Christian Christmas Crafts
For Kids
Easy Nativity Activities & Printables

It's hard to keep kids focused on the real meaning of Christmas in the midst of the busyness. That's why I have pulled together my favorite Christian Christmas crafts for kids so you can build your child's skills while keeping the nativity front and center!

These easy, low-prep, low-cost activities are faith-based and OT-inspired - perfect for busy parents and Sunday School teachers of kids from preschool to early elementary!

You'll find quick-start crafts you can do today with simple Scripture notes to guide conversations with your child. Dig deeper into related pages across my site, or explore my printable templates for accessible craft ideas.

Simple Christian Christmas crafts for kids that build faith and skills

As an occupational therapist, I've intentionally left out specific age recommendations. Every child develops at their own pace, and my goal is to help you find the 'just-right challenge'—an activity that is engaging but not frustrating.

You are the expert on your child, so choose what works best for your time and your child's skill level.

I sometimes link to products (#Ad) that are similar to those I use and love. If you do purchase something through my links, I will receive a small commission that helps support my site - thank you!

Key Takeaways For Busy Parents:

  • Pick faith-based activities that boost specific skills.
  • Create meaningful decorations using simple household supplies.
  • Use nativity-themed cutting printables for scissor practice.
  • Try printable word searches for a fun, faith-focused alternative to screen time.
  • Focus on your child's current skills, not a specific age, to choose an activity that is fun and achievable for them.

Craft Guide: Which Skills Do You Want To Build?

Christmas Scissor Activities

Easy Paper Angels

Angels are a big part of the nativity, and these are my favorite Christmas angels to make with kids. Even kids who avoid crafts might enjoy cutting paper circles to create these sweet angels.

  • Scripture Connection: Create single angels to represent the Angel of the Lord who visited Zechariah, Mary and Joseph, or create a whole choir of angels as described in Luke 2: 13-14
  • Pro Tip: Plain white angels are just as effective as decorated ones, so if your child is not ‘into’ coloring and crafty things, this can be a rewarding nativity craft for them.
preschool Christmas craft - make paper angelsPaper Angel Craft


Christmas Eternity Ring / Christmas Wreath Craft

This Eternity Ring (or Christmas wreath) is a great way to practice basic scissor cutting skills, as your child will be cutting out lots and lots of straight lines.

This can be a family project for siblings to enjoy together, or do it with your child over a few days to make a memorable decoration!

  • Scripture Connection: A circle has no beginning or end, and reminds us of God’s eternal nature. Creating an eternity ring helps to remind us of this. Psalm 90:2 “From everlasting to everlasting, You are God”.
  • Pro Tip: Adult help will be needed in order to put the loops together. All instructions are in the tutorial.
paper christmas wreath cutting activity for kids - build scissor skillsChristmas Eternity Ring


Christmas Scissor Cutting Pack

My (mostly) nativity-themed Christmas cutting printables will give your child lots of cutting practice with lovely end products to build your child’s confidence.

  • From snipping activities for beginners, to more complex shapes for more experienced kids, kids from preschool to early elementary can benefit!
  • Get 17 different scissor cutting paper crafts, all with photographed instructions and a variety of templates - over 40 templates in all!

  • Build a scene of Bethlehem, make a paper lantern, create layered shapes to use on gift cards and gift tags, and much more.
Christmas nativity based scissor crafts for kidsSome of the simple Christmas crafts!

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Beading Christian Christmas Crafts for Kids

Bead decorations are simple, yet versatile, Christian Christmas crafts for kids. Threading pony beads onto chenille stems (pipe cleaners) is much easier than threading a floppy lace, and the filled chenille stem can be bent into a recognizable shape. 

Benefits of Beading For Kids

  • Threading beads can help kids practice eye-hand coordination and bilateral coordination skills.
  • Picking up beads works on pincer grasp.
  • Copying a color pattern of beads can help develop sequencing skills

  • Pro Tip: Take care with the poky wire ends of the chenille stems, and with the choking hazard of beads.

Simple Christmas Bead Angels

This is a simple angel craft using chenille stems#Ad (pipe cleaners) and pony beads#Ad. 

 Preschoolers can thread the beads, and an adult/older sibling can twist the angel shape.

preschool Christmas craft - make a simple bead angelMake a bead angel

Simple Christmas Bead Stars

Fill a Chenille stem with pony beads and shape it into a star!

Here’s how:

  1. Once the chenille stem is almost full of beads, bend a zigzag pattern into the stick.
  2. Each upward or downward section can contain 3 pony beads, so create a little space between each three beads to give you space to bend it.
  3. Start with a downward section then 4 identical up-down sections, ending with an upward section.
  4. Remove any extra beads and attach the two ends
  5. Add ribbon and you have a star decoration for your tree or a Christmas card! 
  • Scripture Connection: This star can represent the star that guided the wise men to baby Jesus (Matthew 1:2-12)
simple bead star Christmas craft - ideal for preschool

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Nativity Collage Activities

Nativity collages are achievable and satisfying Christian Christmas crafts for kids who hate coloring or who have poor pencil control.

