These Christmas toddler trays have been so loved at our house. They are a festive way to keep your little one learning and busy through the holiday season.
What are some Christmas learning activities I can do with my toddler?
These Christmas trays have been much loved in my house. They are probably some of the best trays ever put together. You might need to spend a little bit more money on these trays than you usually do. You can usually just get a few things from the dollar store and occasionally spend more money on something you know you’ll use a lot. This time, though, you might want to buy the supplies from a craft store. I figure if there is ever a good time of year to splurge on nicer toddler tray materials, Christmas is the time. 🙂
You can support Teach My Toddlers by using the affiliate links from Amazon in our articles to shop. We receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you) which allows us to create helpful free content. Thank you, we appreciate it!
Theme
You can get these great present ornaments and some small stockings. To do this toddler tray, have your child put the present into the stocking just like Santa Claus does! Although, you may have to tell your kids many times that the present is just a decoration and there is nothing inside. You may want to open one up so they can see for themselves. 🙂
Stickers/Stamps
This toddler tray has some super cute gel window clings. Have your child rearrange these on the tray, this will be great fine motor practice. My child surprised me by sticking them on the wall one day and he spent probably 20-30 minutes just playing with them on the wall. I didn’t even think they would stick to the wall, but his creativity gave him a super fun new way to play.
Pouring
This toddler tray had two glass bowls filled with some red and white vase fillers. After the pouring we did with our Thanksgiving trays, I knew we needed another pouring activity. These provide a bit more of a challenge that the sunflower seeds because they are lighter, but you will love this tray.
Gluing
You can use the same red and white vase fillers for this toddler tray. You can also put on a glue bottle and a paper Christmas tree. Have your child glue the vase fillers onto the tree to look like ornaments. Even preschoolers will enjoy this toddler tray! Our preschooler came home from school saw this tray and cut out is own paper star to the tree. 🙂 I guess it’s not a Christmas tree unless it has a star on top.
Sensory
This “tray” is really more of a sensory bin than an actual tray. You can use shredded paper and hide some Christmas items in the bin.
Want all of this Christmas fun in one place?
Skip the prep and the Pinterest rabbit hole. The Christmas Activity Pack gives you 25+ pages of play dough mats, matching, clip cards, coloring, and puzzles — ready to print and play, so helping your child stay entertained doesn’t add stress to the holidays.
Use the extra things you have from the other trays: extra presents, stockings, and vase fillers. Use yellow paper and brown paper so later you can use it as a nativity sensory bins.
You can put nativity pieces into the sensory bin and take out the other Christmas things. Then it will be a nativity sensory bin and your child can find the animals in the “hay”.
Learning Notebook Printables
- Coloring page (Nativity Pack pg. 2 from 1+1+1=1)
- Pre-Writing Practice (Polar Express Pack pg. 2 from 123 Homeschool 4 Me)
- Christmas Matching (Christmas Pack part 2 pg. 41 from 3 Dinosaurs)
- Which One is Different? (Nativity Pre-K Pack pg. 6 from Over the Big Moon)
- Color the Baby Jesus (Nativity Pre-K Pack pg. 18 from Over the Big Moon)
Tray Printables
- Sorting People and Animals (Nativity Pack pg. 10 from 1+1+1=1)
- Size Sorting (Nativity Pack pg. 3 from 1+1+1=1)
- Roll and Graph (Nativity Pack pg. 19 and 21 from 1+1+1=1)
- Lacing Card (Polar Express Pack pg. 33 from 123 Homeschool 4 Me)
- Matching Cards (Christmas Pack part 1 pg. 4-5 from 3 Dinosaurs)
Want more toddler ideas? Visit our toddler learning activities page for everything in one spot.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many trays should I set out at once?
Start with just two or three. Too many choices can overwhelm a toddler. Swap in new ones as the old ones lose their shine.
Where do I store all the tray materials?
A few clear bins or a small shelf work great. Keeping pieces sorted makes it quick to set up a tray when you have a spare minute.
What age are toddler trays best for?
They work well from about 18 months through age 3 or 4. You can make any tray easier or harder to match where your child is.