  • Materials: Empty tissue box, pantyhose/ribbon, 10 craft jingle bells.

How to Play:

  1. Thread a ribbon through the sides of an empty tissue box and strap it around a player’s waist so the box rests on their lower back.
  2. Place 10 craft jingle bells inside the tissue box.
  3. Start a 60-second holiday music countdown.
  4. Players must jump, wiggle, shimmy, and shake their hips to get all 10 bells to fly out of the hole without touching the box with their hands!
  5. Whoever empties their box first (or has the fewest bells remaining when time expires) wins.

3. Blindfolded Snowman Drawing Contest

  • Players: 2 to 20
  • Ages: 6+
  • Time: 10 minutes
  • Materials: Paper plates, washable markers.

How to Play:

  1. Hand each kid a paper plate and a marker.
  2. Instruct everyone to place the paper plate firmly on top of their head.
  3. Call out drawing instructions step-by-step:
    • "Draw the snowman's bottom snowball."
    • "Add the middle and top snowballs."
    • "Draw 2 eyes and a carrot nose."
    • "Draw a top hat and 3 button dots."
    • "Draw arms made of twigs."
  4. When done, have everyone take down their plates and vote on the most accurate (and hilarious!) snowman portrait.

Personal Host Experience

We played the Jingle Bell Shake at our annual neighborhood Christmas party last December, and it was hands down the biggest hit of the afternoon. Even the shyest kids couldn't stop giggling while jumping to "Jingle Bell Rock". Be sure to have your phone ready for video!

Free Printables Included

Don't forget to grab our free holiday bundle below. It includes printable Christmas Bingo boards, scavenger hunt checklists, and scorecard sheets to save you hours of prep time.