Christmas gift giving ideas for families

Whether it’s parents giving gifts to children or children learning how to give to others, presents are a Christmas tradition that many choose to observe. Here are some gifted ideas from other parents that might work in your family:

Pass the parcel

Try this fun musical game that kids in the United Kingdom enjoy. Prepare beforehand by wrapping a gift in multiple layers of wrapping paper in various patterns.

To play, children sit on the floor in a circle and pass the gift to the next person while a song plays in the background. An adult stops the music at random intervals. The child who’s left holding the gift unwraps one layer. Then the music continues. The music starts and stops until a child removes the last layer of wrapping paper. That child gets to keep the gift.

Tip: Remember the innermost layer’s paper pattern to know when the game is nearing the finish. – © 2020 T.F. Edword

Papa sacks

Before unwrapping Christmas gifts, our family opens brown paper bags we call “Papa Sacks.” They typically contain fruit, peanuts, some candy and a simple gift. The bags remind us how our grandparents and great-grandparents could not afford Christmas gifts during the Great Depression. Most years they received very little, but they still enjoyed and celebrated Christmas. Papa Sacks are a family tradition that reminds us that Christmas is not about expensive presents but about celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. – © 2020 David Cox

St. Nicholas Day

After my son Nicholas was born, we decided to celebrate St. Nicholas Day on Dec. 6. Every year, the kids lay out their shoes before bed. We read the story of Nicholas of Myra, who left gold in the shoes of poor girls. In the morning, our kids wake up to a surprise: gold coins (chocolate!) and a new tree ornament.

Something else we do is let the kids decide on a way to practise the spirit of giving. Some years our family has volunteered in a soup kitchen. One year, we rang the bell for the Salvation Army in near-freezing temperatures. Their favourite activity has been filling shoeboxes with gifts for children in need through Operation Christmas Child. The hope is that perhaps they will change someone’s life through their service. – © 2020 Megan Bray

Enjoying small gifts

My children enjoy their Christmas gifts on Christmas Day, but I also wanted them to appreciate the lip gloss or Matchbox car that was in their stockings instead of overlooking them. So my husband and I came up with the 10 Days of Christmas. On Christmas Day, our children open their larger packages, but only open one stocking gift. The following nine days, they can choose an additional stocking gift after dinner. One rule: No feeling, squeezing or smelling still-wrapped gifts. It worked well. A small present that would have been tossed aside on Christmas Day was sincerely appreciated on day six. – © 2019 Barbara Higby

Making a list

When I go shopping with my children, I let them know, “We’re not getting things for
 ourselves today.” But I do want to acknowledge their interest in those items.

Perhaps one will say, “I love this race car! Can I get it?!”

Instead of shrugging it off and telling my son or daughter to put it back, I admire the race car with my child and take a picture so when it comes time for Christmas or birthday gifts, I have a list of ideas. And the act of recognizing the child’s feelings
 and interests makes him or her feel validated. – © 2019 Jesse Neve

A photo book for grandma

Our daughters were adopted at ages 4 and 2. During those beginning months of getting to know each other, I let them wear the outfits they chose, even if I didn’t personally
 approve of their selections. They’ve worn princess costumes to the grocery store, swimsuits to general merchandise stores and poufy dresses to the veterinarian.

I let them choose what they wanted to wear and then snapped a photo. The silliest and most un-matching outfits became a photo book that we sent to the grandparents at Christmas. It became our unique way of documenting how the girls were growing and changing. – © 2019 Caitlin Frost

The gift of yourself

One Christmas, my family decided to give each other the gift of ourselves. As a
 family, we talked about each of our strengths and abilities and discussed ideas for how each person could use his or her God-given gifts to be a blessing to others. One child read a story to her siblings. Another cleaned a sibling’s room. This ended up being one of our most memorable – and enjoyable – Christmases ever. Each person’s acts of service were a true blessing to each recipient. – © 2019 Marybeth Mitcham

Heartfelt stocking stuffers

When the stockings go up, our children grab their pens and coloured paper. Our family fills stockings with creative love notes during the days before Christmas. I write
 acrostics for the kids’ names. Big Sis writes silly poems. Daddy writes a special memory he’s had with each child. On Christmas Day, we read our notes to one another. – © 2019 Laura Costea

A gift from baby

When our oldest son was a few months old, my wife used finger paints to cover a
 white shirt with his handprints and footprints. She gave the shirt to me as a gift, along with a card from the two of them. To this day, we still enjoy pulling out that shirt and card and remembering those first few months after our son was born. – © 2019 David Cox

The family basket

My children created gift baskets for their teachers that included the following:

• A board or card game with a note from the child that explained why our family loves the game.
• A cozy fleece blanket.
• A few of the teacher’s favourite snack items.

