A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens is one of the most beloved holiday stories of all time and a perfect theme for a Christmas Unit! 

The story has been adapted to film so many times in so many different ways to accommodate all. We have incorporated the story into our Christmas traditions, but also into our learning.

A Christmas Carol Activities for Kids with Free Printables provides so many wonderful hands on work for children to understand so many fun concepts including money, time, and so much more!

We also have many other Christmas activities and printables that childrne are sure to enjoy!

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We are into week two of our Christmas unit.  The kiddos and I LOVING it.  I purposely planned weekly unit studies that were not about Christmas Trees, Santa Claus, Rudolph, Frosty, etc this year.  

Christmas carries many PTSD triggers for Princess.  The less we focus on the traditional kiddos stuff, the better she does.  As she becomes  more comfortable with our family traditions, and how they are different than what she experienced previous to our home at Christmas time (Most and the worst abuse occured during the Christmas season and winter.), we slowly introduce more.  

After mourning the loss of the magical Christmas holidays I remember as a child, that I so desperately wanted to share with my own children, (They only result in extreme behaviors, screaming fits that last for hours, and the destruction of one or more items and/or rooms.) I've started to embrace the changes we've made in traditions and home decor.  

After all, how many parents can say their children, ages 4, 5, & 6 LOVE The Nutcracker?  Such is the same with A Christmas Carol.  I couldn't be more proud, for I love both stories.

We started out our week, watching Mickey's Christmas Carol.  We have the DVD, so it wasn't entirely new to them, but it was a great introduction and very kid friendly.  

During the week, we'll be reading the actual book.  At the end of the week, we'll compare the two.  On Saturday, we'll be heading to a nearby town where they have a Dicken's Christmas.  

All of the characters from A Christmas Carol are dressed in costume mingling with folks on the streets. 

There are musicians playing on street corners.  Free horse drawn wagon rides are available.  It's quite a magical experience, all free.  

The kiddos have never gone, so it should be quite a treat after learning about the story all week.  (I'm hoping to get some pictures.)

Until then, here's what's on our shelves:

A Christmas Carol Activities for Kids with Free Printables

Salt Tray Letters

 

It was not my intention to have this activity back on our shelves again so soon, but Bulldozer loves it and is thriving with it.  

It's amazing to me how writing a letter, using his finger, in a salt tray, makes such a difference in preparation to writing his letters, using a pencil in his journal every day.  

Until Bulldozer gains more confidence and ability in his writing skills, I'm guessing this activity or something like it will remain on our shelves each week.

Source: The free letter cards can be found at Homeschool Creations.

A Christmas Carol Spelling List

Originally, I had wanted to use letter stamps for this week's spelling list, to teach and explain to the kiddos, how books were printed in the past, but I don't have letter stamps and didn't want to spend the money on them this month, with the holidays and all.  

Hopefully by next Christmas I'll have some.

Instead we're using Scrabble pieces.  There are two sets of words.  The easy set is shown in the picture above.

Source: I created the printable for this activity. A Christmas Carol Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Past, Present, & Future Time

My kiddos have an extremely hard time thinking and speaking in terms of things that happened in the past, present and future.  Bulldozer has significant struggles with anything that isn't in the moment.  

I wanted to have an activity that would help them learn the difference between the past, present, and future, using terms they tend to mix up on a regular basis.  

The activity was harder to create than I thought. I almost gave up and just used verbs.  

Thankfully, when I presented what I had finally come up with to the kiddos today, they LOVED it.  It turned out perfect.

 

When I presented the activity today, I had the kiddos place the different slips under the different categories, in no particular order.  The control is for them, when they do the activity on their own.

Source: I created the printable for this activity. A Christmas Carol Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Number Writing Practice

 

I couldn't resist number writing practice when it comes to Ebenezer Scrooge and his clerkship.  This isn't a new activity, but it's great review.

Source: The printable for this activity are free at Homeschool Creations.

A Christmas Carol Sequencing Activity

Bulldozer is starting to become quite proficient at sequencing four to five events.  I was really impressed with how well he did today.  Hooray for progress!

 I just love these cards.  The kiddos sequence the four visitors Scrooge had through the night.

Source:  I created the printable for this activity. A Christmas Carol Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, be sure to click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Scrooge's Clock

 

As I watched A Christmas Carol in preparation for this unit, I noticed so many references to time and clocks. I couldn't resist a time activity.

 

The kiddos will match up the time cards.  There is also an option for them to write the times found on each card, when they're a little more comfortable with telling time.

Source:  I created the printable for this activity. A Christmas Carol Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, be sure to click on the link at the bottom of the post.

