Christmas Party Games for Kids: How to Plan a Fun Party With Games, Teams and Prizes (Ages 5–10)

A room full of excited children, a plate of mince pies and a sparkly tree – a Christmas party is one of the highlights of the year. Without a plan, though, happy chaos soon turns into real chaos. The good news is that you don't need a party entertainer. With a few simple Christmas party games for kids, a rough timetable and some paper medals, any parent or teacher can run a party children talk about long afterwards. Here is how to plan it, which games suit which ages, how to make teams so nobody is left out, and how to end with every child feeling like a winner.

Plan the party by time

For children aged 5–10, about 90 minutes of games is plenty. Longer than that and the youngest guests get tired; shorter and you barely get going. A simple plan looks like this:

• 10 min – Welcome: make teams and hand out the team cards.
• 15 min – Christmas charades: a lively, noisy start.
• 15 min – Draw and guess: a calmer game round the table.
• 10 min – Candy cane games: quick, silly relays.
• 15 min – Treasure hunt: everyone on the move.
• 10 min – Santa says: a burst of energy before things wind down.
• 10 min – Christmas quiz: back to the table to settle down.
• 5 min – Scores and medals: a happy ending for everyone.

Leave room for food, drinks and loo breaks around the games. If one game is a hit, let it run on and simply skip another – the plan is there to help you, not to rule the party.

Mix lively games with quiet ones

The secret of a calm party is rhythm. After a running or jumping game, choose one where children sit down: draw and guess or the quiz after charades or the treasure hunt. That way the energy rises and falls, and you never have a whole room of over-excited children at once. Santa says is useful at any moment – it gets the fidgets out but needs children to listen carefully.

Christmas party games for kids aged 5–7

• Christmas charades: acting out “building a snowman” or “a penguin walking” needs no reading at all if a grown-up whispers the card.
• Candy cane hunt: hide candy canes around the room and see who finds the most in two minutes.
• Santa says: “Santa says: walk like a penguin!” – but if Santa didn't say it, stand still.
• Treasure hunt: younger children love following clues from the fridge to the sofa to the cutlery drawer. Pair non-readers with an older child or a grown-up.

Christmas party games for kids aged 8–10

• Draw and guess: drawing “a sleigh” or “an igloo” against a one-minute timer – with no letters or numbers allowed – is harder than it sounds.
• Christmas quiz: how many points does a snowflake usually have? What is a baby reindeer called? Teams call out their answers, and the first right answer wins the point.
• Candy cane hook relay: each player holds a candy cane in their mouth by the straight end and passes a second one from hook to hook along the line – no hands.
• Candy cane stack: who can build the tallest tower or longest chain before time runs out?

Older children make brilliant helpers: let them read the quiz questions or keep the scoreboard.

Make teams so nobody is left out

Picking teams in front of everyone can leave someone standing last, so skip it. Hand out team cards at the door instead, or draw them from a hat, and mix ages and friends on purpose. Four teams – say Elves, Reindeer, Snowmen and the Gingerbread Team – work for groups of about 8 to 20 children. With fewer than 8, play as two teams or all together. Give every child a job in turn: actor, artist, guesser, score keeper.

Small prizes and medals for everyone

Keep a scoreboard so the games feel exciting, but make sure the ending is kind. A paper medal for every child – Best actor, Super artist, Treasure finder, Great team player – costs nothing and means a lot. If you add sweets, remember that candy canes are small and hard: not for children under 3, and keep an eye on little ones while they play. Paper candy canes make a sweet-free swap for the youngest.

School party, home party or birthday?

• Class or school party: you may have a whole class and a fixed lesson slot. Choose games that work in rows or at desks – the quiz, draw and guess and Santa says – and play in teams. If you want a treasure hunt at school, write your own clues for hiding places in the classroom.
• Party at home: the treasure hunt really shines here, with clues hidden around the house. An adult hides the clues before the guests arrive.
• December birthday: keep the birthday child at the centre – let them pick the first charades card – and mix Christmas games with the usual cake and candles.

What's in Christmas Party Games

If you would like everything ready to print, Christmas Party Games is a 20-page PDF for children aged 5–10 and groups of 4 to 20. It has 10 games and activities: 24 Christmas charades cards, 24 draw-and-guess cards, 4 candy cane games with 12 paper candy canes to colour and cut out, a treasure hunt with 10 clue cards and a leader sheet with the hiding places, Santa says with 20 commands and a Christmas quiz with 16 question cards. Around the games you get a party plan for about 90 minutes, a page of tips for the party leader, 4 team cards, a scoreboard, 8 party medals, invitations and a colouring page. It comes in seven editions – English, Български, Deutsch, Français, Italiano, Español and Polski – and the English edition has both A4 and US Letter files.

Want to try it first? The free 6-page sample has 12 charades cards, the candy cane games, Santa says and a party invitation. Enter your email on the sample page and the download links appear right there – no cart and no payment.

See Christmas Party Games – 20 pages

When the children have gone to bed and the grown-ups want a game of their own, try Race to the Table, our printable party game for families and adults.

Have a wonderful party – and save a medal for the party leader, too.

Illustrations created with AI assistance and reviewed by hand. The files are for your own family, your own party or your own class.