đ Advent calendar book: how about choosing an activity workbook?
An advent calendar book, a chocolate calendar, a box of little toys⌠or an activity workbook? Every autumn, the question comes up again, and the shop shelves donât make it any easier: storybooks in twenty-four chapters, sets of mini-books, creative calendars, or subscription boxes of novels for adults.
Weâve compared these options side by side using a simple question: whatâs left once youâve opened the window? Then we take you through the Kidibook Great Advent Workbook, week by week, where every December morning brings a new activity.
For parents and grandparents of children aged 5 to 10 who want a December with no sugar, no plastic and no screens.
đŻ In a nutshell
- Four types of calendars: chocolate, toys and surprises, advent calendar books (stories, mini-books or book sets), and activity workbooks.
- The activity workbook is the one where your child gets most involved each day: one page per day, five to ten minutes, then a window on the calendar to colour in.
- The Kidibook Great Advent Workbook: 48 full-colour A4 pages, 24 days in 4 weekly stories, 8 big games, 2 stories, answers and a certificate, for âŹ24.99.
- Recommended age: from age 5 with an adult, ideal for CP to CE1 (ages 6-8), independent from around 7-8; the big games are fun right up to CM2.
- The best time: breakfast or afternoon snack, always at the same time, never two pages in one day.
An advent calendar is all about whatâs left after youâve opened the window. The chocolate is gone in ten seconds, the toy ends up in a drawer, the book is read with you at bedtime. The activity workbook gives your child a daily moment they can do on their own, and a hand-coloured calendar to keep as a trophy.
đ Contents
- đ Advent calendar book, chocolate, toys or workbook: whatâs left on the 25th?
- âď¸ How a Christmas activity workbook transforms the whole month of December
- đ The Kidibook Great Advent Workbook, week by week
- đ˛ The 8 big games, the 2 stories and the parentsâ corner
- đ§ Advent calendar for children: what age is right for an Advent workbook?
- â Advent calendar activities: the morning or snack-time ritual
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Verdict
How old is your child?
Still a bit young for an activity workbook. Choose a story-based Advent calendar for children, and print out our free preschool games.
Starting age, with an adult: you read the instructions, your child counts, colours, draws lines and circles. The first week (tree, tinsel, snow) is designed just for them.
The start of the ideal age range. Your child can read the titles alone, sound out the Christmas words on day 5 and solve the sums on day 8: a gentle CP revision in disguise.
Children become independent around age 7-8: they open their workbook at breakfast and colour their box without your help. In CE2 (age 8-9), the daily pages feel easyâthis is on purpose; the big games are waiting for them on Wednesdays.
The daily pages are too simple now, unless they play 'big elf' and read the instructions to a younger sibling. The 8 big games are still real challenges.
đ Advent calendar book, chocolate, toys or workbook: whatâs left on the 25th?
| Type | What you open each day | Time spent | Whatâs left on the 25th | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chocolate | A chocolate | Ten seconds | An empty box | A few euros |
| Toys and surprises | A small item (figurine, stickers, jewellery) | A few minutes | 24 objects, often plastic | Very variable |
| Advent book | A chapter or a short story read with an adult | 10 to 15 minutes, in the evening | The memory of a story, read by an adult | âŹ12 to âŹ26 (book), around âŹ200 (box set of twelve novels) |
| Craft book (pre-cut pages) | A cut-and-stick activity | 20 min to 1 hour | Handmade creations | Around âŹ10 |
| Activity Book | A page to complete yourself | 5 to 10 minutes, independently from around age 7-8 | A completed workbook, a coloured calendar, a certificate | âŹ24.99 |
1. The chocolate calendar
The most popular, and the one forgotten the fastest: ten seconds of fun, then a whole day to fill.
2. The toys and surprises calendar
Itâs fun at the time, but then it just takes up space. The best ones offer real creative activities; the others, just twenty-four little things for the January junk drawer.
3. The book Advent calendar
There are actually three different types hiding behind this name. A serial story, with a chapter each evening until Christmas Eve; a box set of twenty-four little picture books, a classic for children who arenât reading on their own yet; or a box set of novels with surprises, for adults. In all three cases, itâs the adult who reads, and by Christmas morning the story is finished: the book goes back on the shelf.
