Crystal Bowman posted about lots of Christmas traditions for families. One of those was the highly popular 25 Books for Christmas.

Recently I was talking with several moms about their Christmas traditions. One was the mother of preschoolers. The other was the mother of preteens.

The mother of preschoolers was super excited about the 25 Books for Christmas tradition. She and her two children chose books from their current books (with a few new surprises from Mom and Dad) and wrapped them – 50 books in all so that each child would have a “new” book to open each day. The kids were as excited about helping wrap the books as they now are about trying to guess which package contains a favorite book and enjoying reading them as they are unwrapped.

How can 25 Books for Christmas be adapted for preteens and teens?

Let’s brainstorm some ideas for implementing this fun tradition for older kids. Since today is December 12th, let’s “unwrap this idea” as the 12 Days of Christmas Reading.

• Choose a book with 12 chapters or a fair number of pages that could be divided into reading for 12 days.
• Wrap the book for the child to unwrap on the first day. Then, add a small reading-related gift for each of the remaining 11 days. As the preteen unwraps each of the remains gifts, encourage him to read the next chapter or number of pages to complete the book by Christmas.

12 Days of Christmas Reading

First Day – a fun bookmark

Second Day – some Christmasy reading socks

Third Day – a packet of peppermint hot chocolate

Fourth Day – a treat to eat while reading

Fifth Day – a small reading light

Sixth Day – fun PJs for reading time

Seventh Day – a coupon for shared reading time with a parent

Eighth Day – fun-flavored candy canes to enjoy as reading

Ninth Day – a coupon to use Dad’s favorite chair  while reading that evening

Tenth Day – a small gift related to the book’s theme

Eleventh Day – a bag for keeping books and other reading items

Twelfth Day – a small gift card to purchase another book

Does your family have a Christmas book tradition? We would love to hear about it!

Many blessings on your family as you celebrate this joyous Christmas season!

Carol