Advent and Christmas

A huge variety of resources for advent and christmas, with creative ideas and media to bring the season to life. 
We have a few Christmas and Advent ideas on our Pinterest boards too - check them out here

 Strandz Christmas Kids Packs!
Our fun Christmas activity sheets and stickers to welcome kids well this christmas

Strandz Store

ADVENT

• Christmas on the Move, our 2016 advent resource with a travelling nativity
• Advent Candle image with prayers
• A Kids Friendly Advent - a great resource put together by our friends at the Presbyterian Church of NZ
• Engage Together - Advent: Lectionary-based Children’s Talk + Multi-age activities for Sundays in Advent 
• All-Age Advent: Ideas and resources for All Age services from Kids Friendly. 
• South West Baptist Church, in Christchurch, produce the most amazing Advent Calendars each year.
• Picture Advent: Daily devotions, Photo-a-day challenge, Youth and Family activities, Church Resources 
• Advent Wonder: A free, printable booklet to give out to families with weekly reflections, daily activities, puzzles, and an Advent Challenge Chart to stick on the fridge.
• Jesus Storybook Bible: Advent readings using this great book, by Zondervan.
• The Advent Tree - a great resource from the Baptist NZ Children and Families team
• Busted Halo Advent Calendar
• Christmas Bowl Advent Resources (scroll down)
• Advent Prayer Stations (Building Faith)
• Interactive Prayer Stations (Theresa Cho)
• More Advent Prayer Stations (Ministry2Youth)
• ​Advent & Christmas (Messy Church Pinterest)
• Engage Together – Intergenerational Worship Resources for Advent 2017
• 2017 Multi-Age Advent Ideas for Households (United Methodist Church)
• Advent at Home Resources  (United Methodist Church)

CHRISTMAS ON THE MOVE

Christmas on the Move is a free printable resource with Bible Characters and a nativity set to make. Use it as a family activity at home or amongst your congregation - it can also be used in church.  
Join Mary and Joseph on their journey towards Bethlehem, as we journey towards Christmas. ​

check out Christmas on the move

ALL AGE TALKS

• ​A Very Chocolate Christmas - creative nativity story using 35 types of chocolate found in NZ
• Christmas Ideas (Barnabas): A wealth of ideas for children’s ministry and all-age services.
• Dramatic Presentation linking Christmas to Easter
• Lost Sheep have a whole bunch of Christmas stories, with downloadable images/powerpoints and scripts. Great for an all age service where you want some vibrant images.
  Check out:
  - Tonight in the Palace (Storytelling Script, Activity Book pdf)
  ​- Bethlehem Town
  - Jed and Roy McCoy
  - The Three Wise Camels
• Messy Nativity
• An Impromptu Nativity by Debbie Smith
• A Well Good Christmas by Bible Society UK (Video in media section) - Pop-Up Nativity and other resources. 

DRAMA

• Kids Friendly Christmas Pageant/Nativity Ideas: 50+ nativity pageants of different sizes and styles, including “one rehearsal” and “impromptu” options!
• Follow the light – Advent play: A short play highlights our modern inability to ‘see’ clearly the light that is can be right in front of us.
• The Night Before Christmas
• Interactive Christmas Drama
• Christmas Story
• Christmas Box Story         
• Christmas Box Story instructions
• Tearfund's Not so silent night: Resources from Tear Fund – including simple and fun nativity plays and an innkeeper’s song. 
• Why do a Christmas pageant? Read more about the joy of children immersed in scripture

MEDIA

There are some great New Zealand produced media, including those great videos from St Pauls' Arts and Media in Auckland, including When God was Born and Te Harinui - a musical play about the first preaching of the Christian gospel to Maori in Aotearoa on Christmas Day 1814, performed by the children and youth of St Paul's Church, Auckland, New Zealand.

Check out our Christmas YouTube Playlist

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MAKE

Printable and Crafts

• Bible Paper Toys: The Nativity Story
   **popular on our Strandz Facebook page**
  ​© Didier Martin mylittlehouse.org - for personal use only
  • Book 1: The Nativity Figures [12mb.pdf]
  • Book 2: The Nativity House [15mb.pdf]
  • Book 3: The Shepherds [15mb.pdf]
  • Book 4: Plants [7.5mb.pdf]
  • Book 5: Animals [11mb.pdf]
  • All template files [53mb.pdf] 
• Nativity Diorama
  © Didier Martin mylittlehouse.org - for personal use only
• Made by Joel Nativity Printables
• Paper Angel Printable
• Paper Nativity Scene Printouts
• 101 Free Christmas Printables
• 21 Printable Nativity Scene Resources
• Lost Sheep Nativity Bookmarks
• Nativity Story Stones: A great story-telling device, or a fun craft for kids, or both! 
• Crochet your own Nativity Scene  
• Preschool Nativity Packs

INTERGENERATIONAL

• Messy Church do a 'Messy Christmas' Book - you can buy the books at Bible Society NZ or download the resource online
• Intergenerational All-Age Christmas Service Ideas: A variety of downloadable All-Age services, including activities, service outlines etc. for Christmas or advent, including
  - Four Gifts of Christmas
  - Three Christmas Trees
  ​- Adorable
• Epiphany Chalk House Blessing and take home sheet
• Light up your Christingle Celebration with these instructions and service ideas, and how to make a Christingle instructions
• Faith at Home - Ideas to celebrate Christmas and Advent

GAMES + ACTIVITIES

• Here is a Christmas Puzzle and Activity book we put together  - great to hand out to visiting kids over the Christmas weekend
• Human Christmas Trees
• A twist on ​Pass the Parcel - a fun way to retell the christmas story, from our friends at Resourced!
• Journey to Christmas board-game and instructions

MISSIONAL

You might like to think about 'doing christmas differently' with one of the following:

• Angel Tree — an initiative from Prison Fellowship, NZ
• Advent Conspiracy — with the 4 aims of worship fully, spend less, give more, love all
• Tearfund's Gift for Life
• Operation Christmas Child — collects boxes for children November 14-21
• Create a Reverse Advent Calendar