DIY Fun Advent Calendars

Advent is a time of anticipation and preparation for the Nativity. It's a special time to give thanks to God and to give to the less fortunate. Making an advent calendar is a wonderful way to get children involved in the holiday season and remind them to give.

Advent Jar

Supplies You Will Need:

A wide mouth mason jar

Glue

Colorful Construction Paper

Crayons

Glitter

Scissors

Pen

Creating an Advent Calendar is simple and it doesn't even have to be in calendar form! An Advent Jar works just as well. Cut 3 different colors of construction paper into 8 strips each. Set these aside. Draw Christmas shaped on another sheet or two of construction paper and cut these out. Decorate them with glue and glitter. Cut a few strips off the leftover construction paper and let kids color these. Glue them to the jar, then glue the decorated shaped on top of that. On the 24 strips you've set aside write 1 good deed to do and one thing to be thankful for or a Bible passage. Each day, draw out a new strip and do that good deed.

Advent Christmas Tree

Supplies You Will Need:

24 toilet paper rolls or 12 paper towel rolls cut in half

Green and Brown Construction Paper or green and brown paint

48 small squares of tissue paper

Glue

Pipe Cleaner

24 strips of paper

Pen

24 small pieces of candy or small toys for each child

Before you begin collecting your items, you need to decide if you are going to paint the toilet paper rolls or if you are going to cover them with construction paper by gluing strips around them. It doesn't matter which method you choose, as long as five toilet paper rolls are brown and the rest are green. If you like, you can paint the inside of each roll so that when the Advent Calendar it together, you still see the green and brown. These can be decorated with glitter if you like.

While the toilet paper rolls are drying, grab your pen and 24 strips of paper. On each paper write one good deed everyone in the family will do that day. You can also write a Bible passage to read and discuss or a section of the Nativity story. Once the toilet paper rolls are dry, punch each end of the pipe cleaner through one green tube. This will be the top of your Advent Christmas Tree and will allow you to hang it. Using one square of tissue paper, place it over the opening of a toilet paper roll, placing a dot of glue on each corner to hold it on. You can also just fix the tissue paper in place with Scotch tape. Fill each tube with the good deed paper and toys or candy. Finish them by attaching a piece of tissue paper at the other end.

Now you're ready to assemble the tree. Create a pyramid with the green toilet paper rolls. Glue these together. You can also grab a needle and thread to put a quick stitch in to hold them together, or use paper clips on the back for reinforcement. Attach one brown tube to the bottom of your pyramid. Be sure this is centered. The final two rows will be two brown toilet paper rolls, which will finish off the trunk of your tree.

Each day, punch out the tissue paper on the end of one of the toilet paper rolls to discover the fun inside. Be sure to do your good deed for the day and have a Merry Christmas!