Christmas Word Games

Word games that are centered around Christmas usually reference the religious aspects of Christmas, as well as the folkloric aspects as well. Many games, such as word searches and anagrams, include words such as “baby,” “manger,” and “Jesus” that are specific to the Christian traditions surrounding Christmas.

Other games stay centered around the Christmas stories that children know and love, such as the Little Drummer Boy, The Nutcracker Prince, Santa, and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Ranger. Popular lyrics of famous Christmas songs, such as “Jingle Bells” and “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire,” also are themes of word games around the holiday season.

When Should I Play Word Games with Christmas Themes?

Most people play Christmas word games during November, December, and January, when Christmas is a central theme in everyday life. Some people search for Christmas word puzzles and games in the summer months, when cool snow and holiday treats are six months away. Whatever the reason, word games that are centered around the themes of Christmas can be really fun for kids and older adults, too.

You can buy a book full of word games about Christmas and the other winter holidays, and they can be very inexpensive as well. They make a perfect stocking stuffer, and if bought during the late winter through the early fall, they could be on “off season” sale.

Links to Christmas-Themed Word Games Online

If you haven’t ever played Christmas-themed word games, your best bet is to look online for games you can play (and print out) for free. This is a great option if you are printing out a packet of games for your students to work on in the classroom, and it is also great if you are looking for Christmas games on a budget.

Here are some great places to get started on your search for word games about Christmas:

Professional Association of Santas Elves in particular is geared to the skill level of children. There are word games that include anagrams, and all sorts of other great activities for kids to enjoy that are Christmas themed.
On Black Dog.net, there are over 30 holiday-themed word searches that you can print out on paper and take with you. Consider this a great option for giving your students something to do in their down time before their Christmas break from school. Or, print out a few of these for your kids to work on while you wait for the desserts to finish cooking at a cookie decorating party. This site in particular is great since, year-to-year, you’ll have enough different puzzles to give your children without duplicating an activity. Also, your kids won’t have to be near the computer to play these games.

DLTK Holidays features lots of games that are best for younger children between the ages of preschool and sixth grade. There are many word games and other brainteaser-type games that will help your kids learn about the holidays as well as boost their brain capacity.
At Puzzles.About.com are more Yuletide-themed games that are fun to play, including jigsaw puzzles, word searches and scrambles, and other fun party games centered around holiday vocabulary.

Making Your Own Christmas Word Puzzles and Scrambles

If you are interested in making your own special Christmas-themed word games, you can do so on your own or with the help of a computer program. If you want to make anagrams, for example, mix up the letters of a few holiday-themed phrases and hand them off to others to have them reassemble the original phrases. Or, try signing onto a site that helps you build your own crossword puzzles, and enter holiday-themed words to make your own Christmas word games.

Christmas Word Games