If you’re looking for a simple and festive Christmas craft for kids either at home or in the classroom, this torn paper Christmas tree is the perfect holiday activity. Children can rip, tear, and glue pieces of paper to create their own special Christmas tree.
This hands-on craft is not only fun and easy to set up, but it also helps build fine motor skills, strengthens little hand muscles, and encourages creativity as they design their own unique tree. I've also included a free printable Christmas tree template to make it even easier.
TORN PAPER CHRISTMAS TREE CRAFT
This torn paper Christmas tree craft is perfect for children of all ages from toddlers through to school aged kids, especially those who love the satisfying feel of ripping paper. Tearing paper is a fantastic sensory and fine motor activity that provides heavy work (proprioceptive input), strengthens hand muscles, and encourages better hand control. It’s also great for building hand-eye coordination and bilateral coordination as children tear, place, and glue each piece onto the template.
Beyond the developmental benefits, this festive craft is a fun, hands-on way for children to explore texture and get creative as they decorate their tree. I deliberately kept the template design simple so it can easily be done by younger children. Don’t worry about perfection, crooked pieces, different colours, or gaps in the design are all part of the fun.
You will need:
- Glue
- Tree template
- White, green & brown paper
- Gem stickers {optional}
If you want the craft to be more sturdy you can use cardstock instead of paper, however this will make tearing the coloured pieces more of a challenge for little hands. Alternatively you can laminate the final piece.
If your children want to add extra decorations onto their tree once it's finished you can use self adhesive gem stickers, Christmas light stickers, ornament stickers, decorate with glitter glue, or glue on mini pom poms.
HOW TO MAKE A TORN PAPER CHRISTMAS TREE
1. Print free template onto white paper. If you want it to be more sturdy you can print it on white cardstock instead.
2. Tear green and brown paper into small pieces. This is a great way for young children to work their fine motor skills.
3. Glue brown paper onto the trunk section of the tree.
My 7yr old did a great job staying within the lines, however younger children may place the pieces more haphazardly and leave white space. Don't worry how they stick down the paper, this craft is more about the process rather than creating a perfect tree.
4. Glue green paper onto the leaf section of the tree. Again, don't worry how they stick the paper onto the template.
5. Stick on any embellishments as decorations on the tree {optional}.
I thought my daughter would add the gems as baubles across the tree because they're round, however she decided to make them into a garland.
DOWNLOAD FREE PRINTABLE CHRISTMAS TREE TEMPLATE
Click the download template button below to download the free printable blank Christmas tree template to your device. The template is a single A4 PDF, however you can print as many copies as you need. You will need access to a PDF reader, e.g. Adobe Acrobat Reader, to open the file.
Please note that this Christmas tree template is for personal and classroom use only and cannot be digitally uploaded, shared or sold on any platform. If you want to share this craft please link back to this blog post directly.
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