Gather Round Homeschool: Christmas – A Wonderful Way to Spend December!
Time sure flies. We’re already coming up on a year since completing the Gather Round Homeschool Christmas Mini-Unit!
Why is this called a mini-unit? It only has 12 days of lessons instead of the normal 20. If you only do 4 days a week, then it perfectly takes up the first three weeks of December leading up to the holiday. We were in the middle of the Space unit at the end of November last year and just put it on pause to only do this…then we picked back up with Space in January.
It was wonderful to step away from everything else and just enjoy the holiday and share in the true meaning of Christmas with my kids. Such a gift!
To see some of the activities we did throughout this unit then read on. I’m sharing crafts, recipes, trips and a Spotify Playlist!
Enjoy!
Gather Round Homeschool: Christmas Unit Review
What we did
PREP:
- Before I started this unit, I spent a little time doing the following:
- Ordered student books from Barnes and Noble Press (more about this to come in another post)
- Created a Spotify Playlist of music to learn and listen to
- Gathered any books I wanted/needed for the month
- Bought any books/games/movies etc. that I wanted to use
- Gathered ideas for extra activities (often from Pinterest!)
Remember, though, that one of the beautiful things about this curriculum (and homeschooling in general!) is that you can keep it super simple or add in whatever interests you and your kiddos. All that’s necessary for this unit is the Teacher’s Guide and Student Books. If you are a busy mom or dad that doesn’t have a ton of time to add in a bunch of extra things, that’s ok! Don’t let it discourage you from doing it!
This unit in particular is light on book work so it does leave room for more of the fun Christmas traditions that it so often feels hard to fit into our schedules!
GATHER ROUND CHRISTMAS – ACTIVITIES:
The following are the different activities we did alongside this unit throughout the month of December.
Sewing Felt Christmas Ornaments
Pom Pom Christmas Tree Craft
Candy Cane Experiment
Other Activities…
RECIPES:
Gingerbread Cookies
Christmas Sugar Cookies
Christmas Caramel Crackers & Chocolate Chip Cookies
Christmas “Field Trips”:
What We Thought
This is a very special unit that focuses solely on the meaning of Christmas throughout. It’s filled with readings of the Christmas story, meanings of Christmas symbols, songs, baking, movie watching, card writing, the making of a gift for Jesus and more.
The slower pace and time spent focusing on the holiday and it’s true meaning was such a gift last year. It was our first year homeschooling and the first not spent hustling around everywhere for school parties and events. I cannot express how much we loved it! In fact, I plan on doing it again this December. 🙂
There are so many opportunities to create new family traditions as well. 🙂
If you’re looking for something different…for a way to really focus in on Christmas with your kids then I would encourage you to try this at least once. Even if you’re not a Gather Round Family!
I’ve created a Christmas morning menu set that is a great addition to this (or any!) Christmas Unit. It, also, focuses on the birth of Jesus with songs, poems, book recommendations, and a countdown page. If this is something you’d like to add into your morning during the month of December then make sure to check it out below!
If you’re already a Gather Round Family or are interested in seeing what we’ve done in some of the other units, then make sure to check out the other reviews I’ve done for Space, Oceans, and Europe.
I’ve also shared the resources I use when planning our units to help save you time! I have those available for North American Birds, Asia, Space, Europe, Oceans, Africa, Earth Science, North America, Human Body, South America, and Australia/Oceania.
You can also follow along with us by hopping over to Instagram and following me @theleadlearnermom or use the QR Code below!
Merry Christmas and Happy Planning!
