Free Printable Advent Calendar Craft Project

Advent is the four week period before Christmas. Advent calendars are a great way to count down the days until Christmas. You can make your own using this easy Advent calendar pattern. Advent begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, so the length of time it lasts changes each year. To make your Advent calendar reusable from year to year, simply number windows from 1-42. That will ensure that you have enough for each day before Christmas and up to Epiphany. On shorter season years, end earlier. First, I've included links for free printable advent calendars to make as kids' craft projects.

Free Printable Advent Calendars

These sites offer a variety of styles, from simple countdowns to activity-focused and religious designs:

• A Hundred Affections: Offers a comprehensive bundle including calendars for daily Bible readings, acts of kindness, and family activities.

• Kids Craft Room: Features a wide collection of creative countdowns, including a Nativity-focused coloring Advent calendar.

• A Cultivated Nest: A curated list of 16 different printable advent calendars ranging from DIY boxes to sticker-based countdowns.

• Powerful Mothering: Provides a printable DIY box template that creates a Christmas tree image as you open the boxes each day.

DIY Reusable Advent Calendar Project

Overview

• What it is: A custom, reusable Advent calendar that counts down from the fourth Sunday before Christmas through Epiphany.

• Capacity: 42 windows to accommodate varying seasonal lengths.

---

Materials Needed

• Base: 4 sheets of tagboard, card stock, or construction paper (11" x 17" recommended).

• Decorations: Christmas-themed images (wrapping paper or printed illustrations). Check out these sites for free printable Catholic Christian coloring pages for Christmas. 

  Catholic & Christian Christmas Coloring Pages

  These sites provide pages specifically focused on the religious story of Christmas:

  • CatholicMom.com: A fantastic resource for liturgical coloring pages, including those specifically for Advent and various saints' feast days.

  • The Catholic Kid: Excellent for thematic religious pages, including a series on the "12 Days of Christmas" that explains the religious significance behind each day.

  • Christian Preschool Printables: Features a large collection of Nativity scenes, angel pages, and depictions of the journey to Bethlehem.

  • Religious Doodles: Offers a variety of pages based on classic Christmas carols and Nativity imagery.

• Tools:

  • Sharp scissors and X-acto knife.

  • Scoring tool.

  • Fine-point black pen.

  • Markers or crayons (if coloring your own images).

• Adhesives: Choose your preferred method (Glue dots for ease, or Rubber Cement for clean-up).

---

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Prepare the Poster Base

   • Create your 11" x 17" backing by taping smaller sheets together if necessary.

2. Decorate one piece of tagboard using your chosen Christmas images or wrapping paper. You can print this and have children color it, as well. 

   

3. Create the Activity/Verse Sheet

   • On a separate piece of plain tagboard, draw 42 rectangles (each 1.5" x 1").

   • Write a Bible verse or countdown activity inside each rectangle.

   • The Story of the Coming King (42-Day Countdown)

     Part 1: The Promises (Old Testament Prophecy)

     1. Genesis 3:15 – The promise of a Savior.

     2. Genesis 12:3 – All nations will be blessed.

     3. Genesis 49:10 – The ruler will come from Judah.  

     4. 2 Samuel 7:16 – A throne established forever.  

     5. Isaiah 7:14 – The virgin will conceive.  

     6. Isaiah 9:2 – A people walking in darkness see a great light.

     7. Isaiah 9:6 – A Son is given; his name is Prince of Peace.  

     8. Isaiah 9:7 – He will reign on David’s throne.  

     9. Isaiah 11:1 – A shoot will come from the stump of Jesse.

     10. Micah 5:2 – The ruler will be born in Bethlehem.  

     11. Numbers 24:17 – A star will rise out of Jacob.  

     12. Malachi 3:1 – The messenger prepares the way.

     Part 2: The Announcement (Luke 1)

     13. Luke 1:5–7 – The story of Zechariah and Elizabeth.  

     14. Luke 1:8–11 – The angel appears in the temple.

     15. Luke 1:13–15 – The promise of John the Baptist.

     16. Luke 1:26–27 – The angel Gabriel visits Mary.  

     17. Luke 1:28–30 – "Greetings, you who are highly favored."  

     18. Luke 1:31–33 – The announcement of Jesus’ birth.

     19. Luke 1:34–35 – "How will this be?"  

     20. Luke 1:38 – Mary’s humble response.  

     21. Luke 1:39–41 – Mary visits Elizabeth.  

     22. Luke 1:46–49 – Mary’s song of praise (The Magnificat).  

     Part 3: The Birth (Matthew 1 & Luke 2)

