What is Advent?
Traditionally, Advent marks the beginning of the Christian Year and takes place the four weeks before Christmas. Beginning on November 29 or the nearest Sunday. The word Advent comes from the Latin ‘Adventus’ and means the arrival or coming to signify the birth of Jesus. It is a time for celebration and preparation until Christmas Day.
Advent is typically a time heavily anticipated by children as they start to get excited for the big day. In this blog we share a few activity ideas for you to try with your little ones to mark the festive season.
Make your own Advent Wreath
An advent wreath or an advent crown can be used to celebrate advent and typically consist of a ring of evergreen like holly and ivy and four candles – one for each Sunday leading up to Christmas. Many variations of this type of wreath exist and it can be a fun and simple craft for your little ones that will be admired for the 25 days until Christmas!
For this craft you will need:
- Cardboard (we used an old cereal box)
- Clay or playdough
- A selection of greenery
- Candles
To make your advent wreath
- Start by drawing a circle on your cardboard. This forms the base of your wreath so you can make it as large or as small as you like. Then cut it out!
- Next add your clay/dough to your cardboard base until you have a substantial layer. This is what you will stick your greenery in to.
- Now you will want to add your candle(s). We used one advent candle here but you could use the traditional four – and press them firmly into the clay
- Head outside and collect your greenery to add to the wreath. (You could also use artificial leaves or even green tissue paper)
- Finally you just need to add your greenery around the candle(s) by pushing them at angles into the doughy base and voila!
DIY Advent Calendar
Having an advent calendar is something many people have adopted and learnt to expect in the run-up to Christmas. Modern-day calendars can contain a whole array of different gifts from chocolate and sweets to even cheese and tea!
This year why not have a go at creating your own advent calendar and filling it yourself for a more personal touch for your class or home!
To make our DIY advent calendar you will need:
- A large piece of cardboard (we used an old box)
- 24 cups
- Glue
- Squares of tissue paper
- Elastic bands
- A selection of small gifts
Start by placing all of your cups on a piece of cardboard – we did ours in a Christmas tree formation. Once all the cups are on the cardboard you will have a better understanding of the size you will need to cut out from the cardboard.
Once the card is cut out you can add your gifts into the cups and add a square of tissue paper on top and securing with an elastic band. Make sure you have numbered your tissue paper for all the days leading up to Christmas!
Add a dot of glue to the bottom of your cups and add it to your cardboard piece in the same formation.
Now that your advent calendar is complete you can start the fun! For each day your little one(s) will have to pierce a hole in the tissue paper to retrieve their gift for the day!
Why not fill your advent calendar with something different and personal such as “tokens” for days out or activity ideas to participate in as well as your traditional chocolate or sweet treat?
We would love to hear about any other Advent activities you enjoy, share your activities and creations with us on social media by tagging us or using the hashtag #ExploreWithEYR.
