Free Printable Christmas Charades: Family-Friendly Songs & Movies
Are you looking for a fun and easy game to stir up the Christmas spirit? A game of Charades is just what you’re looking for. This version includes printable charades cards with your favorite Christmas movies and songs! These fun ideas are great for a family game night, holiday gatherings – anywhere you’re gathering with a group of people for a little holiday celebrating! Kid-friendly choices!
Christmas Charades to Level Up the Fun
The holiday season is a great time for bringing together all the special people in your life for some Christmas celebrating.
Chances are that Christmas parties are somewhere in your future – and maybe you’re even hosting one yourself!
If that’s the case, making sure everyone has a good time is a big deal – and Christmas games always bring the laughs at family gatherings or holiday party.
If you want to try something that gets everyone on their feet, here’s a fun version of the classic game of Charades – both Christmas Movie Charades and Christmas Songs Charades. (* Note – these are two different versions. I’d recommend playing the movie OR song version at one time, not mixing both of them into the same game.)
After you play it once, I’m sure it will become one of your favorite new holiday traditions. And the great thing about it is that all movie titles and songs are appropriate for kids of all ages!
Setting Up Your Christmas Charade Night
Most people already know the basics of charades, but if not, I’ll give a quick review.
To play, guests are divided up into 2 teams. For fun, you can have each team make up their own team’s name (Team A and Team B also work just fine!)
Taking turns, each team takes a member slip of paper out of a hat or basket that has the name of a Christmas movie or song on it. That person has to act out the movie or song until someone from his or her team guesses the right answer or until the timer runs out.
Keep score with each team getting a point for the right answer!
It’s that easy!
Let’s dive into the essentials that will make this event super-fun!.
Essential Supplies
First things first, I make sure to have the right supplies. Here’s a handy list of what you’ll need:
1| Christmas Charade Idea Cards
Below is a PDF file with printable cards with movie titles and songs already inserted! Choose whether you’re playing the movie and song version and then print & cut!
There are also blank game cards in case you want to create your own version of charades or add in some of your own songs or movie title!
Timer: A timer helps pace the game. I use my phone or a kitchen timer.
2| Scoreboard
Keeping track of points is crucial. I like to use a whiteboard or just a paper.
3| Props
This is a fun way to help things along! Festive items can level up the fun – Santa hats, scarves, Christmas lights, mini Christmas trees, candy canes – any of those things can give the guessing a little boost!
4| Comfortable Seating
Make sure there’s enough space for everyone to watch and play.
Having these supplies ready guarantees that everyone will enjoy the night without interruptions.
Creating Teams
Once I’ve gathered the supplies, it’s time to create teams. Typically, a team of 3-5 players is good.
If everyone is the same age/skill level, you can skip-count the group into 1s and 2s. You can also do something random like those born in January – June on one team and July-December on the other.
If you have a variety of ages and skill levels, you may want to split the kids up first and then randomly sort the rest of the group.
You can also have more than 2 teams if you want! Just make sure you have a big enough Christmas charades list so everyone in the group gets a chance to act!
Rules of Engagement
Most people know the rules of charades. But in case you need to review it, here’s a straightforward breakdown:
1| Acting Only
Players can’t speak or make sounds while acting out their movies. Gestures and body language rule! You can hold a hand to your ear to indicate ‘sounds like.’
2| Time Limit
Each charade should last about 1-2 minutes. You can use an hourglass sand timer or a phone timer!
3| Guessing
Once a part of the correct answer has been said, the person acting is allowed to say it (or write it). The team must match the movie name (or song title) 100% accurately.
The opposing team has to guess the charade within the time limit if the first team doesn’t get it right. If they get it right, they score a point!
4| Turn Rotation
Teams take turns acting and guessing to keep everyone engaged.
Setting these rules helps maintain excitement and ensures the night runs smoothly!
Crafting the Perfect Charades List
Creating a varied list of Christmas charades ideas is essential for a fun game. Integrating a mix of classic films, modern favorites, and animated gems will ensure everyone has a chance to shine.