     23. Matthew 1:18–19 – Joseph’s dilemma.  

     24. Matthew 1:20–21 – An angel visits Joseph in a dream.  

     25. Luke 2:1–3 – The decree of Caesar Augustus.  

     26. Luke 2:4–5 – The journey to Bethlehem.

     27. Luke 2:6–7 – The birth in the manger.  

     28. Luke 2:8–9 – Shepherds in the fields.  

     29. Luke 2:10–12 – "Do not be afraid; a Savior is born."  

     30. Luke 2:13–14 – The heavenly host praises God.  

     31. Luke 2:15–16 – The shepherds hurry to find Jesus.  

     32. Luke 2:17–18 – The shepherds spread the good news.  

     33. Luke 2:19–20 – Mary ponders these things.  

     Part 4: The Epiphany (Matthew 2)

     34. Matthew 2:1–2 – The Wise Men see the star.  

     35. Matthew 2:3–4 – Herod is disturbed.

     36. Matthew 2:5–6 – Seeking the Messiah in Bethlehem.

     37. Matthew 2:9–10 – The star leads them to the house.  

     38. Matthew 2:11 – Worship and gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  

     39. Matthew 2:12 – The Wise Men return home.

     Part 5: Reflection & The Word Made Flesh

     40. John 1:1–3 – The Word was with God.  

     41. John 1:14 – The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.  

     42. 1 John 5:11 – God gives us eternal life through His Son.  

4. Template and Cutting

   • Place a sheet of tracing paper over the rectangle grid and trace the outlines.

   • Layer the decorated poster board on top of the activity sheet.

   • Place the tracing paper on top of the stack.

   • Using your scoring tool or X-acto knife, cut three edges of each rectangle through the decorated tagboard to create "windows."

5. Final Assembly

   • Number the windows 1–42 on the front of the decorated board.

   • Tape the two sheets of tagboard together along the edges to create the finished calendar.  

     
     

Free Printable Manger Scenes, Nativity Scenes to color

Are you looking for great Bible Christmas crafts for little ones? Here are free printable manger scenes, Bible nativity sets to color with coloring pages from the Christmas story. Catholic Icing offers free printable Bible Christmas coloring pages to make into nativity sets. Children color characters from the Bible Christmas story. Then they wrap pictures around paper towel and toilet paper tubes. This makes 3D, standup manger scenes. The blog owner created eight pages of coloring pages for so kids can make complete nativity sets and gives permission to print one for each person so long as you don't sell anything you make with it.

Children might make the entire set all at once or countdown to Christmas making and adding one new piece each day. Manger scenes have 15 parts so begin 15 days before Christmas and color one per night. Or begin later in Advent and add the wisemen and camels in Epiphany (Three Kings Day, Twelfth Night). Color nativity sets in this order--stable, palm tree, shepherd, sheep, angel, donkey, Joseph, Mary, Baby Jesus, wiseman, camel. Check out the other awesome Bible Christmas activities on the website.

Here are more free printable nativity sets and manger scenes (also called creche or nacimiento). Let children color their manger scenes during devotions to help them stay focused. Paper Toys is an amazing website overflowing with cool free printable models of buildings, cars and dioramas. Scroll through to find a Chanukah menorah and a gazillion other 3D paper models. 

Here are free printable nativity sets. Print in color or black and white and use for Bible Christmas coloring pages. Both manger scenes come with cut and paste stable, star, manger, Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus and the three wisemen. Use free printable manger scenes as a follow up craft activity for Advent devotions. Catholic families could use nativity sets to pray the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary and to countdown to Christmas. Use Magi (three wisemen) images for Epiphany or Three Kings Day, celebrated on January 6. Many countries celebrate Christmas and Epiphany. In countries like Spain, Three Kings Day is the major gift-giving holiday. It is the Magi who are said, by tradition to bring gifts to children. This makes sense as it was the wisemen who brought gifts for Baby Jesus.