Office Team-Building Activities for Christmas
It’s December, and that means one thing: the holidays are almost here! Most of us are dreaming of breaks where we pack up shop, go home, and spend treasured time with loved ones. But before we can leave the office, there are a few more weeks of work to complete.
That doesn’t mean it won’t be fun though. In fact, you can brighten up the month with exciting team-building events, which will help strengthen your workplace too.
Need some inspiration? Then keep reading. Here are some excellent team-building activities for Christmas that’ll get everyone in a cheerful mood!
Fun Christmas Team Building Games for the Holiday Office Party
1. Christmas Scavenger Hunt
When it comes to Christmas party games, you can’t go wrong with a scavenger hunt. It’s a classic for a reason; it brings out everyone’s competitive side, gets their curiosity going, and the best thing is, it’s easy to set up!
You probably already know how scavenger hunts go, so here’s how to put a holiday twist on things. Create a list of festive items for participants to find, including objects like:
- Candy canes
- Ornaments
- Santa hats
- Holiday cards
- Snow globes
When writing clues, make sure your creative side comes out, as that’ll help keep people engaged. For example, you can use riddles and trivia about each item to elevate the experience. This game will encourage collaboration since the teams have to strategize to find the items quickly.
This Christmas team-building event is very versatile as well. You can use the office as the hunting ground, or you can rent out a venue. To involve remote workers, you can even go virtual by asking participants to find items at home.
For the prizes, offer themed ones like hot cocoa kits or holiday gift cards.
2. Gift-Wrapping Relay
This is a fast-paced Christmas team-building game that’ll have everyone on their toes!
First, determine how many teams will play; this will help you determine how many identical items to purchase. Then, get plenty of wrapping paper so the teams will have enough to complete this activity.
You can first start off with simple wrapping challenges, such as the best-wrapped gifts or the fastest completion. Then, add challenges, like:
- Wrapping with one hand
- Blindfolded wrapping
- Wrapping using oversized mittens
Plus, you can have multiple stages, starting with simple-to-wrap objects, and then progressing to oddly-shaped toys or sporting equipment. These fun and fast tasks will promote teamwork, in addition to laughter!
Once you’re done wrapping these gifts, consider donating them to charity. Otherwise, you can display them in the office to remind everyone of the fun times.
3. Holiday Cookie Decorating Contest
If you’re searching for Christmas activities for team-building that’s more laid-back, then try a holiday cookie decorating contest.
Get pre-baked cookies in festive shapes, such as trees, stars, and gingerbread men. Pick up decorations that the participants can use, like colored frosting, sprinkles, candy, and edible glitter; just make sure that there are allergy-friendly options to be inclusive. Put an equal amount of everything into little stations.
Set a timer, and let people go wild with their imaginations! You can also have teams create cookies that have stories behind their designs. The appointed judges can then award cookies that show the most creativity, holiday spirit, teamwork, etc.
This relaxing and low-pressure activity will suit everyone since it’s perfect for all skill levels. In addition, it’ll facilitate creativity and allow employees to express themselves while spreading holiday cheer.
4. Ugly Sweater Fashion Show
Another slower-paced team-building activity that everyone can participate in is the ugly sweater fashion show. Encourage workers to come in their funniest and tackiest holiday sweaters, or you can supply plain sweaters and crafting materials so teams can make their own designs. Also, give out props like Santa hats or reindeer antlers so people can accessorize.
Either way, host a runway show where participants model their sweaters. Play cheerful holiday music during it to create a chic atmosphere. You can even host this during your holiday office party to keep everyone entertained and engaged.
5. Charity Drive Challenge
Total charitable giving grew 4.1% year over year; is your company doing its part in contributing too? Charity drives are always fantastic ideas, especially during the holidays when people may struggle more than usual.
Give back to the community while having fun by holding a charity drive challenge. Have your workforce split up into various teams and give each a focus (i.e. food, toys, or clothes).
Now, the teams have a set amount of time to collect donations. If it’s an in-office challenge, then they can gather items in creative ways, such as through raffles or bake sales. After the challenge is over, celebrate contributions by awarding prizes for creativity or the highest total.
This is the perfect team-building activity that combines teamwork with the holiday spirit of giving. Plus, it reinforces company values and community connection, which can elevate your company’s reputation. It may even inspire your workplace to do more charity team-building activities, like Supplies for Success.
6. Christmas Trivia
An easy yet thrilling team-building activity for Christmas is trivia. There’s a reason why pub quizzes are so popular!
You can prepare trivia questions on holiday topics like:
- Worldwide Christmas traditions
- Famous holiday songs
- Classic movies
There are programs you can put these questions and answers into, such as Kahoot!. Or you can rely on good old PowerPoint and its slides; just ensure that the questions get increasingly challenging to keep it competitive. You can even go all out and get buzzers to add more excitement.
For a personal touch, consider including questions about your company’s holiday traditions. Throw in some questions about past parties for some nostalgia too.
This activity can be great for stimulating mental engagement, and everyone will get to learn about holiday traditions too.
7. Team Gingerbread House Decorating
Gingerbreads are iconic symbols of Christmas, and building them is a surefire way to stir up fond childhood memories. Your employees are definitely going to appreciate getting in touch with their inner child during this activity.
Put together gingerbread kits for them with all the essentials. Or you can make an afternoon of it and have the teams build houses from scratch using graham crackers and frosting. To kick things up a notch, add a creative twist by assigning themes, such as “Winter Wonderland” or “Santa’s Workshop.”
At the end, judges will determine which house was the best. They should offer bonus points for structural stability, design originality, or team spirit.
Afterward, you can display the completed houses in a festive area for the entire office to admire!
8. Holiday Karaoke Battle
It’s time to belt out your favorite holiday tunes! It’s up to you; grab a karaoke machine or download a karaoke app to let the good times roll.
Teams will battle it out to see who the next divas are. Have them perform classic holiday songs and award them for:
- Best performance
- Most enthusiastic
- Funniest rendition
Get even more into the holiday spirit by requiring costumes and props. You can include a duet round for cross-team bonding, and you might even get shy participants who will come out of their shells.
9. Ornament-Making Workshop
This team-building activity will help people’s creative sides come out. Also, they’ll have something beautiful to bring home and put on their trees!
Set up a station with clear ornaments that each person can decorate. Crafting supplies you should provide include paints, glitter, and ribbons.
To keep things interesting, have each team create ornaments that reflect their group’s spirit or goals. It’s the perfect way to strengthen collaboration in a low-pressure setting.
When the activity’s done, participants can either take their ornaments home or hang them up on a team tree. To help them remember the activity, include a photo booth with the finished ornaments.
Do These Team-Building Activities for Christmas
To spread holiday cheer at work, do these team-building activities for Christmas. They can help your workforce keep their minds off the drab weather while creating lasting memories and stronger bonds with their coworkers.
What’s even better is that you’ll foster communication and teamwork in your office. As a result, morale will be high and everyone will love coming to work.
If you’re thinking your team deserve something a little more, why not plan an unforgettable corporate team-building event in Mexico? You can request a quote from us now. We at Grupo Events can make any corporate event a truly magical one.