New Year’s Eve Countdown Ideas: Fun and Engaging Activities for Kids

This blog post provides a list of fun and engaging activities for kids to enjoy during a New Year’s Eve countdown, helping to make the transition into the new year a special and memorable occasion.

New Years is a time for family and friends to get together, eat good food, and enjoy each other’s company. And what better way to celebrate than with some fun activities for kids? We’re not talking about staying up late or watching the ball drop on TV—you can do all of these events before bedtime!

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Why It’s Fun To Countdown To New Years For Kids

The countdown to the new year is exciting for kids. They are always looking forward to what is in store and can’t wait to celebrate the new year with their family and friends.

It’s fun for kids to learn how long it takes for each hour of 2018 to pass. It’s a great way for them to count down the last seconds before the new year arrives!

Should Kids Create New Year Resolutions?

Should you help your kids make New Year’s resolutions? Well, it depends on their age. If they’re under five, it might be a good idea to wait until they’re older. This is because young children don’t yet have the ability to make and keep promises for themselves.

Their language skills are still developing and so it’s not something that would be useful for them at that time in their life. However, if your child is over five years old then definitely encourage them to start making New Year’s Resolutions! It can help them set goals for themselves and take some responsibility for achieving those goals.”

Should Kids Stay Up Until Midnight On New Years, Or Can You Do These Activities Earlier

Kids love the idea of staying up until midnight, but you don’t need to. If you have a countdown party either earlier in the day or later in the night, it will be just as exciting for your child. Some parents may choose to have a real countdown party that runs from 5 p.m. until midnight with activities such as eating snacks and playing games before your family heads off to bed at 11:30 p.m., since this way everyone gets to stay awake until midnight!

If your family wants to do something special on New Years Eve but still go to bed at an early hour like 8 p.m., then try these activities instead! They’re sure to keep your little one entertained while you prepare for their second birthday bash tomorrow night (or whenever).

Scavenger hunt to find the New Years’ resolution slips

To make this activity extra fun and exciting, give each child a paper bag and write their name and parent’s name on a slip of paper. Then put the slips in the bags. Hide these around the house (under beds, inside closets) or outside (in bushes or trees).

Have your kids go find them! When they return to you with all their slips, you can read them aloud: “Help my mom stay calm during car rides” or “I promise to eat more veggies this year!” You may have some funny ones like “Don’t let dad do any chores while I’m gone!”

It’s always fun when children get creative with their resolutions–and it will be even more fun when they realize how hard it really is to keep them once they’re written down on paper!

Create A time Capsule

Time capsules are fun to create, but they can be challenging for kids. The best way to make sure your time capsule is successful is to start with a simple one. Start by asking your child what he/she would like in the time capsule and then help them collect these items together.

The easiest way to do this is by placing an empty box in front of him/her, then adding items as they come up in conversation or when he/she points out something interesting while you’re out and about. You might want to include some objects that were popular when you were growing up, such as a piece of bubble gum or an old cassette tape (these can also be used as decoration).

When choosing objects for your time capsule, remember it doesn’t have to contain just toys—it can feature almost anything!

One idea might be having each member of your family write down their favorite memory from 2018 on a piece of paper and put them all into one big envelope; another idea could be putting together a scrapbook containing photos from events such as birthdays or holidays at home over the past year (or even longer).

Another thing that’s important when creating a time capsule: deciding how long it should last before opening! Some people think about this process more than others do; personally speaking I’m not very patient when it comes down doing things like waiting two years before opening my own personal belongings because there are so many other things I’d rather spend my time doing instead.”

Make paper confetti from old wrapping paper

If you have old wrapping paper, newspapers, greeting cards and magazines that are no longer needed, pull them out of the recycling bin. Then put them in a blender with confetti color of your choice. Mix well until you have confetti!

You can also make confetti from books by cutting pages into small squares. Take a stack of books and use a glue gun or spray adhesive to attach the pages so they stick together as one sheet of paper. Turn it over and cut into small squares using an X-acto knife or scissors. You could also use old magazines to make magazine confetti!

String and hang up tinsel garland

This is a great activity to do with your toddler or preschooler, and it’s super simple. All you need is some tinsel (or any other kind of hanging decoration), string, and scissors. If they’re not confident with hot glue, have them help with the scissors instead!

• Cut the string into two pieces that are roughly 5 feet long each (you’ll be making two garlands). Use one piece for each garland so that both sides look the same when finished. If you want to make them even longer later on, just add more strands now before attaching the tinsel!
• Make sure there are no loops by using a ruler as shown above; this will ensure straight lines for sewing later on! You can use a needle and thread if needed—just sew around it first then cut off any excess thread afterwards once everything feels secure in place again 🙂 If neither option is available then try using an adhesive stick like Elmer’s glue stick since this might work well too since there won’t be much stress involved here either way.”

Dance and Enjoy Holiday Treats

Whether you’re heading to a party or hosting your own celebration, you can put together a spread of treats that everyone will enjoy. Here are some ideas for holiday treats:

• Snacks on the go: Pack up some crackers and cheese, dried fruit and nuts, or a few slices of bread with nut butter. These make easy snacks when traveling to and from parties.
• Candy canes: Make these at home using colored hard candies (like gummy bears) in place of the traditional peppermint candy coating on store-bought candy canes. Or simply dip the ends into melted chocolate if you prefer something simpler! You could also use pretzels or cookies instead of sticks as well—either way will taste delicious!
• Chocolate dipped fruit: Dip pineapple spears into melted chocolate for an indulgent treat that’s also healthy enough for breakfast (if you don’t mind sharing). For added fun try dipping strawberries instead! Just make sure not too many people have allergies before doing so; there are plenty other options available if this isn’t possible at all times during holiday season festivities since most will contain peanut butter which may cause problems for those allergic due its similarity with tree nuts such as pecans or almonds (which aren’t exactly great either).

