Homeschool Planning Ideas for December
Looking for some fun learning ideas for December? I have a list for you! Here you’ll find a collection of resources to help you plan your homeschool activities and learning in December.
I’ve included links to articles containing unit study ideas, fun holidays, and famous December birthdays. You’ll also discover bucket list ideas, journal prompts, art prompts, and more.
In addition, you’ll see links to helpful articles related to seasonal activities and project suggestions to include in your school year.
Bookmark this page for reference and come back each year for new ideas!
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December Unit Study Ideas: Fun Holidays
Each month has designated awareness holidays, and these can be a great way to introduce your kids to a new experience or get them to try something new. They can also be used to spend additional time focused on a particular area of interest.
Here’s my list of unit study ideas to incorporate in your homeschool in December.
What Can I Learn Today: December Homeschool Ideas
This article offers suggestions for learning topics related to that month. Use the specific suggestions given, or research additional people or topics in a particular category.
You can expose your kids to books, music, poetry, people, and careers they might not otherwise encounter, just through choosing a few to read about or watch a quick video on each month.
The learning suggestions are grouped in the following categories:
- Read Aloud Book Suggestions
- Movie/Book Combos
- Poetry
- Classical Music
- Quotes
- Artists (birthdays in December)
- Athletes (birthdays in December)
- Authors (birthdays in December)
- Composers (birthdays in December)
- Engineers (birthdays in December)
- Inventors (birthdays in December)
- Presidents (birthdays in December)
- Scientists (birthdays in December)
- Interesting People (birthdays in December)
- Unusual Occupations
- Animals
- Plants (seasonal related)
- World Landmarks
- Games
- Crafts
- Study Skills
December Fun Learning Ideas
Each category can open up discussion of history, science, art, entrepreneurship, relationships, and the list goes on. The categories I chose to use this year are as follows.
- birthday of the month
- invention of the month
- country of the month
- life skill of the month
- character trait of the month
December Country Study – Russia
These mini-unit studies covering 12 different countries are a great way to expose your kids to the beauty and culture of countries around the world.
Using video, engaging books, games, and maps, kids of all ages can get a taste of the uniqueness of different cultures, along with understanding our fundamental similarities as humans.
Try out a sample of France from my free resource library. You can purchase the full pack of 12 countries from my Etsy shop.
December Bucket Lists
Bucket lists are one of my favorite lists to make. I also love to read what’s on other people’s bucket lists! Here are two lists of ideas for your December Bucket List.
December Prompts for Three Things Thursday
If you use a Three Things Thursday prompt in your classroom or homeschool as part of a morning meeting discussion or individual writing activity, here is a list of prompts to consider for December.
December Motivation for Kids
Each month’s quote comes from a famous historical person who was born in that month. I’ve included resources for further learning, and conversation ideas around that person’s life or ideas.
“Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity.”
Louis Pasteur, biologist and chemist known for discoveries in vaccinations and pasteurization (Born December 27, 1822)
Resources to learn more about Louis Pasteur
- The Value of Believing in Yourself: The Story of Louis Pasteur by Spencer Johnson
- Louis Pasteur Facts & Worksheets from KidsKonnect
- Louis Pasteur – Scientist (YouTube – Biography)
Conversation about Louis Pasteur
Louis Pasteur is widely recognized for his contributions to modern medical practices in cleanliness, virus behavior, and vaccine developments. At one point he was publicly praised for his many accomplishments, and this quote was part of his response. Does this encourage you to keep going in pursuit of your goals? Big and worthwhile goals often require a great deal of tenacity.
December Fun Journal Prompts
Each day prompts for a list of three things. The first prompt of each month is “3 things you’re thankful for.” This is a gratitude exercise to get them in a mindset of remembering to be thankful. Then at the end of each month is a prompt for “3 favorite things about this month.” The purpose of this is to urge them to reflect upon what brings them joy or delight.
December Art Prompts
These simple drawing prompts are a low-key way to encourage students to create a habit of sketching and drawing.
How to Use the Prompts
First, decide on how frequently you want to use them. Daily, weekly, or even monthly if you prefer.
Next, decide on the size you will recommend. My favorite way to do this is in small 1-1/2 inch square boxes, requiring students to keep their drawing simple. You may wish to limit the size to 3 inch squares or a 5.5″x 8.5″ half-letter page size.
Finally, decide on the allowed art supplies. The simplest form is to allow only pencil sketches. My preference is to allow colored pencils so kids who love color can let their creativity shine.
Suggestions for using these simple drawing prompts:
- bell-ringer activity
- daily or weekly sketch practice
- year-long creative project to save as a keepsake
- activity during read-aloud times
- early finish activity
15 Simple Art Prompts for December
- star
- dice
- present
- cabin
- ornament
- wreath
- penguin
- Christmas tree
- stocking
- button
- candy cane
- watch
- bell
- fireplace
- Rubix cube
You can also download a full school year’s worth of 180 prompts to make this a daily activity or choose your favorites and make this a weekly activity.
