12 Playful December Activities

The silly season is here!

And what a perfect time to channel your inner playfulness and do things a little differently in December. Here’s 12 playful suggestions to make the end of the year filled with a tad extra joy.

1. Learn Merry Christmas in Sign Language

Learning a new language is important – and so is being inclusive. Also, as an advocate of using the body to communicate – how beautiful is sign language? Fun fact – there are over 300 different sign languages – and some countries have regional accents. Here’s a few instruction videos to help you along: AUSLAN, BSL, ASL, 57 Worldwide ways )

2. Be playful with your gifts

We all have so much stuff these days. So is there a way you can be playful with your gifts? Wrap up a book you borrowed from a friend? Buy a llama walking adventure (here’s one), make a personalised gif – watch this space for 10 playful gift ideas next week

Lunch and Donate

Buy lunch for a friend and then donate blood together? The gift of time, connection and life.

3. Celebrate Chanukah, Kwanzaa or Omisoka

Christmas isn’t the only cultural celebration in December. Why not think about learning about and diving into different cultures and celebration. Buy some donuts for Chanukah (starts December 7th), partake in some poetry reading or storytelling for Kwanzaa (Swahili for first fruit) or have a bowl of soba on new years eve for Omisoka

4. Set up a ‘Santas wish list’ at your office

Make it large enough to go on a wall and have people voluntarily add all the things they’d like santa to bring to your organisation for 2024. Who knows? Might even be a good start to a 2024 planning session?

5. Get playful with your hangovers

It’s End-of-year party celebration time. So if you are the xmas organiser – get playful with your wine purchases and do a good thing for the planet at the same time. The wines at Good Will Wines are delicious and 50% of their profits go to a charity of your choice. Plus, you’ll find some amazing charities on the list you had no idea existed – like Hear No Evil – supporting deaf dogs, Ngarrimili for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Entrepreneur support and the Entomological Society of Australia. Generous Xmas drinking? Pass the berocca.

6. Be patiently playful

This one is a challenge. December is a crazy time of year. People are rushed, tired and frayed. My challenge: Be playful when things get tense. If you have to wait in line, can’t get what you want or are treated rudely….. what can you do to make that moment playful? Perhaps build a story from items around you in a queue. Imagine the morning of the rude person or create a haiku from your event… I’ll leave that one up to you…

7. Play ‘pin the employee on the present’

Doing a Kris Kringle? Make it fun! Put numbers on the presents and on a xmas poster – blindfold your staff and give them a little cut out copy of themselves to pin on the board – revealing their Kris Kringle pressie!

8. Have a ‘festive feast’ in your company colours

Why not have an office afternoon tea where all the food must be in the colours of your company logo? (goodluck if your logo is fluro pink!)

9. Make your own office Christmas Tree

Challenge yourselves to get playful with office stationery. Make a Christmas tree our of recycled materials in the office. You’ll be amazed at what you can do with an old box and some paperclips

10. Give Mother Nature a Christmas gift

This year, instead of giving gifts – give promises. Decide what you can manage next year as small steps towards helping climate change. Perhaps give someone a gift that says :

“My gift to you and Mother Nature is a cleaner world for Christmas.
I promise to stop using all disposable coffee cups in 2024 in your honour ”

— You

Here’s 45 suggestions to get you started.

11. Make a team Christmas Card

Place a blank Christmas card somewhere in the office (or you can do it online) and ask every team member to contribute just a small design element. That way the card really is ‘from the team’.

12. Get ready for 2024

What is your team motto for 2024. Why not have a meeting before you all break to create your own team motto for 2024. Play with words. Make it cool. Perhaps it is ‘2024. Where the dragon is slayed.’ – or whatever seems right for your team. Put it up around your space (or home office) so it’s the first thing you see on return to work in January.