Creative & Easy Christmas Classroom Decor Ideas

It’s time to deck the halls! Or rather, deck your classroom with holiday bulletin boards, ornament walls, Christmas-themed doors and more. If you’re looking for fun and festive ideas that are also simple to complete, we have what you need. This post showcases creative and easy Christmas classroom decor ideas for any teacher–no matter what grade you teach!

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Elf Selfie Christmas Classroom Door Decor Ideas

To kick off our list of festive holiday decorating, let’s start with door ideas.

This sELFie Christmas door from @operation_teach on Instagram makes a show stopping statement!

Not only is it super cute and fun, but it’s also practical! Many students, parents, and fellow teachers will definitely want to take their pic in your doorway.

The best part is that it’s not hard to replicate. Be sure to use these supplies to make the process easier:

• white butcher paper
  
• blue butcher paper
  
• these convenient white sticker dots and yellow sticker dots
  
• colorful construction paper that you will cut to make the elf outfit
  

Cozy Fireplace Christmas Door Decor

When I think of Christmas, these famous song lyrics come to mind: “Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful…”

So, what connects better with this song than a door that looks like a fireplace?! You can’t go wrong with Christmas classroom decor ideas like this. 👇🏾

What I especially like about this idea from @firstandkinderblueskies is that you can turn it into a Christmas writing activity. For example, students could write the following on each brick:

• their favorite Christmas song
  
• a family Christmas tradition that means a lot to them
  
• something kind about another classmate
  
• a short Christmas poem they create after reading a good Christmas read-aloud
  

And of course, you could have your students decorate their own stockings to line the fireplace just like she did.

Really, you have so many ideas with this simple, but cute holiday door.

Students’ Desks Wrapped as Christmas Gifts

Now that we’ve seen a couple fun doors, let’s walk into an attention grabbing room by @mrs.sabinameister where she had students decorate their desks with wrapping paper.

There are so many things I enjoy about Christmas classroom decor ideas like this:

1. Students can take ownership of the decorating process.
   
2. Everyone gets to express some individuality.
   
3. You don’t need to go all out with decor on the walls or around the classroom; the desks grab everyone’s attention.
   
4. It’s different!!
   

If you do want some control over the types of wrapping paper students choose, provide it with a variety set like this:

Lighting Up Our Class with Kindness Bulletin Board

You can’t talk about classroom decor for the holidays without also planning your Christmas bulletin boards.

My all-time favorite Christmas board is a character education theme mixed with a festive ornament craftivity.

Here are the nitty-gritty details on how to setup and use this bulletin board in your classroom:

• I use flat black sheets from Wal-Mart as the bulletin board fabric. (Twin size sheets work like a charm and will stay up all year no matter how much stapling or changing you do.)
  
• Cut out the bulletin board letters. 👇🏾
  

• Tape a string or yarn across your bulletin board. This will be the ornament line.
  
• Have students cut out all the ornaments. Then challenge them to look for kind acts among their classmates for a week. They will highlight these kind acts by writing them on the ornaments.
  
• OR you can have students write compliments and other kind words about their classmates on the ornaments. You may have to assign them a partner to write about.
  

Still not sure how this works? 🤔 Here’s a YouTube video showing how to set it all up:

I promise you, this cute bulletin board will be a game-changer in activating more kindness in your classroom this December!

But don’t just take my word for it. Here’s what another teacher had to say when she used it in her classroom:

This resource was amazing in our classroom! My students loved our kindness talks and were eager to show acts of kindness as well as recognize when other students were being kind. Great resource! Thank you! -Jenna

A 3D Christmas Kindness Tree in the Classroom

If you want to amp up the kindness theme in your classroom, here’s another way to do it with your Christmas decorations.

@teachwithmsdavis put a small tree in her class and hung actual ornaments on it that will later be filled with descriptions of kind acts from students.

This 4-foot flocked tree is not only cute, but super easy to setup in any classroom!

Snowman and Reindeer Book Decor for the Holidays

@prestoplans followed one of my favorite decorating principles with this one: use what you have on hand!

To achieve this adorable Christmas decor look, gather books with the same color spine. Then add paper cut-outs to make the books look like popular Christmas or winter symbols.

Easy-peasy, lemon squeezy. 🍋

Wrapped Christmas Books Under the Tree

The final creative and easy must-do on our Christmas classroom decor ideas list involves using books again, but with a twist.

@magicalmrsmcclelland had the genius idea to take her Christmas read-alouds and make them a surprise by wrapping them up and putting them as gifts under the tree.

For several days leading up to the final day before Christmas break, she allows students to choose one book from under the tree.

They unwrap the book and she reads it out loud to them. What a great way to combine your teaching activity with your Christmas decor!

20 Diverse Christmas Read-Alouds for Kids

If you want some engaging and different Christmas read-alouds to match your holiday decor, check out the recommendations on this list:

How Can I Decorate My Classroom for Christmas?

As you work through the ideas from this list, you can also keep these general decorating tips in mind for Christmas classroom decor:

• To decorate on a budget, keep your color scheme simple. The traditional red, green, and white screams Christmas and can be achieved with student crafts in those colors.
  
• Use student crafts as the decor items. In fact, one of my favorite read-alouds: Legend of the Christmas Stockings gives us a great chance to decorate our own stockings. I then hang these up around the classroom as our decor.
  

• 
  
• Have students make snowflakes by cutting folded pieces of white paper. Then hang these around the classroom to mimic a winter wonderland.
  
• Use window clings from The Dollar Tree showcasing Christmas symbols. These window clings also stick really well to the whiteboard!
  
• Bring Christmas lights from home to put around your classroom. The ambient lights invoke the feeling of Christmas season, which amps up your classroom decor.
  
• Wear ugly cute Christmas sweaters! Invite your students to do the same. Wearing Christmas-themed clothes allows you and students to become the classroom decor!
  
  

Managing Student Behavior During the Holidays

It’s an understatement to say that kids can get extra wacky during this time of the year.

Just in case you’re looking for some effective ideas to manage your classroom, my friend Marissa from Creative Classroom Core has you covered!

Her post: How To Keep Students Engaged Before the Holidays packs a punch with practical strategies.

More Holiday Activities and Ideas

Now that you’re classroom is all festive and cheery, you need some engaging Christmas activity ideas. 💡

Of course, I’ve got you covered on that one too! This YouTube video gives you some simple, but effective ways to make learning during the holiday season fun:

Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday Decorating 🎄🎅🏾