December Activity and Daily Checklist
Grab these pages for your child to make their Christmas wish list, along with brainstorming gift ideas for others!
In my Etsy shop, I also have a complete set of monthly themed checklists with an activity for each month. The December activity includes this page.
December 30-Day Challenge
30-day challenges are highly popular in the health and fitness arena. You can pick pretty much any exercise and make a 30-day challenge of it. In the healthy eating realm, cutting out junk food, sugar, or soda is common.
Beyond the physical challenges, though, you can find challenges inspiring you to spend time cultivating a hobby, decluttering your home, or learning something new.
Try one of these 30-Day Challenges in December:
jumping jack challenge OR water challenge
For a list of 25 challenge ideas, read 30-Day Challenges to Try This Year.
December Character Trait Study
The character trait focus for December is joy.
Find suggestions for books, movies, video content, activities and more to encourage joy this month in my Character Counts series.
Character Counts: Encouraging Joy
December Encouraging Proverb
The proverb for December is a great reminder to be generous in whatever ways we can this month. Seek to refresh your family with an atmosphere of peace, hope, and joy during the busy Christmas season.
A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
Proverbs 11:25
Download a free list of proverbs to cover the whole school year from my resource library.
December Pray Around the World Country List
To pray for every country in one year, you’ll need to pray for 16-17 countries each month. I’ve assigned the countries alphabetically to each month of the year. However, by praying for one country every weekday you can actually cover every country over the course of a school year if your summers are hectic and you prefer to organize it that way.
You can download my free calendar for December to pray for countries of the world, along with a few questions for your kids to learn a little bit more about a country of their choice.
December Focus Word
Perfect to use on a bulletin board or other display board, my set of monthly focus words provides one word to reflect on and prioritize each month of the year. Visit the free resource library to download your free printable pack of 12 words.
December Scripture Card
If one of your goals is to memorize more scripture this year, try using my monthly scripture cards to memorize twelve Bible verses over the course of the year. The scripture word of the month for December is “generous,” and the verse comes from 2 Corinthians 9:11.
You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.
You can download a set of twelve scripture cards from my free resource library and begin to memorize 2 Corinthians 9:11 this month.
December Fun Facts Reference Sheet
Celebrating a December birthday? Download this December fun facts sheet to display at a birthday party or give with a birthday gift. Included are the December birthstone and flower, a few fun holidays, interesting people born in December, and this month in history events.
Additional December Resources for Homeschool Moms
Encourage Your Kids in December
Pray with and for them.
Prayer gives your kids the foundation of knowing that God is in control. How encouraging is that?! They will encounter circumstances that don’t make sense or situations that feel overwhelming, and prayer may become a lifeline.
Praying together will help your kids learn to pray, develop a habit of prayer, and recognize prayer as an essential discipline for their whole lives.
Additionally, the knowledge that their parents are praying for them can be a powerful encouragement, even during times they seem uninterested in a personal relationship with God.
DECEMBER ENCOURAGEMENT FOR YOUR KIDS: pray with and for them
If you’d rather choose a different way of encouraging your kids in December, read this article: 10 Practical Ways to Encourage Your Kids This Year
Fun Online Games for December
If your kids love games, there are a lot of opportunities for them to learn while they play! Choose a game of the month for them to try out—or have the whole family play either collaboratively or competitively.
DECEMBER ONLINE GAME: 7 Little Words
Pick your own game for December from my list of 50 Fun Online Games for Students.
Life Skills Focus for December
Every so often, I encounter something that I thought my kids knew how to do…but they definitely do not. To make sure we’re covering a variety of life skills, I like to focus on one or two things each month.
DECEMBER LIFE SKILLS FOCUS: verbal communication
Earlier in the year we focused on interpersonal communication related to emails, texting, and phone calls, but this month we’ll narrow in on some specific verbal communication skills. This includes things like how to apologize, how to respond to criticism, how to make small talk, how to ask questions.
Helpful Blog Posts to Read in December
December Homeschool Planning & Routines
The possibilities really are endless. If your kids are interested in nature, plan to incorporate a mini-unit study of one plant or tree each month. Try listening to a specific type of music each month, trying out a new game, recipe or podcast every month of the year.
This collection of ideas is intended to provide inspiration only. Obviously, there are far more activities and learning opportunities than you could fit into one month. Pick and choose a few things that sound fun to you or your kids and see what sparks interest in them.
Visit my homeschool resources page for monthly unit study ideas, projects, and homeschool planning help!
Join my mailing list to receive updates when new printable resources are added to the library, plus tips and encouragement for your organized homeschool journey.
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How to Homeschool in December