Hopefully, I’ve done the hard part for you! I’ve included a printable Christmas Charades Cards for game play. These cards have popular, well-known Christmas movies and Christmas songs that are family-friendly so, it will be suitable for young kids!
Most of the movies generally include at least one iconic scene which should help your guests easily come up with the correct guess.
Most of the Christmas songs are classics that adults and kids would be familiar with!
Charades Gameplay Tips
Playing charades is a wonderful way to add some Christmas fun to your gathering. Here are a few tips you may want to share with your guests so the game doesn’t flop!
Use Smart Body Language
Get your whole body involved! Gestures, facial expressions, and body movements all communicate and are important!
Break it Down
I like to divide the title into parts – this helps my teammates guess faster. You can hold up your pointer finger to indicate ‘1st word,’ etc. Once they guess it, hold up 2 fingers to indicate ‘2nd word,’ etc.
Use Props
Sometimes I incorporate holiday-themed props for added fun, like a Santa hat or a candy cane.
Practice Expressions
I focus on portraying emotions connected to the movie. Am I happy, scared, or excited? What is the mood conveyed in the movie or song?
Consider a Variation
Adding a twist to Christmas charades can elevate the fun and creativity. I love exploring unique variations that keep everyone engaged and laughing.
Themed rounds can also be a lot of fun, too! Think about specific categories, like “Classic Christmas Movies,” “Animated Holiday Films,” or even “Holiday Romance Flicks.” Each round keeps players on their toes as they think about the movies that fit the theme.
I’ve also included blank cards, if you want to put your own Christmas-themed words to create your own game. This may be an option to consider if the age group at your party might not be familiar with the movies or songs on the free printables.
As long as you choose Christmas words, you really can’t go wrong. You really don’t even need to print blanks, if you’re throwing things together last minute- just write your own version of charades on a piece of paper and cut it up!
If you feel like acting in a Christmas charades games might be too intimidating for your guests, you can use these printable sheets of Christmas movies or songs and play Christmas Pictionary instead!
The rules are basically the same, but instead of acting, each person would draw the movie or song title instead of acting it out!
All you would need is a large easel with paper or a white board! Pictionary is another great option for a fun Christmas game!
Grab your Free Printable Game Here!
If you’d like to get my free printable Christmas charades game that includes both movies and songs, you can grab the PDF right here! (sorry – no JPEG files; PDF only).
Just fill out the box below, hang on for a few seconds, and you’ll be immediately redirected to the download! You can print on regular printer paper or white card stock!
More Festive Ideas for Holiday Parties
If you want the WHOLE list of ideas for Christmas celebrations, whether it’s a party game, menu for Christmas finger foods or desserts, Christmas decorations, and more – check out this post for the full details! Over 95+ Christmas party ideas you can use!
A Christmas party is a great way to get family members and/or friends together to take a few moments to enjoy the season. Holiday charades just level up the fun and memory making.
There are so many ways to incorporate your own ideas to truly make this a unique and memorable time – so let’s your imagination loose!
If you try these games or have other thoughts, I’d love to hear them! Leave a comment below!
And if you enjoyed this post, I’d be so grateful if you pin and share!
Hi! I like your Christmas Pictionary ideas. However, I don’t understand why I have to give my email address every time I want to download a PDF. I’ve used your downloads at Thanksgiving so I’ve already given my email. Is there a way to make your PDFs available to those who have already typed in their email address?
Thanks for listening!
Hi Nancy! I totally understand! In your welcome email when you first signed up (and in every email I send each week), there is the information for the Free Subscriber Library – with the link and the password. You can find the printables in there, so you don’t need to put your email in every time! I definitely recommend looking there first – I hope that helps!
Can I please get a copy of the Christmas charades. Thank You!
Hi Dorothy! If you scroll to the end of the post, you’ll see a header that says ‘Grab Your Free Printables Here!’ Fill out the box below, and you’ll be immediately redirected to the download!