Scrooge's Coin Addition

 

The kiddos were so excited about this activity, not necessarily for addition purposes, but for the coins.  However, Dinomite and Princess did a fabulous job with their addition too.  Bulldozer couldn't get past the coins.

 

Source:  I created the printable for this activity. A Christmas Carol Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, be sure to click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Scrooge's Deposits

It's been a while since we've worked with money.  This week was a great opportunity to review.  

The kiddos will match up coin cards with amount cards.  I've provided counting control cards, in case the kiddos forget how to count their coins.

Source:  I created the printable for this activity. A Christmas Carol Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, be sure to click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Christmas Past, Present & Future

 Besides the printable pack, I've got to say, this is my most favorite activity on our shelves.  I printed out a few pictures of the kids from years past at Christmas time, along with a few pictures from this holiday season.  (We've already had two Christmas celebrations.)  

The kiddos will separate the pictures into categories of Christmas Past and Present.  

It doesn't seem that difficult, but Dinomite was the only one who understood at first.  

Once they've separated the pictures, they draw a picture of a Christmas future.  

It was super cute today.  Princess drew a picture of her at Disney World for Christmas with Mulan. 

Dinomite drew a picture of him waking up super early in the morning to see what he got for Christmas.

Jolly Old St. Nicholas

The kiddos continue to practice their Christmas piano piece.  Dinomite and Princess are doing fabulous with it. Bulldozer has the first line memorized.

 Jacob Marley's Locks

 

The kiddos are enjoying these locks again this week!  They're always a huge hit.

Jacob Marley's Chains

Dinomite recognized what this activity was about right away.  He was so excited and connected every link, just so he could walk around like Jacob Marley.

Shoveling Coal

It would have been super cute to have a mini stove or even a black box to use as a stove, but I didn't have one. Instead I just used our little black rocks and two bowls.  Still the kiddo were super excited about it.

Decorating the Christmas Tree

This is a classic Christmas activity, that Princess is okay with.  Each of the kiddos had fun with it today.

Napkin Folding

We were supposed to do this last month, but with everyone sick, we didn't get to it.  I must confess I'm a big entertainer at heart.  

This napkin folding book was given to me by a very special friend while in college.  He knew of my love and passion for table settings.  

To this day, I think it's one of the most favorite gifts I've ever received.  There are so many fun designs.  Dinomite had a blast today testing it out.

Christmas Stamping

I purchased a bunch of Christmas stamps on clearance after Christmas last year.  Dinomite and Princess were super excited about them today.

A Christmas Carol Play Dough Invitation to Play

Bulldozer loved this activity and played with it for quite some time. His first request was for me to help him build a fireplace for the coal. He then used the pipe cleaners to make a fire.  

I was so impressed with his creativity.  There's just something about play dough he's always loved!

Thank you so much to all of my readers for your wonderful comments and support! I hope you have a fabulous holiday season!  We will be back next week with a new theme.  It's a surprise!  

For those who would like more holiday and literature themed activities and printables, be sure to subscribe to our free newsletter by clicking the link below.

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A Christmas Carol Printable Pack

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Christmas would not be the same without the story of the nutcracker for our family.  

We love it!  

The nutcracker is more popular than Santa Claus around here.  

It's only natural that as others learn about Santa Claus, reindeer and elves, that we learn more about our favorite characters with this Christmas Unit: The Nutcracker.

Here's what's on our shelves! The kiddos can't get enough of these activities.

Christmas Unit Week 1: The Nutcracker

The Nutcracker Nomenclature Cards

 

The kiddos will match up pictures and words to corresponding cards.

Source: I created the printable for this activity. The Nutcracker Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Compound Words in The Nutcracker

The kiddos will put together compound words, using the control cards provided.

Source: I created the printable for this activity. The Nutcracker Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Nutcracker Spelling

 

The kiddos will use letter cookie cutters and play dough to spell the words provided.  This activity has been a huge hit this week so far.

Source:  I created the printable for this activity. The Nutcracker Spelling Words Printable is free. For your free copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Ballet Position Sequencing

The kiddos will put the ballet position cards in order from first to fifth.  If they'd like, they can also attempt to do all five positions themselves.  This has been a lot of fun to watch.

Source: I created this printable. The Ballet Position Cards are a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

The Nutcracker Addition

The kiddos will solve the problems on each card, using the snow counters provided. They will then mark the answer using one of their snow counters.

Source: I created the printable for this activity. The Nutcracker Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Greater Than/Less Than Nutcracker Activity

The kiddos will count out nutcrackers and mice to determine if the answer is less than, equal or greater than.  They will use the Christmas trees to mark their answers.