4. The Advent activity book
Here, itâs your child who gets involved, not you reading aloud. Donât confuse it with a craft book with tear-out pages (puzzles, dreamcatchers, garlands), which means twenty minutes to an hour with scissors and glue. The activity book is done with a pencil, in five to ten minutes, with no prep or extra materials needed.
âď¸ Which Advent calendar should you choose?
- âA shared story in the eveningâ: a book Advent calendar or a box set of little picture books.
- âMy child can keep busy on their own, without a screenâ: an activity book like the Great Advent Workbook.
- âMy child is under 4â: a fabric calendar you fill yourself.
âď¸ How a Christmas activity workbook transforms the whole month of December
1. An Advent activity calendar means one page a day, so it becomes a daily ritual
The activity book turns waiting into a special moment. Each morning, your child completes the dayâs page in five to ten minutes, then colours in the calendar square. Repeating this twenty-four times gives the month a lovely rhythm.
2. No sugar, no plastic, and enough to last the whole month
Nothing to throw away, nothing to eat. A 48-page colour workbook, some felt-tip pens, and 8 big games kept in reserve for weekends and days off.
3. Your child practises skills without even realising
Counting baubles on the tree is actually maths. Logical sequences, odd ones out, sums up to 10, words to complete, true or false: the activities cover everything expected by the end of CP (age 6-7), all disguised as cheeky elves.
4. The colouring calendar makes the wait visible
Page 3 is a real Advent calendar: twenty-four boxes, a countdown, and a keepsake to treasure.
While you wait for your activity book, or to try out the idea of a daily Christmas activity, here are six printable Christmas colour-by-number pages, with answers.
đĽ Download 6 Christmas colour-by-number pages (free) (in French)Give the workbook on the evening of 30 November, with your child's name already written on the âThis workbook belongs to meâ page. On 1 December, it is waiting for them, open at day 1, next to the breakfast bowl.
đ The Kidibook Great Advent Workbook, week by week
After the âThis book belongs toâ page, the parentsâ corner and the calendar, a golden letter arrives for the six friends: Bibou, Plouf, LĂŠo, Astro, Rex and Gauvain are getting ready for the party and have chosen your child as their helper.
Week 1 ¡ Decorating the house (days 1 to 6)
Bibou opens the boxes of decorations. Day 1, count the baubles on the tree; day 2, continue the garland pattern; day 5, trace the letters of the Christmas words; day 6, write your letter to Father Christmas.
Week 2 ¡ The six friendsâ treasures (days 7 to 12)
Each day, a mascot brings a treasure. Plouf counts the presents with twelve little sums, Astro asks a true or false question (does Father Christmas travel by tractor?), Rex asks you to spot the correctly spelt word, and Gauvain guards the presents at the end of a maze.
Week 3 ¡ The gift workshop (days 13 to 18)
Off we go to the elvesâ workshop. We compare the parcels, put the biscuit recipe back in order, solve riddles and do sums up to 10.
Week 4 ¡ Christmas Eve (days 19 to 24)
The big week: the sleigh gets ready and the table is set. Guide the sleigh without lifting your pencil, answer the big true or false quiz (for example: in Australia, Christmas is in the middle of summer). On day 24, count the presents under the tree and draw your family in front of it.
The Great Advent Workbook â 24 days of activities
An Advent calendar that really keeps children busy: one activity page per day from 1st to 24th December, with all six mascots.
- 24 âDay nâ pages, each taking 5 to 10 minutes, split into 4 weekly stories
- 8 big games for weekends and days off
- Colour-in calendar, 2 stories, answers and the Advent Champion certificate
- English edition, printed on demand ¡ free delivery in France, âŹ5 elsewhere ¡ also available in French, German and Spanish
đ˛ The 8 big games, the 2 stories and the parentsâ corner
After day 24, eight big games to enjoy, but no peeking ahead.
- Two mazes: the big sleigh race, with a timer, and the elvesâ workshop turned into a labyrinth.
- Two word searches: ten Christmas words (tree, reindeer, log, etc.), then eight longer words (garland, chimney, Christmas Eve, etc.).
- The magic colouring and dot-to-dot: each box hides an addition or subtraction (numbers up to 20); the answer, from 6 to 10, gives the colour. Then a dot-to-dot, counting in twos up to 38.
