Christmas Holiday Word List Games

'Tis the season to make learning fun. Christmas holiday words can be used to build reading and spelling skills. Simple games, activities, and a holiday word list are below.

Use the holiday words that follow to play these word games:

Alphabetical Order
Write a selection of the holiday words on index cards and mix them up. Students place the cards in correct alphabetical order.

Word Search
Use the holiday words below to create a word search activity. There are free word search activity generators available online, such as the one at The Teachers Corner: http://worksheets.theteacherscorner.net/make-your-own/word-search/word-search.php

Word Scramble
Choose several holiday words, and rewrite them as scrambled words. Provide students with the correct spelling, and challenge them to find the matching scrambled word. For example, ewarht = wreath

Create Sentences
Ask the students to choose words from the holiday list, and write complete sentences using the word. For an extra challenge, ask children to write sentences with question marks, exclamation marks, quotation marks, and commas.

Memory Matching Game
Choose six holiday words from the list below. Write each word two times on separate index cards. Mix up the twelve word cards, then lay them face down in a 4x3 grid. Children take turns turning cards over, trying to find matching pairs. The student with the most matching pairs at the end is the winner of the game.

Hangman Game
This game can be played with the whole class, or a small group. Choose one word from the list below. Draw lines on the board to indicate for the children how many letters are in the word, as well as a pole for the hangman. Students take turns guessing letters in the word. An incorrect guess requires that one body part be drawn hanging from the pole. Write each guessed letter along the side of the pole. When students correctly guess a letter, it should be written on the lines forming the word. A visual example of this game is available at: http://www.bellaonline.com/code/hangman/listsites.asp

Christmas Holiday Word List

Enjoy more holiday word fun using Mad Libs! Christmas Fun Mad Libs and Christmas Carol Mad Libs: Very Merry Songs and Stories, both by Roger Price, are available at Amazon.com.

	Mary Ann Graziani BellaOnline's Reading Editor