Reindeer are not just cute animals with antlers. They are fascinating creatures from whom we can learn a lot! These animals are often featured in Christmas crafts because Rudolph and the gang are responsible for lugging gifts to children all over the world. You may also see reindeer-shaped Christmas lights that twinkle like fireflies. We thought we’d expand on the reindeer fun with this free Reindeer Craft just in time for the holidays! You can get your free template at the bottom of this blog post.
If you want to enjoy a crafty morning, occupy your kids, create ornaments, or channel your inner artsy momma, this reindeer craft is perfect. It is fun but also educational – enables the kids to color, cut, and glue different puzzle pieces, and engages many different areas of the brain.
Are you kids fascinated by reindeer? We have tons of other reindeer craft ideas for kids for you to check out.
Benefits of Reindeer Craft
There are tons of reasons for making homemade crafts! In a nutshell, crafts are educational, fun, and excellent for wellbeing and creating traditions. You could argue that following instructions can restrict creativity, but learning to follow instructions is a key component of many traditional crafts like knitting, sewing, and even origami. We try to complete at least one art/craft activity per week. Here are the key benefits:
- Promotes well-being and mental health
- Fine motor skills development
- Spatial awareness
- Learn to follow instructions
- Opens kids up to new ideas
- Problem-solving
- Builds traditions during the holidays
Read more about the benefits of arts and crafts for children.
Recommended supplies:
- Cardstock
- Glue stick
- Crayons or markers or watercolors
- Scissors – help your little ones if they don’t know how to use these yet.
- Coloring materials – pens, crayons, markers, colored pencils, paints, and whatever you have.
- Laminator (optional) – laminating these pieces prolong the use of the activity.
- Glitter (optional) – sparkle is always a good idea.
- Googly eyes (optional) – this adds wonderful texture.
- Pom poms (optional) – we used this for the reindeer’s tail. Use a red pom pom for Rudolph’s nose if you want a more festive look.
Check out our favorite kindergarten and preschool supplies list here.
Reindeer Craft Printable
We created a free reindeer craft template with directions to help make this activity simple and easy!
Included in the printable are two additional special elements:
- I can cards – these help the kids track what skills they’ve achieved through the activity, which ultimately boosts their self-confidence.
- Writing page – this encourages the kids to use their imaginations and explore the question ‘If I were a reindeer…’
Both color and black and white options have been included to suit your individual needs. This is so your little ones can choose whether or not they want to decorate their reindeer with their craft supplies and colors, or if they prefer the reindeer already colored in and ready to cut out.
If you pick the black and white printable, you will first need to color it in. Your child or student can get incredibly creative here. If they heart crafty things, this can be very stimulating. Maybe add some glitter, sequins, bows, ribbon, or popsicle sticks to create a ‘popsicle stick reindeer.’ This turns simple reindeers into extra fun reindeer crafts. You can let the kids draw candy canes around the page for a whimsical touch. If you’re feeling silly, stick the reindeer onto a sealed candy cane to create a candy cane reindeer.
Next, cut out the pieces of this cute reindeer craft and glue them together using a glue stick. The kids can stick it onto our included base page or on white cardstock. You could also use double-sided tape if you don’t want to use glue (this is great if your little one turns into a messy little monster at the sight of glue.)
What to Do with Your Reindeer Craft
Display your adorable reindeer! Put it up on the fridge or use it as Christmas ornaments. My little one pulls out her reindeer ornament every year! The things you can do with reindeer crafts are endless. Here are some ideas:
- Give them as a personalized gift
- Stick them on paper plates and turn it into a paper plate reindeer craft which you can use as decor.
- Create a reindeer ornament. Punch a hole and tie a piece of string through it. Don’t forget to knot it.
- Sometimes kids stick bottle caps to the back of the outline to create a 3D effect. Bottle cap reindeer is a hit in our home.
- You can let your little ones cover the drawing in fingerprints to make the activity a part of sensory play and create a handprinted reindeer craft.
- Stick it onto a jar to create your own special reindeer mason jar. Holiday drinks taste so much better in a personalized cup.
- Leave it as a special gift for Santa with milk and cookies.
- Turn them into stick puppets or make a reindeer finger puppet!
Top Tips for Holiday Crafts
- Set up your crafting area: this is a safe space for the kids to be creative. They can feel free to make a mess, and you can easily clean it up because it’s contained in one area.
- Make sure the crafts are appropriate for kids: this is our job. We curate only the most fitting tasks with your little ones in mind. Our activities can be adapted to suit all ages, from toddlers to preschoolers and even older kids.
- Work as a team: Your little ones are young, and it is okay to give them a helping hand. There is also a fine balance between taking over and giving them some guidance. Personally, I help my toddler with cutting the pieces and then let her decorate and stick all the pieces as she prefers. Do not be alarmed if things don’t look perfect; this just adds more character to the artwork!
- Focus on one activity: By focusing on one activity at a time, little ones are not overwhelmed and won’t lose concentration or jump between crafts.
- Don’t rush: Patience is key! Try not to start a crafting session when you have something else planned so you can give yourself and the kids enough time to work on and enjoy the craft.
Here are more tips on how to keep kid craft activities stress free.
Where to get this printable
GET THE REINDEER CRAFT TEMPLATE HERE
This reindeer craft activity is a sample from our Christmas Activity Pack.
GET THE CHRISTMAS ACTIVITIES PACK
Don’t forget to check out our other festive activities:
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