Primary Times - the definitive what’s on and where to go family guide of activities and events for children of primary school age. Things to do with your kids during the school holidays including arts and craft activities, music and theatre for children, parties, competitions, days out, and family attractions along with term time drama schools, dance classes, after school clubs and sports activities. Things to do at a place near you!
Planning Ahead For Christmas
Planning ahead for Christmas tips
We have pulled together what we think are some useful ideas for helping you to get ahead for the festive season.
Set a budget
The Money Saving Expert website has an excellent budget planning tool that will help you with your present buying and festive spending. You will also find tips on how to keep unnecessary purchases to a minimum.
You can also check out their fantastic money-saving tips for the festive period.
Visit the Money Saving Expert budget planning section on their website as well as their advice on how to save money at Christmas
Check out the best toys for 2020
Once you have a budget set, the next thing to think about it is you want to buy. The Made For Mums website has compiled a great list of new and popular toys for this year. Many of these will be available online or don’t forget to check out your local independent toy stores.
Read the list here
Plan a Christmas Book Advent Calendar
Instead of or in addition to any traditional advent calendar that you might buy or put together, a Christmas book advent calendar is a great way to share festive stories as a family, can be adapted to all ages and is an idea that can be re-used year after year. How you store or display them is up to you, all you need to do is source a number of Christmas/winter themed books that can be unveiled and read in the lead up to the big day
Books can be sourced from your usual online stores and even bought in bulk/collections at webstores such as Books2Door and Books4People. Keep an eye on your local charity shops who will also be starting to unveil their Christmas collections and, of course, don’t forget about your local independent bookstores. Don’t forget to include the family Christmas books that you already own!
Check out our guide to the best Christmas books here:
Check out our book recommendations for 2020 for Christmas presents
If you are stuck for book ideas for your youngsters this festive season – why not check out our guide to our favourite new books of 2020 featuring recommendations from our team, readers and incorporating fiction, non-fiction, reference and activity books and more.
">www.primarytimes.co.uk/cornwall/best-kids-books-of-2020">Read more at our 'Best Kids Books of 2020' article
Don’t stress about Elf On The Shelf
If your family are participating in the Elf On The Shelf activities, it can be quite easy to start with enthusiasm and then quickly run out of ideas. Fear not and visit our special new Pinterest sub-board with ideas to cover every day that that you need inspiration. Take note of them and save ready for December!
See our collated ideas for 'Elf On The Shelf' on our special Pinterest board
Check your festive stock
It is a good idea to check your supplies of decorations, Christmas décor, fairy lights, wrapping (including reusable gift bags and other wrapping options) before December so that you can replace anything that is broken or end up having to buy something late-in-the-day or at short notice and without the chance to shop around!
Start researching handmade gifts
You may find that your kids want to look into making their own gifts at home and there are so many ideas online that you are bound to find something exactly right for your family’s interests and budget. These could include cards, decorations, cake mixes and other presents in a jar, biscuits and sweets. Many of these ideas include low-cost, reusable and easy to source materials.See our Pinterest board for homemade gifts or our brand-new webpage of our top ideas
Think about photobooks/calendars/photo gifts
Photobooks and photo calendars made online are fantastic personal gifts, particularly at a time when friends and families are not able to spend as much time together. Planning ahead means that you can take advantage of special offers that companies may be offering in October/November and also it gives you time to sort through your photo collections.
Companies that offer this service include: www.snapfish.co.uk, www.bootsphoto.com, www.jessops.com, www.snappysnaps.co.uk or you could enquire with your local independent photography/camera shop to see what services and products they offer
Plan your crafting!
The colder months are a perfect time to get creative and encourage your kids to harness new artistic skills, or even make your own family mementos. Visit our Christmas Pinterest board for lots of inspiration, including a whole section specifically centred around Christmas crafts and start sourcing your materials or looking around the house for what can be reused.
Give us a follow on Pinterest
Keep up-to-date with what is going on around Cornwall this Christmas with Primary Times Norfolk
We will be updating our social media and website throughout the festive season so make sure you follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can also find us on Pinterest as ‘Primary Times Write Place Media.’ Our online what’s-on guide and various relevant articles can be found on our main website