If you’re spending Christmas in quarantine this year, you might be wondering how you can still have a good time with loved ones even if you’re doing your part by staying safe at home together. Thankfully, many of the games people play at Christmas are either meant to, or can be adapted to, take place indoors.
From poking holes in a “tree” to reveal Christmas socks and other fun trinkets, to playing musical chairs with a twist, here are seven Christmas-themed games and activities that are fun for quarantine.
- The “Poke-a-Tree” game is filled with surprises and fun for all ages!
Who doesn’t love a good surprise?! The silly game of “Poke-a-Tree” is interactive and will have the whole family giggling at your findings. The concept is pretty simple: People line up and let one person at a time poke a hole in the tree to discover a special Christmas gift inside. Whatever you find, you get to keep, and everyone takes turns until all the prizes have been poked out of the tree!
- Start with 20-30 paper cups, and fill each with one or two small toys or trinkets. Be sure to pick out items that aren’t too heavy, otherwise they won’t stay securely in the cup.
- Cut out 20-30 circular pieces of green tissue paper (one for each cup) to serve as the clusters of leaves.
- Place a tissue paper circle on the top of each cup to contain the toys inside it.
- Secure a rubber band around the paper circle so that the toys won’t fall out.
- Use a hot glue gun to glue the cups into a tree shape on a piece of foam board.
- Once the glue is dry, use a brown marker to draw the trunk of the tree.
- You’re ready to play!
Depending on who’s participating in the game, you can pick different goodies. Younger kiddos might appreciate bath toys and party horns, while adults could get a kick out of a bottle opener, keychain or even fun winter socks.
- Play musical chairs or the freeze dance game, but with a holiday twist.
Musical chairs and freeze dance are both classic party games for kids and adults alike, and you can make them extra festive by choosing tunes that are inspired by the season. Songs like “Frosty the Snowman,” “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” and “Jingle Bell Rock” are perfect to get family members of all ages up and moving.
- Close your eyes, and try to pin the red nose on the reindeer.
This festive spin on pin the tail on the donkey brings just the right amount of Christmas cheer to the holiday season. You don’t have to invest in buying a fancy version of this game at the store; simply print out an image of your favorite red-nosed wonder along with a few extra noses to place on him.
If you’re playing this game with little ones, you can use tape instead of actual tacks, and to stay extra sanitary, you can use the honor system that everyone will cover their eyes instead of sharing a blindfold.
- Adapt the classic “shoe pile game” for a festive and energetic activity: the festive “sock pile” game.
A game that is sometimes played in schools, or even as an ice breaker activity in professional settings, is the “shoe pile game,” which involves everyone to put their shoes in the center of a room and work together to determine whose shoes belong to whom. One way to adapt this game in a high energy way, that doesn’t require people to wear their shoes into the house, is to make it a “sock pile game” instead!
Have everyone wear a pair of their favorite fun winter socks to play, and maybe even have a few pairs of Christmas socks for people to claim before you start, then throw them into a pile in the center of the room. Once all the socks are in the center, have everyone run to the middle and find their socks as fast as they can. To make it a competitive game, the first one to find both socks is the winner. To inspire teamwork, you can set a goal time to beat for everyone to get their socks back on!
- Decorate mini “gingerbread” houses so that everyone can have their own.
If you have visitors coming over as part of your quarantine circle, you still might not be too eager to share food with them. It is a pandemic, after all! To make the process of decorating gingerbread houses more sanitary, consider decorating cookies or building mini houses out of graham crackers, instead. Everyone can either bring their own decorating supplies, or you can separate them out into different batches for each decorator.
- Sing some Christmas karaoke songs together with your closest friends and family.
Christmas songs are not only fun to listen and dance to, but they also often have lyrics that seem to invite you to sing along! Christmas karaoke is a perfect way to get into the holiday spirit with the people you love. Sing solo songs, do a few duets or even get the whole family singing carols together. Hours could pass and you wouldn’t even know!
- Participate in a cherished family Christmas tradition: decorating the tree together.
One of the most heartwarming ways to welcome the holiday season into your home is by decorating your Christmas tree. The time-honored tradition of playing festive songs and trimming the tree together is such a special way to bond with your loved ones. Whether you use tinsel, or homemade ornaments, strung popcorn, lights or candy canes, each tree is equally special.
If you want to build another activity into the decorating process, the Christmas pickle is a fun tradition that inspires the inner sleuth in all of us. Once all the ornaments are hung, one person secretly hangs a pickle-shaped ornament on the tree. On Christmas morning, everyone else searches for where the pickle is hiding within the branches. The first person to find the pickle might get to open their presents first, receive a bonus present or be blessed with good fortune for the new year!
A Very Merry Quarantine Christmas
Just because you’re spending your Christmas at home this year doesn’t mean you can’t keep yourself (and the kids!) happy and entertained throughout the holiday season. From games, to crafts, to decorating tasty treats, quarantine can still be tons of fun.
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