I really love the holiday season. There’s always so much room for fun, love, laughter, and of course, ACTIVITIES! These are all very welcome things in my household. From sensory play to good old-fashioned crafting, I am always eagerly awaiting the next holiday.

We all know arts and crafts help a child's development greatly, so the holiday activities aren’t only fun, but they’re beneficial! I think it’s just the perfect way to make the holidays more magical for kids. My kids always look forward to the fun holiday activities, like the ones listed below (we’ve actually tried most of them).

I’ve made it my mission to create fun and developmentally helpful activities for any time of year including the holidays! I have hundreds, and you can find all of them on my Mothercould In Your Pocket resource. These activities and crafts are all tried, tested, and LOVED by little ones, and I love to share them with people just like you who are looking to find engaging and beneficial activities for families!

So, today, I’m going to share a roundup of DIY holiday crafts that your kids will love!

23 DIY Holiday Crafts for Kids to Enjoy

Easter Activity Pack

Build A Bunny

For this Easter activity, kids will use their coloring skills and toilet paper rolls to make an adorable Easter bunny! With my printable Build a Bunny activity sheet in the resources, your children will first color the bunny body parts and their toilet paper roll, then cut out the pieces, and finally glue it all together for their 3D bunny masterpiece. 

Not only is it the perfect way to recycle toilet paper rolls (I love recycled play opportunities), it’s also a great way for your littles to exercise their creativity and practice their fine motor skills! 

Egg Matching

Also in my resource is an egg matching printout! Matching is an important skill for brain development, which is why it’s often used in toddler activities! Plus, it’s like their first real puzzle game to develop a lifelong love of being challenged with new learning opportunities. 

For this one, just print out the activity, let your kiddo choose their preferred writing utensil, and let the matching begin! 

Christmas Activity Pack

Design Your Gingerbread House

Ahh, Christmas! I love Christmas, which is why my resource features so many easy Christmas crafts for kids for this holiday season, including this one! This activity is a twist on the beloved gingerbread house tradition. 

Instead of building with actual gingerbread cookies, your little ones can design and color a blank gingerbread house on construction paper! 

This is perfect if you have a kiddo who is too young to build a gingerbread house or you just don’t want to deal with the hassle. Print out blank outlines of the gingerbread houses from the resources, bring out all your kid’s favorite art supplies, and get to designing together! 

Sew Sock Snowman

Want to create something cute and pretty easy? If so, this sew sock snowman is the way to go! This cute little snowman can be sewn or unsewn depending on how much knowledge you have with sewing. The sock snowman craft involves creating a cute little snowman figure using a white sock filled with rice or other stuffing to form the body. You then sew or tie off sections of the sock to shape the head and body with some string or small hair ties. Yarn wrapped around works fine. From there, you can decorate it with items like buttons for eyes, a ribbon for a scarf, and a hat. This simple, fun project is perfect for kids and makes a cute winter decoration.

Paper Ball Reindeer

Do you get paper or plastic? If you’re a paper bag household, this activity allows you to get some more life out of those brown sacks! Your older kiddos (this one will be a little too hard for toddlers) will fold and bend their paper bag into a 3D shape of a reindeer head. 

Then, they can use pom poms (for that red nose!), pipe cleaners, googly eyes, and anything else they want to bring that reindeer to life! Add a string and this craft could even go on the tree. 

Salt Dough Ornaments

Salt dough is a unique DIY putty that starts out moldable, but then hardens and dries into a perfectly preserved moment! We love doing this craft for keepsakes and gifts, because this is not an activity that falls apart after a few weeks. It’s also non-toxic and super easy to make!

Just follow the salt dough recipe and then use cookie cutters to cut out all sorts of Christmas shapes. (And, don’t forget to punch a hole for the ornament string.) Your kids can just choose their favorite shape and texturize the dough using utensils, their fingers, flowers whatever! 

Finally, it goes in the oven and comes out ready for decorating with paint, glitter, stickers, gems, and more! It’s a lot of fun and your kids will be so proud of the Christmas ornaments they make.

Letter to Santa

Every kid dreams of meeting Santa someday, writing a letter to Santa can add so much magic to the holiday season (especially if they get a response.) With this printable activity from the resource, your child can color and decorate Santa and then the two of you can work together to craft the perfect letter to send to the North Pole!

To send a letter to Santa via the US Postal Service, put your child’s letter into an envelope with a postage stamp and address it to 123 Elf Road, North Pole, 88888. Don’t forget your return address for Santa’s response!

Finger Puppets

Who doesn’t love finger puppets? Personally, I think this is one of the BEST Christmas crafts for kids. All you need to do for this creative activity is print off the sheet from the resource, have your kids cut out the puppets, and then let them personalize them with their own festive vision! 

Your child can color and decorate their puppets however they like, making it an engaging activity where your little one can take charge. Once finished, they will have cool finger puppets for a kid-inspired Christmas puppet production. 

DIY Mini Christmas Tree Decoration

This Christmas tree craft has always been a hit in my household. You just use pipe cleaners to create the shape of the tree and your topper! You can go with a traditional green tree with a gold topper, or let your kids go wild with different color combinations! 