Put up a piñata for the kids to break

A piñata is a paper-mache or cardboard container filled with candy and/or toys. You can cut out shapes from construction paper and glue them to a balloon, then fill the balloon with candy and let it dry overnight. When you’re ready to break open your piñata, have an adult hold it over the ground so that it doesn’t hurt anyone when it falls apart.

Then, give each kid a stick (you might need one for each kid) and let them hit the piñata until all of its contents spill out onto the ground. Make sure everyone gets some treats before cleaning up any messes!

Celebrate With Sparkling Apple Juice

Make a batch of sparkling apple juice and decorate it with cinnamon sticks, cloves, nutmeg, lemon slices and orange slices. When you’re done with that, add some apple slices to your drink.

Have a countdown bubble bath with sparkling water

Get your little one excited for the big New Year’s Eve countdown by creating a fun bubble bath. The best part of this activity is that you only need one ingredient: sparkling water! You can add some food coloring, glitter, essential oils and even bath bombs or salts to make your child’s bath extra special.

Read a book about New Years and watch a movie afterward about New Years

You can begin your countdown to New Years by reading a book about New Year’s Eve. Afterward, you and your child will watch a movie about New Year’s Eve, or perhaps one that takes place on that day. Next, read a book about tradition on New Years Eve and then watch a movie or TV show about it too!

Play Minute to Win It Party Games

Minute to Win It games are perfect for parties because they can be played with a large group of people. They’re also easy and fun, so kids have a blast playing them.

Here are some ideas for Minute to Win It party games:

• Card Toss – Divide your group into two teams, give each team one deck of cards, and then explain the rules. The object is for each person on the team to throw their card at the stack and get as many cards through as possible in 60 seconds or less. If a player doesn’t get any cards through during that time frame, they’re out of the game! The last person remaining wins!
• Milk Jug Toss – Using milk jugs instead of ping pong balls makes this version safe enough for younger kids (and adults!). Divide players into two teams and position yourself in front of cups spaced apart on a table or floor space so there’s enough room between them but not too much distance either way off center line where both players stand behind opposite ends before starting countdown timer together; then when it stops both players take turns tossing their jug towards target cup filled with water until one misses (either hitting another cup instead hitting target) causing everyone else’s turns end immediately win if successful first throw wins!

Craft Some New Years Dress Up Items

For this craft, you will need:

• A base for your hat. We used a piece of cardboard that was 8″ x 12″, but any shape or size will work. You could also use an empty box from something you’ve recently purchased or decorated with ribbons and bows (something like this).
• Ribbons or strips of fabric to go around the inner brim of the hat. The color doesn’t matter too much; we chose gold because it goes well with our theme colors and looked pretty in pictures. You can choose whatever color suits your theme best!
• Straws for making horns (2 per person)

Make a New Year’s Countdown Chain

You’ll need:

• Paper chains and/or string
• A pen or pencil (for writing)
• Something to keep track of time. If you can get a digital clock that shows seconds that would be ideal. Otherwise, find something that will work for your countdown. It could be a watch with an alarm feature or even an egg timer if you have one!

Now all you have to do is follow these steps:

• Decide how long you want your chain to be — this should take into consideration how many people are participating in the chain! For example, if there are 5 kids then make it 10 link lengths long (10 minutes). Or if there’s 6 kids then make it 9 link lengths long (9 minutes). Whatever feels right for your situation! 2

Make a Picture Clock

You will need a picture of your choice, some glue, and a clock face. The face can be found at any craft store or online.

To make it:

• Glue the photo onto the backside of the clock face. To do this, I recommend using white glue because it dries clear and is easier for kids to use than craft glue.
• Let dry overnight before hanging up in your child’s room!

Create some New Year’s Eve Bingo Cards

To get started, you’ll need to print out the New Year’s Eve Bingo cards below. We’ve included seven different versions of the game: one with six squares, two with five squares and four with four squares. You can use these blank templates to create your own custom bingo cards or simply print them out as they are and hand them out to your kids at New Year’s Eve.

If you’re looking for a way to engage your kids in learning while celebrating the holiday season, then consider using these bingo cards as a learning tool! For example, if you want to teach them about world cultures, use our “World Culture” version of the game which features countries including China and Nepal; if you want them to learn about different animals from around the world (including pandas), try our “Wildlife” version; or if they need some help reading those pesky words like “giraffe” or “elephant” on their own without needing an adult around all day long…well then this “Word” version should do nicely!

It doesn’t matter how old or young your child is—they’ll love playing these Bingo games during this festive time of year (and maybe even beyond).

Make a Firework Painting

Get ready to party with your little ones by creating a Firework Painting. This activity is so much fun and will keep them entertained for hours on New Year’s Eve. All you need for this project are red, white and blue paint in small containers (or make your own by mixing primary colors), a black background, star shape stencils, paint brushes and toothpicks.

Use the stencils to create fireworks on the black background using red-, white- or blue-colored paint. Once you have finished painting all of your fireworks, let the kids use toothpicks to add sparks flying out of them!

Make a New Year’s Hat

Make a New Year’s Hat

This craft is great for any age. A hat is the perfect accessory to wear during your New Year’s Eve countdown, so make one from paper, cardboard or fabric.

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