We put everything in pretty plastic bins that the teachers could use in their classrooms, added tissue paper and included a handwritten note saying that we hoped they would relax and have fun with their families during Christmas break. – © 2018 Holly Kallemyn

The class stash

Often, what’s on a school supply list doesn’t last until the end of the school year – especially tissues and cleaning wipes. So my family looks for sales and coupons for these items all year. Then we designate a location in our home for the “class stash.” My children are in charge of keeping it organized. At Christmas, we wrap the supplies in reusable bags, add handmade cards and present these gifts to my kids’ teachers. – © 2018 Karinda McGraw

Tea trees

One gift that was a hit at Christmas was a handmade “tea tree.” Supplies include one cone from a craft store, individually wrapped tea bags and a homemade cardboard star. My children decorated their tree by using glue dots to attach the tea bags to the cone. Then they glued a toothpick to the star and pushed it into the top of the tree. It was a beautiful gift people admired and actually used. – © 2018 Courtney Roberts

Christmas cubes

Hannah, age seven, carefully traced a little lamb, Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus on four wooden blocks. Then she coloured each figure with markers. When finished, she gave her Nativity set to her grandmother. It was one of the first gifts she was able to make all by herself. – © 2018 Kristin Jarvis Adams

The gift of time

One of the most memorable Christmas gifts our children gave to their grandparents was a letter that offered a commitment to 12 days of service. One day a month for a year, the kids would help them in various service projects of their choosing. We marked the days on a calendar as we agreed on the service dates. That year, my kids’ grandparents were thrilled to serve side by side with their grandchildren every month. – © 2018 Valarie Schenk

Growing teacher gifts

Six weeks before winter break, I helped my children plant amaryllis bulbs in decorative pots so they could give the flowers as Christmas gifts to their teachers. These trumpet-shaped flowers come in several colours; however, my children chose a deep-red flower that was festive for Christmas. Once the stems were about an inch tall, the plants started growing very fast. The kids were excited about measuring the plants each day. When they gave the amaryllis plants to their teachers, my children felt as if they had helped “make” their teachers’ gifts. – © 2017 Barbara Weddle 

Gifts for teacher

• Christmas cookies or fudge are always a good idea!
• Your kids can record classmates telling what they like about their teacher and classroom. Give it on a flash drive.
• Make a teacher emergency kit filled with snacks: caramel corn, dried fruit and favourite candies.
• Decorate a jar of honey with a note that says: “Thanks for Bee-ing the Sweetest Teacher Ever!”
• Make an arrangement of pencils with tissue-paper or construction-paper flowers around the erasers.
• Tie curling ribbon around the neck of a bottle of your teacher’s favourite soft drink.
• Get a group of kids from class to do extra chores for money so they can put the money in a class fund that lets their teacher buy the classroom supplies she needs. – Sheila Seifert / © 2017 Focus on the Family

Wrapping with purpose

With brown paper and craft supplies before us, I ask my girls these questions:

• Why do we give and receive presents at Christmas?
• Who were the Magi, and what did they bring to the baby King?
• How is Jesus the greatest gift the world has ever received?

Then we design wrapping paper that visually reflects our answers. Our decorations include pictures, words, phrases and Bible verses. Christmas wrapping paper has become a way to teach my children about giving and a new avenue for my family to spread the Gospel. – © 2015 Kathryn O’Brien

The night before Christmas . . .

On Christmas Eve, our three children each open one present. The present contains a new pair of pajamas, a Christmas book inscribed with the date, and a handwritten note from both my husband and me. In the note we write what we appreciate about that child and the dreams we have for him or her for the upcoming year. Our children look forward to this treasured tradition every Christmas. – © 2015 Delinah Soon

Gift giving and siblings

My husband and I always thought giving our children the freedom to choose gifts for their siblings was the right approach, but we changed our minds the year our 12-year-old gave his younger brothers matching 98-cent rubber mallets — with price stickers still attached. The younger boys had spent around $10 each on their big brother and were hurt by his thoughtlessness. Over the years, those mallets have become a family joke and found their way back under the tree more than once. At the time, though, we needed an intervention.

We tasked the boys with learning about each other, specifically focusing on the following categories: favourite activities, dearest possessions and “most important.” We left “most important” open-ended for individual interpretation. It generated some interesting insights.