- Two sudokus: the elvesâ sudoku (numbers 1 to 6, with three riddles) and the Christmas Eve sudoku, the final challenge.
Two stories to open and close the month
Two short stories to read together. âThe Golden Letterâ starts the adventure for the six friends; âChristmas Eveâ wraps up the month with a mug of hot chocolate.
Parentâs corner, answers and the certificate
Page 4 sets out four rules: a daily ritual, not homework; just one page per day; treat the calendar as a real game; go at your own pace. At the end: all the answers and the Advent Champion certificate, to sign on the evening of the 24th.
đ§ Advent calendar for children: what age is right for an Advent workbook?
The rule in a nutshell: from age 5 with an adult, perfect for CP to CE1 (ages 6-8), independent from around 7-8 years old.
1. At age 5, in Kindergarten, with an adult
Your child does the activities, you do the reading. Counting, colouring, circling, joining up: everything is within their reach.
2. From CP to CE1, the ideal age group
The workbook is designed for these two school years. Fill-in-the-blank words, sums up to 10, true or false and logical sequences all match whatâs taught in class.
3. From CE2 (age 8-9) to CM2 (age 10-11), for the ritual and the big games
The daily pages are intentionally easy. Five minutes of success in the morning, the real challenges at the weekend, and for the eldest the role of chief elf, reading the instructions to a younger sibling.
Before age 5, writing numbers and filling in words can be frustrating for your child: a story-based Advent calendar is a better choice for little ones.
â Advent calendar activities: the morning or snack-time ritual
1. Choose a set time
Mornings work best. The workbook waits by the breakfast bowl, and your child heads off to school with their box coloured in. If not, after-school snack time works tooâjust keep it consistent.
2. Finish with the calendar box
Colouring in the box is the reward, not just a formality. On page 3, colour the day's box and update the countdown (boxes coloured out of 24).
3. Save the big games for the weekend
The eight games are a reserve, not something to do ahead of time.
4. On the 24th, the certificate ceremony
Set aside five minutes to make it special. Calendar coloured in, drawing displayed, certificate signed in front of everyone: this is the moment your child will remember most.
The workbook is printed to order: production takes a few days before shipping. It's best to order before mid-November.
â Frequently asked questions
Will the workbook arrive before 1st December?
Yes, if you order early: print-on-demand adds a few days for production before dispatch. For peace of mind, order at the start of November; delivery times are indicative, especially during busy periods. Free shipping in France, âŹ5 elsewhere.
What is print-on-demand?
Each workbook is printed in A4 colour format when you order, then sent directly to your home. Thereâs no stock or unsold copies, but you do need to allow for production time.
Is there a PDF version of the Advent workbook?
No, the Great Advent Workbook only exists in print: something your child can hold, colour in and keep. For free printable Christmas activities, our magic colouring pages and our games for preschoolers are perfect for that.
Does my child need to know how to read?
No. From age 5, you read the instructions and your child does the activity. Theyâll become independent around age 7-8.
What if we miss a day?
Just catch up the next day, calmly, with two pages and two boxes. The only rule not to break is the opposite: never get ahead.
Is the workbook available in other languages?
Yes: this English edition, plus French, German and Spanish, with the same 24 days, the same mascots and the same big games.
đ Useful resources on Kidibook
- Printable Christmas colouring pages â 6 free magic colouring pages, 3 levels
- Printable magic colouring pages â free, from Kindergarten (age 5-6) to CM2 (age 10-11), with answers
- Printable games for preschoolers â for siblings under age 5
- Printable CP exercises â the same topics as in the workbook, all year round
- The 31 Days Adventure â a free daily challenge for each class, to keep the fun going after Christmas
- La Fabrique Ă Histoires (in French) â create-your-own stories, for ages 5 to 9
- Ăduscol â End-of-year expectations and annual progression points (cycle 2) â reference for end-of-CP topics included in the workbook
đ Verdict
If you want a bedtime story, an Advent book calendar will do the trick. But if youâd like your child to be hands-on throughout December, with a pencil in hand and a certificate on the 24th, the activity workbook really deliversâno sugar, no plastic.
The Great Advent Workbook (âŹ24.99, 48 full-colour A4 pages) includes 24 daily activity pages, 8 big games and 2 stories. From age 5 with an adult, perfect for CP to CE1 (ages 6-8). Best to order before mid-November.
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