It’s fun, inexpensive, and is guaranteed to bring some Christmas cheer into your home. This activity can engage your kids for a long time too, since your kids will probably want to make lots of mini trees for a Christmas forest. 

DIY Snow Globes

Snow globes are a lot of fun to make around the holidays! With corn syrup, glitter, a lidded mason jar, and a few figurines or decorations, your kids can create beautiful snow globes that are definitely display- and gift-worthy! They can be stored and put back up year-after-year to remember this special day of crafting. 

Fingerprint Lights Card

I love when my kids can give people cards on special occasions. It’s just SO special. Kids can get in and play with paint with this activity from the resource. If you’re not comfortable using store-bought paint, taste-safe paint can also be used to keep your little ones tummies and hands safe! 

Simply draw a little “string” with a permanent marker, encourage your child to dip their fingers in the paint, and put their painted fingers down every so often along the “string” to create the string light illustration on the Christmas card! 

Valentine's Activity Pack

Write A Valentine

This Valentine's activity from my resource is all about sharing love. Children can decorate the printed page and write a letter to someone they love! Inspire them to write something kind to loved ones around them. It’s basically a pre-decorated and lined page for them to fill out using their own creative vision.

Heart Envelope

This activity from my resource is so easy, but makes for a really fun final product. You just help your kid follow the cutting and folding guidelines on the free printable and end up with a cute, heart-shaped envelope for your child’s valentines! Children can use their imagination to decorate it and make it look lovely for the person they want to give it to. 

Father’s Day Activity Pack

Design A Tie

My kids loved designing a tie for their dad last Father’s Day. They thought it was so fun, so I had to include it in my resource. I can guarantee Dad will proudly show off his tie. 

All you need to do is print off the tie outline from my resource and let your little ones color it in. Perhaps they can match it to their dad's favorite tie, or create something entirely different. You may just need to help them cut it out!

Handprint Grill

If your child’s dad loves to grill, this activity in the Mothercould resource is PERFECT! The bottom of the grill is already on the page, and you can trace and paint your kid’s hands to create the flames on the grill. Their father will LOVE to frame this for his office or garage! 

Best Dad Ever Trophy

Every Dad deserves a trophy. Help your kids make them their very own, well-deserved trophy to celebrate this special day. It’s so simple to print out the trophy outline and let your little one color it in. You can find the full instructions in the resource!

Halloween Activity Pack

Carve Your Pumpkins

For this Halloween craft, simply print out the pumpkin page on the Halloween Activity Pack from the resource. Then, your kids can use markers or paint on a cotton swab or cotton ball to “carve out” spooky faces in the pumpkins. 

Cutting Ghost Lines

Spooky and crafty? Yes, the ultimate duo! In this activity from the Mothercould In Your Pocket resource, your little ones can practice their hand-eye coordination skills while cutting out the ghost. 

The bottom of the ghost is cut into multiple sections to make it look like it is floating in the air. So fun!

Halloween Mask

What child doesn’t want to wear a fun, spooky mask? I know my kids LOVE it! This activity is easy to cut out, easy to decorate, and easy to find in my resource!

Just help them cut out the eye mask and decorate it with their art supplies of choice. You can add some elastic to it so that they can wear it for Halloween! 

Pipe Cleaner Spiders

Pipe cleaners have SO many great uses, and I’m always down to include them in an activity. This is definitely one of my favorite Halloween activities. Kids can really double down and use their imagination to create a spooky or sparkly spider by twisting pipe cleaners together!

Mother’s Day Activity Pack

Bloom for Mom

Make a beautiful handprint flower for mom for flowers that last all year round! Print off the resource page and have your kids color in the flower stem and the pot. Then, help them write a nice message to mom in the pot! 

Cut out the handprint, the stem, and the flowerpot. You can then glue or tape the handprint on top of the stem, like a flower. Last, but not least, tape the stem to the pot. Mom will LOVE these flowers that she can keep forever, easily made from the activity in the resource. 

St. Patricks Day Activity Pack

Rainbow Dots

With this activity in my Mothercould resource, children can get their hands in some paint for a fun sensory craft! They can play with colors, improve fine motor skills, and just have a blast! The page features a beautiful rainbow, but it’s missing all of its color. 

Your kids can help bring color back by getting your little ones to use their fingers to create dots and fill in the rainbow. Though, if your little one is sensory avoidant, a dot marker works just fine!

Leprechaun Party Hat

Is it really a party without a cool hat? My kids certainly don’t think so! This leprechaun party hat activity from my resource is great for children who love to get creative and be left with something they can be proud of. 

They may just need some help cut along the dotted line, depending on their age. After cutting out the hat, get to coloring and assembling the hat, ready to wear for St. Patty’s Day!

Kick holidays up a notch with these fun crafts!

And there you have it! A list of some engaging, creative, thoughtful, and fun crafts that the whole family can enjoy together! From toddlers and preschoolers to older children, and even mom and dad, these crafts are loved by everyone. These DIY holiday craft ideas can not only create a one-of-a-kind holiday decoration or gift, but it can also establish a beautiful holiday core memory for your family! 

For more activities, check out the Mothercould blog and Mothercould In Your Pocket resource! No matter the time of year, I have something to keep your little ones busy with an engaging and beneficial activity!