# 10 Christmas ESL activities and games for the last weeks of term

> Ten Christmas ESL activities that mix screen games and offline ideas: vocabulary, speaking, listening and writing, with a ready set and pasteable questions.

Source: https://olyclass.com/blog/christmas-esl-games/ · Published 2026-10-31

December is a strange month in an English class. Students are excited, attendance is patchy, and the textbook unit you planned feels a long way from what anyone wants to do. Christmas activities help, as long as students still use English, and the noise doesn't take over.

Here are ten Christmas ESL activities that work: some on the big screen with Oly, some with nothing but paper and a board. Mix two or three in a lesson. If you want the ready game set, the Winter holidays look and a plan for the last day, start with the [Christmas classroom games](https://olyclass.com/christmas-classroom-games/) page.

## Before you start: the words

Most of these activities use the same 12 to 16 words, which is the point: students meet them again and again in different ways. The library's [Christmas set](https://olyclass.com/library/en-a1-christmas-words/) (A1) has 16: *Christmas tree, present, star, snowman, snow, bell, candle, card, stocking, reindeer, gingerbread, scarf, sleigh, lights, family, party*. Each word comes with a picture, pronunciation and an example sentence, and there is a [printable page](https://olyclass.com/library/en-a1-christmas-words/print/) with flashcards and a worksheet.

For older students, [make your own set](https://olyclass.com/create?topic=Christmas&level=A2) at A2 or B1, or paste words like *wreath, chimney, ornament, decorate, wrap, celebrate*.

## 1. Unwrap the mystery picture

**On screen, 10 minutes.** In [Mystery Picture](https://olyclass.com/classroom-games/mystery-picture/), a hidden picture sits under twelve numbered pieces. Each right answer takes one off, and the first team to name the picture wins a bonus, worth more the earlier they guess. It feels like unwrapping a present slowly. Use it to open the Christmas topic: "What's under there?"

## 2. Gift box review

**On screen, 15 minutes.** [Tile Grab](https://olyclass.com/classroom-games/tile-grab/)'s board is a grid of numbered gift boxes. A right answer opens one: points, a star, lightning to play again, a bomb, or a magnet that steals from the leader. Set the look to **Winter holidays** on the Ready page, and the game's background gets festive lights and snow, with snowflake confetti.

## 3. Christmas Hot Seat

**On screen, 10 minutes, speaking.** One student sits with their back to the screen. The word appears, and the team describes it without saying it: "It's an animal. It has big horns. It pulls a sleigh." In [Hot Seat](https://olyclass.com/classroom-games/hot-seat/) each round lasts 60 seconds; you tap **Got it** or **Pass** on your phone. It works best once students know the words, so play it after a vocabulary game.

## 4. Snowman picture dictation

**Offline, 10 minutes, listening.** Students draw while you describe: "Draw a big snowman. He has three buttons. He has a red scarf and a blue hat. There is a star in the sky, on the left." Then they compare drawings in pairs: "My snowman has a red scarf. Yours has a green one!" Stronger students can take your place and describe their own picture.

## 5. Picture dice Christmas story

**On screen, 10 minutes, speaking.** In [Picture Dice](https://olyclass.com/classroom-games/picture-dice/), a right answer rolls three picture dice from your set, and the team makes a sentence or a little story with them: *reindeer, present, snow* becomes "The reindeer hid a present in the snow." You tap how many pictures they used: one point each, five for all three. Funny sentences are allowed, and students love them.

## 6. Wish list writing

**Offline, 10 minutes, writing.** Students write a short wish list, but with a twist: one wish for themselves, one for a friend, one for the world. Give the pattern: "I would like… because…" or "I hope… will…". Read a few aloud (with permission) and let the class guess whose list it is.

## 7. Christmas around the world: true or false?

**On screen or offline, 10 minutes.** A short quiz about how different places celebrate, or don't, works well with mixed classes. In Oly, choose **Other** as the subject and paste your own lines, one per question. A line ending in `true` or `false` becomes a true/false question:

- `In Australia, Christmas comes in summer | true`
- `Snow is frozen water | true`
- `A snowman is made of sand | false`
- `Which animal pulls Santa's sleigh in the stories? | Reindeer | Camel, Horse, Penguin`

Play it in [Ring the Bell](https://olyclass.com/classroom-games/ring-the-bell/), where every team writes its answer on a mini whiteboard at the same time. Or play it offline: left side of the room for true, right side for false.

## 8. Memory match with flashcards

**On screen or on paper, 10 minutes.** [Memory Match](https://olyclass.com/classroom-games/memory-match/) turns the set into pairs of cards: a word and its picture. A right answer earns two flips; a pair is worth 2. It's one of the calmer games, useful when the class is already too excited. Offline, print the flashcards twice from the set's printable page and play in small groups on the desks.

## 9. Christmas card to a classmate

**Offline, 15 minutes, writing.** Everyone draws a name and writes a short card to that classmate: one thing they like about them and one wish for the new year. Give a frame on the board ("Dear…, Thank you for… I hope… From…"). It works in any class, including students who don't celebrate Christmas: call it a winter card.

## 10. Listen and touch race

**On screen, 5 to 10 minutes, listening.** In [Listen and Touch](https://olyclass.com/classroom-games/listen-and-touch/), Oly says a word, and one student from each team races to touch the right picture on the screen. The first team to touch it scores. A good last game before the bell: quick, active, and it ends on a laugh.

## Putting it together

| Lesson | Activities | Mood |
|---|---|---|
| First Christmas lesson | 1 Mystery Picture, 4 Snowman dictation, 2 Gift box review | Introduce the words |
| Speaking lesson | 3 Hot Seat, 5 Picture dice story, 6 Wish list | Use the words |
| Mixed class | 7 True or false, 9 Winter card, 8 Memory match | Inclusive, calm |
| Last lesson | 2 Gift box review, 3 Hot Seat, 10 Listen and touch | Celebration |

## Tips for a festive class

- **Set effects to calm** on the Ready page if the room is already loud. The class still sees who scored, with smaller confetti and no screen shake.
- **Keep the whisper rule:** teams agree in whispers, and the speaker answers out loud.
- **Let a student run the remote** for a round. Hand them your phone and sit with a team.
- **End with the missed words.** The game summary lists the words the class missed. Write two on the board as the last thing they see before the break.
- **Not everyone celebrates Christmas.** Frame it as "winter holidays" when you need to, and keep a winter word list ready. The Winter holidays look is snow and lights, so it fits any December lesson.

More: [Christmas classroom games](https://olyclass.com/christmas-classroom-games/), [20 ESL warm-up games with no prep](https://olyclass.com/blog/esl-warm-up-games/) and [how to keep a class calm during classroom games](https://olyclass.com/blog/calm-class-during-games/).