  • My free Christmas Paper Crafts page has instructions on how to turn a simple nativity picture into a lovely nativity collage using popsicle sticks and torn paper.

  • Pro Tip: Cut strips of paper in various colors for your child to tear into small squares.
Christmas craft for preschool - make a nativity collage sceneMake a nativity collage
  • Your child can also decorate nativity pictures with crumpled paper balls – crepe paper works best, but you can also use tissue paper.

  • If you like these, then my printable activity pack will give you a variety of different nativity scenes and pictures!
fine motor Christmas star activity - make a collage for a starMake paper balls to fill a star
  • Scripture Connection: All aspects of the nativity story can be covered in this way – from making hay for the manger, or stars in the night sky for a shepherd scene.
  • Pro Tip: For fine motor tips to help your child make the paper balls, view my finger exercises tips and techniques.
Printable Christmas activities for faith-filled fun while building fine motor skills!Get Your Fine Motor Christmas Activity Pages Now!

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Simple Sheep Paper Craft for Christmas

This super-simple sheep paper craft is great if you are doing the Christmas story of the shepherds. Your child will get lots of fine motor practice by using a craft paper punch and sticking the cutouts into a sheep shape.

What You Need:

  • a flower-shaped paper craft punch#Ad (the cutout should be about 5/8inch)
  • some white paper/scrap paper
  • a black sharpie or crayon
  • a colored paper to stick the sheep onto
Use flower shaped craft hole punch to make a paper sheep craft

1) Have your child punch out lots of white flowers with the paper punch.

Pro Tip: To strengthen hand muscles, I recommend using the thumb on the lever, with the other fingers underneath. This is tiring, so give breaks when needed. 

how to hold a craft hole punch to strengthen hands

2)  Draw a light oval on the background paper.

3) Glue the flowers inside the oval – overlapping flowers add depth to the sheep. Punch and add more flowers if needed.

make christmas sheep craft activity

4) Cut a small white oval for the head and use a black sharpie to draw an ear, an eye and 4 legs, as shown.

Older siblings can help with this!

christmas sheep activity for kids

5) If you have a star shaped paper punch, or star stickers, you could add stars to your background, as well as colored flowers!

Use flower and star shaped craft hole punches to create a picture of sheep and stars for Christmas

Scripture Connection:  Read Luke 2: 8-20 together and talk about what it must have been like for lowly shepherds to receive such momentous news!

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Christian Christmas Activities With Dough

Working with dough - whether it is playdough, cookie dough or salt dough - is such a great way to strengthen hands and fingers.

  • Baby Jesus and Manger: Create the manger with an oval pinch pot, and roll a ball and a sausage to create baby Jesus.

  • Mary, Joseph, shepherds: Make a pinch pot body base, topped with a ball for a head. Roll some dough and cut out ovals to create head gear and cloaks.
kids will use fine motor skills to make these simple nativity cake toppersCreate nativity-themed cake toppers with fondant
  • Angels: Use a pinch pot for the body and a ball for the head. To make the wings, flatten a small piece of dough and attach it to the back. Roll a tiny, thin "worm" of dough and shape it into a halo.

I used white fondant for simplicity, and added cocoa (cacao) powder to create the brown fondant. But you can purchase pre-colored fondant#Ad for convenience!

simple angel cake topper for kids to makeMaking an angel with fondant

Scripture Connection:  Talk about each part of the story as you work - for example, how strange it must have felt to lay your baby in an animal feeding trough.

Pro Tip: Encourage your child to use the tips of the fingers to roll the balls and create the sausages - this helps build fine motor dexterity. 

Alternative Idea: Nativity Cookies

choose nativity themed cookie cutters for a Christian-themed craft activityUse nativity-themed cookie cutters

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Christian Christmas Word Searches

Okay, technically these are not Christmas crafts, but if you are generally looking for Christian Christmas activities for kids, then you may be interested in the pack of word searches I created specifically with a nativity theme.

Word searches are a great way to help kids work on figure-ground perception and visual discrimination skills, and these Bible-based nativity-themed word searches can help build those skills.

The word search topics include Isaiah 9:6, the angel's message to Joseph, to Mary and to the shepherds, the birth of Jesus, the visit of the Magi, Zechariah and Elizabeth, and Simeon's Song, among others.

printable Christian Christmas word searchesView My Christmas Word Search Printables Now!

View My Christmas Word Search Printables Now!


Christmas is a special time to connect with your kids, and my own kids still remember some of the crafts we created together. Our bead angels are still going strong!

I hope these Christian Christmas crafts for kids bring joy and sweet conversations to your own home as you build your child's skills with a faith-based focus!

For even more skill-building fun, be sure to check out my complete Nativity-based printable packs - perfect for home, class and Sunday School!

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Nativity Based Religious Christmas Printable Packs!Nativity Based Religious Christmas Printable Packs!

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