We then had the boys list their observations and write one paragraph describing what they liked most about that brother. When their projects (and subsequent whining) were done, we thanked the boys and put their “reports” away, thinking we would pull them out as necessary.

There was never a need. The act of getting to know what was important to one another caused a shift from “me-based” buying to “you-based” giving. Learning these things firsthand somehow gave them a desire to please each other with their gifts, and that has made all the difference. – © 2011 Karen Klasi 

Thoughtful giving

When my eight-year-old daughter, Annabelle, wanted to give Christmas presents to her entire second-grade class, I admired her generous spirit. But given our tight finances, saying yes to even dollar-store gifts for 21 kids seemed unachievable. Before I could squelch her generosity, she began gathering an assortment of items we had at home. Her creativity shone as she selected unused or gently used gifts, from unopened sticky notes and still-bagged kids meal toys to Mason jars of a classmate’s favourite candy. She had a reason behind every choice, including a teddy bear she’d bought for herself but decided to give to a boy whose father was serving in the military overseas. My favourite was the VBS Bible she chose for a boy who didn’t have one.

As we filled a grocery sack full of brightly wrapped treasures that evening, I realized we’d both learned an important lesson about generosity: We always have enough to give, especially when we don’t approach giving with unrealistic expectations. – © 2014 Lindsey Brackett

Choosing gifts for tweens

Last Christmas, I struggled with what to give my tween. She was a girl tottering between childhood and adulthood, between wanting to play with toys and wanting to be grown-up. I didn’t want her to leave childhood behind so quickly, so I purchased a whimsical toy – an advanced LEGO set I thought she’d enjoy. I also wanted to recognize the fact that she was growing up, so I looked for a gift that reflected her adult side. I wanted to acknowledge her emerging emotions and her changing interests, so I purchased a set of wood-carving tools. I reminded my daughter of her ability to see things that others can’t, and encouraged her to express that through her creativity. The first thing she carved was an owl’s face from a thick stick. A touch of childhood and a dash of adulthood equalled one special Christmas celebration. – © 2012 Tammy Darling

Three-gift rule

Because I enjoyed shopping for my four children, I often went overboard at Christmas. Presents spilled out from under the tree – even before gifts from the grandparents arrived! My husband and I realized we were encouraging our kids to have unrealistic expectations. So we implemented the “three-gift rule” (not counting small stocking stuffers) in the spirit of the three gifts from the Magi.

That first Christmas was difficult. Are my kids missing out? I wondered as friends and relatives shared excitement about all the toys they bought. But I learned to appreciate the simplicity of the idea. It provides a limit and prevents me from buying on impulse. We’re more thoughtful about choosing gifts, and the post-Christmas clutter is manageable. Most important, the three-gift rule reminds our family that Christmas is much more than shiny gadgets and sparkly bows.

One year, I overheard my daughter telling an incredulous young friend that she only got three presents. “I got more than I could count,” he said. I braced for a “No fair!” from my daughter. Instead, she replied, “I think it’s kinda cool. It makes me feel like baby Jesus.” Is there any greater gift I could give my children? – © 2013 Vanessa Peters

Christmas workshop for kids

“Do you remember what you got from Jimmy last year for Christmas?” I asked my son DJ.

“No, but I made him the rubber-band gun and a target,” he replied.

“I made Baby Joanie a mobile with pink butterflies,” his sister Rachel volunteered. Her hands fluttered like the paper butterflies hanging from the wire.

Every year, I organize a Christmas workshop for each of the children. I Google simple crafts that each child could make with minimal help. Last Christmas, even my two-year-old, Josh, participated, colouring paper twirlers and putting stickers on barrettes. I also recorded a skit the children performed as a gift for their dad.

Come Christmas morning, the children love to give their gifts and explain how each was made. The cardboard basketball hoop, giraffe puppet, flipbook, foam bathtub race car and fabric heart-shaped box may not last forever, but the memories of giving from the heart will last a lifetime. – © 2013 Jennifer Garrett

Sibling gift idea

To teach their daughters about the value of giving gifts, Molly and Brad helped their nine-year-old, Reilly, create a surprise for her younger sister.

Reilly often read books to seven-year-old Calley, sometimes subbing for Mom or Dad at bedtime. So the idea of making an audiobook for her story-loving sister seemed perfect. After selecting seven stories from among Calley’s favourites, Reilly read them out loud into a recording device, using different voices for each character.

Christmas morning, she barely contained her excitement as Calley opened the gift and shrieked with delight. – © 2009 Cathy Elliott

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