Toilet roll advent calendar (or envelopes) with kids

Age: 6+ · Time: 90 min · For: Ages 6–9 Ages 10–12

A homemade advent calendar makes the countdown to Christmas twice as exciting: first the making, then 24 mornings of opening. Instead of 24 chocolates, this one is filled with little things to do together, which makes December feel special for the whole family.

24 ideas for the slips

Make paper snowflakes. Drink hot chocolate in pyjamas. Bake biscuits. Draw a card for a neighbour. Read a Christmas story under a blanket. Build a blanket fort. Go on a Christmas lights walk. Have a dance party to Christmas songs. Make a paper chain. Write a list of things you are grateful for. Call or video call Grandma. Do a Christmas jigsaw. Choose the dinner tonight. Make a pine cone decoration. Play a board game. Decorate the windows. Have a picnic on the living-room floor. Tell a joke at breakfast. Wear something red all day. Watch the stars with a torch. Make a bird feeder. Give someone a compliment. Wrap a present together. Read the first chapter of a new book.

Tips

Plan the activities around your calendar: put the busier ones on weekends.
Keep a few easy ones for tired school days.
Save the calendar and refill it next year.

You need

24 empty toilet rolls (or 24 envelopes)
paint, felt tips or scraps of wrapping paper to decorate them
a sturdy box or the lid of a shoebox
PVA glue or a glue stick
scissors
24 small slips of paper and a pen
clothes pegs and string (for the envelope version)

Steps

Decorate the rolls with paint, felt tips or wrapping paper. Leave them to dry.
Write a number from 1 to 24 on each roll in big, clear figures.
Write a small activity on each slip of paper (see the ideas below), fold it and put it inside a roll.
Close both ends of each roll by pressing them flat and folding them in, like a little parcel, or cover the ends with circles of paper and glue.
Stand the rolls upright in the box, in a muddle or in order, or stack and glue them into a pyramid tree shape.
Envelope version: number 24 envelopes, put a slip in each and peg them to a string along the wall or the stairs.

Questions

What can I put in the rolls apart from sweets?

Little activities work best and cost nothing. A sticker, a hair clip or a small seasonal treat now and then is fine, but the activities are what children remember.

How do I keep it fair with brothers and sisters?

Take turns opening, or make one calendar per child with the same activities so everyone gets a turn.