Homemade Christmas Ornaments Kids Can Make

What you'll need

• Plain flour, fine salt, and warm water for the dough, plus a mixing bowl and spoon
• A rolling pin, cookie cutters in simple shapes, a straw or skewer for hanging holes, and baking paper
• Clear fillable plastic baubles that open in two halves (shatterproof, not glass)
• Pom-poms, tinsel strands, sequins, and small beads for filling the baubles
• Empty toilet-paper rolls, washable paint and brushes, ribbon, and large jingle bells
• String, ribbon, or ornament hooks for hanging, plus a tray for drying painted pieces
• Aprons, a covered table, and a damp cloth for floury and painty hands

How to do it

1. 1

   Set up the ornament station. Cover the table, put on aprons, and line up the three projects in order: a bowl and flour for dough; clear baubles and a dish of fillings; cardboard rolls and paint. Say: "Today we are making real ornaments for our tree — three kinds, made by you." Let your child touch each material and guess what it becomes. A clear station keeps the session flowing, the way good preschool learning activities at home always start with everything in reach. Station ready — flour comes out first.

   
2. 2

   Mix the salt dough together. Pour one cup of flour and half a cup of salt into the bowl and let your child stir the dry mix with a spoon. Say: "Slow water now — we want dough like play dough, not soup." Add warm water a splash at a time while your child stirs, then tip the dough out and knead together until smooth, about two minutes of pushing and folding. If it sticks, dust with flour; if it cracks, wet your fingertips and knead again. Dough smooth and springy — time to roll it flat.

   
3. 3

   Roll and cut the dough shapes. Dust the table with flour, hand over the rolling pin, and show your child how to roll from the middle outward until the dough is about as thick as two stacked coins. Say: "Pick your favorite cutters — press straight down, wiggle a tiny bit, lift." Your child cuts stars, trees, and circles, and you help lift each shape onto the lined tray with a spatula. Poke a hanging hole near the top of every shape with a straw before baking. Tray full of shapes — an adult takes over for the heat.

   
4. 4

   Dry the shapes with adult help. An adult slides the tray into a low oven and sets a timer; your child watches through the closed door only if your oven door stays cool, otherwise they draw a gift tag while waiting. Say: "Heat is grown-up work — your job starts again when they are cool." Bake low and slow until the shapes feel hard and dry, then let them cool completely on the tray — warm dough crumbles and hot trays burn. While they cool, start the baubles so no one has to just wait. Shapes cooling — open the baubles.

   
5. 5

   Fill the clear baubles with color. Pop a bauble half open and set out pom-poms, tinsel, sequins, and beads in small dishes. Say: "You are the designer — fill it until it looks like a party inside." Your child pinches and drops fillings in, which is quiet, focused work just like these fine-motor activities for preschoolers build. Press the halves together firmly — an adult checks the seal — and tie a ribbon loop through the top. Shake it gently to hear and see the filling move. Bauble sparkling — back to the cooled dough shapes.

   
6. 6

   Paint the cooled dough ornaments. Set out washable paints and fine brushes over a covered tray. Say: "Paint the whole shape, edges too — these are yours, any colors you love." Your child paints each shape, trying stripes, dots, and color blocks; mixing a new shade on a saucer is a tiny science moment, much like color mixing activities for preschoolers explore. Lay painted ornaments flat on the drying tray and wash brushes while they set. Colors dry to the touch — they still need their strings.

   
7. 7

   Thread string through the dough ornaments. Cut short lengths of string or ribbon and show your child how to push one end through the hole, pull it even, and tie or loop it — an adult ties secure knots for younger hands. Say: "Every ornament needs its hanger before it can live on the tree." Your child threads while you knot, and each finished ornament goes straight onto the waiting tray by the tree. Line them up and count them together: cutting, threading, and counting all in one calm step. Dough ornaments ready to hang — bring out the cardboard rolls.

   
8. 8

   Make toilet-paper-roll bells. Flatten one end of a cardboard roll slightly and paint the whole roll in a bright color, inside the rim too. Say: "This plain roll is secretly a bell — paint will wake it up." Your child paints, rolls the brush around for full coverage, and stands the roll upright on the drying tray. Paint a second roll a different color while the first dries. A strip of ribbon glued around the top edge once dry makes the bell look finished. Bells painted — they need their rings and ribbons.

   
9. 9

   Add ribbons and jingle bells. Thread a ribbon through the top of each roll — an adult punches the two small holes — and tie a large jingle bell inside the roll so it hangs just below the rim. Say: "Shake it gently — does your bell sing?" Your child shakes, listens, and adjusts with you until the bell swings freely and rings clearly. These are big, safe bells, not tiny ones, and they stay tied in with a double knot. Bells ringing — everything is ready for the tree.

   
10. 10

    Hang every ornament on the tree. Carry the tray to the tree and hang ornaments one at a time: dough shapes on sturdy lower branches your child can reach, baubles where light shines through them, and bells where a passing sleeve will make them ring. Say: "You made every single one of these — which spot is best for your favorite?" Step back together, turn on the tree lights, and give the bells one last gentle shake. Tree decorated entirely by small hands — take the photo while the pride is fresh.

    

Other ways to play it

• Photo baubles: slip a small printed photo inside a clear bauble with the fillings for a family keepsake.
• Scented dough: add a little cinnamon to the dough for ornaments that smell like the holidays.
• Nature bells: paint rolls, then glue on a ring of tiny pinecone scales or leaves collected on a walk.
• More Christmas crafts: when the tree is full, 25 easy Christmas crafts for kids offer the next afternoon of making.

How it changes by age

• Ages 4–5: the sweet spot — most can stir, knead, cut, fill, thread, and paint with an adult managing heat and knots. Expect flour everywhere and ornaments with real character.
• Ages 3 and under: join for kneading, filling baubles with big pom-poms, and shaking finished bells; skip small sequins and beads, and keep them away from the oven entirely.
• Ages 6+: hand over the whole dough process except the oven, and let them design sets — matching baubles, patterned dough, and bells in family colors. For a salt-dough-only session, see salt dough Christmas ornaments.

What they're learning

Measuring and mixing: cups, halves, and splash-by-splash water show early math and cause-and-effect in real time. Fine motor control: kneading, pinching fillings, threading string, and brush work strengthen hands for writing. Patience and process: dough must dry and paint must set — good things take stages, not seconds. Pride and tradition: ornaments they made return to the tree every year, carrying the memory with them.

Questions parents ask