Inside: Fun ideas for Christmas school with Christmas around the world printables and activities perfect for the month of December.
I love the holiday season, and one of my favorite traditions is doing fun Christmas activities with my kids throughout the month of December.
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A couple of years ago we spent the month learning about Christmas traditions in different countries using a mix of books, videos, recipes, and free printables.
It was such a fun way to explore different Christmas traditions, winter holidays, and the traditions of Christmas from all over the globe.
If you’re looking for lesson plans, hands-on Christmas activities, or printables to incorporate into your homeschool or classroom, this round-up pulls together all my Christmas posts from various countries including Mexico, England, Brazil, Germany, Peru, and Italy.
Each post includes book lists, fun facts, printable activities, crafts, and recipes / food ideas that highlight each country’s celebrations.
To make it easier to find the free Christmas printables and resources you are wanting I’m going to be sharing things by country.
Find the country below you want to learn more about, and you will find links to books, videos, recipes, printables, and more all about that specific country.
Studying Christmas Around the World
As a homeschool mom, I do things a little differently than a traditional classroom teacher. I never create a perfectly written-out lesson plan.
I simply gather a stack of picture books, chapter books, YouTube videos, activities, recipes, and Christmas Around the world worksheets, coloring sheets, and free Christmas printables and then we just go for it.
Because of that, each lesson looks different every single day. We might spend extra time on something my kids love, or skip past something if it’s not connecting that day. We might add in pom poms, a nativity scene, a Christmas card, or even pull in random supplies from the previous year.
One of our favorite things to learn as we travel around the world with our Christmas study is how people say Merry Christmas greeting in a different language.
We also love taking a few minutes to watch quick video clips about Christmas markets, Christmas lights, or how Santa Claus is celebrated in another part of the world.
General Christmas Around the World Unit Resources
Before we get into Christmas celebrations in specific countries, I want to share some general resources that are helpful for multiple countries and putting together your unit studies. These are a great way of getting an overview of Christmas celebrations around the world.
Christmas Around the World Books
Before you jump into each specific country, here are great books to use as a starting point.
- Christmas Around the World — Mary D. Lankford (see on Amazon)
- A great overview of Christmas in a number of countries (12) with a lot of information, including Christmas weather, greetings in a different language, and holiday symbols.
- Christmas Traditions Around the World — Ann Ingalls (see on Amazon)
- Perfect for a wide grade level range with simple facts, beautiful illustrations, and details like what Santa Claus is called in 10 different countries.
- Christmas Around the World — Emily Kelley (see on Amazon)
- A World of Cookies for Santa — M.E. Furman (see on Amazon)
- One of my favorite Christmas books! This picture book shares the treats Santa finds in different countries around the world. Plus, actual cookie recipes to make several of the different cookies are included in the book. Great for a fun Christmas baking day
Christmas Around the World: Posts by Country
Below you’ll find the entire list of our Christmas studies by country. Each specific countries post includes book lists, recipe / food ideas, a free printable worksheet, as well as traditions, and important information about the country’s celebrations.
Good luck deciding which countries to learn about this year, I want to learn about all of them every year, but we just don’t have enough time.
Christmas in Italy
Learn about La Befana, the Three Kings, Presepe (Italian nativity scenes), and traditional Italian Christmas foods. Checkout what we included in our study of Christmas in Italy and get the free printables we used.
Christmas in Mexico
Learning about Christmas in Mexico you’ll find fun facts like and traditions like Las Posadas and poinsettias. How to say Merry Christmas (Feliz Navidad) and delicious food.
Plus, some books to read including The Legend of the Poinsettia and Night of Las Posadas. Checkout our study of Christmas in Mexico here.
Christmas in Brazil
Learn about celebrating Summer Christmas traditions, nativity displays, music, and delicious Brazilian Christmas food. Plus, checkout the fun floating Christmas tree craft we made.
Christmas in Germany
So many of our modern Christmas traditions started in Germany have fun learning about Advent wreaths, gingerbread, Christmas markets, and the origins of modern Christmas trees.
Christmas in Peru
Learn about the Peruvian nativity traditions, unique foods, music, and how the Christmas holiday is celebrated in this South American country.
Christmas in Sweden
Have fun learning about unique Swedish Christmas traditions and trying some popular foods in Sweden during the holidays.
Christmas in England
Learn about Father Christmas, crackers, puddings, mince pies, and boxing day. We are studying Christmas in England this year so this post has the least information since we haven’t completed this country yet (but you can still see what I’m planning and get the printable).
In the future I would love to continue to learn about Christmas holidays in different parts of the world (South Africa, the rest of the United Kingdom, Canada and Denmark are at the top of the list).
Have Fun Learning Together
The Christmas season is a perfect opportunity to:
- Incorporate reading with holiday books
- Add culture-rich crafts to your Christmas theme
- Try new foods
- Use Christmas around the world worksheets in your elementary grade level plans
- Introduce kids to world history
- Explore different countries and different Christmas traditions
- Connect learning from this year to next year by building a tradition your family can return to
Whether you’re teaching 1st grade or older kids, these fun Christmas unit studies are a great addition to your Christmas school days in December.