Source: I created the printable for this activity. The Nutcracker Printable Pack is a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

One Less

This activity was inspired by an activity we've used from Homeschool Creations.  I remembered how much the kiddos enjoyed it and thought it would be a great intro into subtraction this month.  

Kiddos roll the die and then mark a number one less than the number shown with a snowflake marker.  They continue to do this until all of the numbers are covered.

Source: I created this printable. The Nutcracker One Less Math Printable is a free printable. For your copy, follow the at the bottom of this post.

Assorted Nut Matching

A nutcracker unit wouldn't be complete without the study of nuts.  This proved to be a challenge with Bulldozer's severe peanut and tree nut allergies.  

I would have loved to have real nuts for the kiddos to sort, but I was too nervous, even if I sealed them all in Ziploc bags.  

Instead, I just printed out two sets of the cards and am having the kiddos match them.

Source: These free cards can be found at Counting Coconuts.

The Nutcracker Cultural Dances

 

Using the puzzle provided, the kiddos will match up The Nutcracker cultural dance cards to their origins.  The puzzle used in this activity is no longer available, but there are several alternatives available on Amazon.

Source: I created the cards for this activity. For your free copy, click HERE.

Orchestra Instruments Sorting

 

We haven't been the greatest at covering our groups of instruments this year so far, so I figured I'd take this week to cover them all.  

Dinomite was super excited, as I checked out one of his favorite orchestra book with CD to teach them the sounds and names of each instrument. 

Today he used the book as his control to sort out all of the instruments.

Now, in regards to the keyboard group.  There is contradicting thoughts in the music world about keyboard instruments being percussion instruments.  I provided a card for keyboards, if you would like to keep them separate.

I love how much my kiddos love their instruments. I'm really hoping they'll be ready to see them live next year, it being their third year studying them. Perhaps even a Nutcracker performance?!

Source: I created this printable. The Orchestra Instrument Nomenclature Cards are a free printable. For your copy, click on the link at the bottom of this post.

The Nutcracker Sensory Bin

 I loved how this sensory bin turned out.  Here's what it includes:

• Nutcracker toothpicks
• foam Christmas glitter balls
• glittery felt snowflakes and Christmas trees
• wooden soldiers
• plastic metallic drum ornaments
• music note ornaments
• cotton balls

Holiday Treat Taste Testing

 In The Nutcracker novel, fruitcake, peppermint, gingerbread, and eggnog are mentioned.  I figured it would be fun to have the kiddos taste everything.  

So far, the gingerbread cookies are the favorite, except with Princess who really enjoys the fruitcake. 

Bulldozer is not able to eat the fruitcake, which is why it's in it's own wrapper. I wash the plate and remove it, when he selects the activity.

The Nutcracker Castle Making

 A castle that looks like sweet treats?  I found these marshmallows at the grocery store and just couldn't resist.  The castle creations have varied greatly. I tried to take pictures of them, but they didn't turn out for some reason.

Tweezing Snowflakes

 The kiddos transfer the snowflakes from one dish to the other using tweezers.  It's been a fabulous fine motor activity, as snowflakes are a little tricky.

Transferring Snowballs

 Kiddos will transfer metallic pom poms "snowballs" from one dish to the other using the spoon.

Paper Snow Fairies

 

I loved this activity/decoration when I saw it.  It's proven to be a little more difficult than expected.  It takes great strength to cut through all layers of the folded paper, when creating the snowflake. Still, Princess loves hers.

Source: I found this activity at Krokotak.

Snow Safety

We're talking a lot about snow safety this month.  Princess really struggles with snow. It seems to be a trigger for her.  What better way to remember to stay safe than to practice putting on our hat, mittens, and boots!

Transferring Ice Cubes & Pouring Water

You can't tell from the picture, but the ice cubes are Christmas tree and snowman shaped.  

The kiddos use the tongs to place the ice cubes into the glasses and then pour water in each one.  

This is not only a great practical life activity but a science activity. 

The kiddos have been asking so many questions about ice and why it does what it does when in water.  I'm loving their little experiments!

It's been a fabulous week so far. We've been reading the book, The Nutcracker, watching the ballet, and listening to the music all week long.

For those who are looking for more Montessori holiday activities and printables, be sure to subscribe to our free newsletter by clicking the link below.

Subscribe to our FREE Newsletter

Don't forget your free printables!

Nutcracker One Less Math Printable

Nutcracker Printable Pack

Nutcracker Spelling Words Printable

Ballet Position Cards

Orchestra Instrument Nomenclature Cards

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