How to Make a Felt Christmas Tree (and How to Use It for Learning!)

A few years ago, I created a felt Christmas tree for my then 18 month old. Each year, I fold it up into a gallon zip top bag and place it in the bin with all my Christmas decorations.

For one of our Advent activities every year, we pull it out again and decorate our felt Christmas tree together. Then we leave it up all season for the children to play with over and over again.

I post about our felt Christmas tree every year on Instagram and Facebook, but I’ve never taught you how to make your own. It is really quite simple and every year it’s a huge hit!

How to Make a Felt Christmas Tree

What You Need:

Large piece of green felt
Brown felt
Yellow felt
Various colors of felt (for ornaments)
Felt markers or sharpie
Scissors
Thumb tacks

What You Do:

Fold your large piece of green felt in half. Use your felt marker or sharpie to trace your tree shape. Don’t worry about being perfect. Just free hand it the best you can. By folding your felt in half, you’ll at least get a symmetrical shape even if it’s not perfect. 🙂

You can choose to cut a simple triangle or cut ridges to create a tree effect like I did.

Personally, I love the way the tree looks, but it’s hard to keep flat against the wall and I think a simple triangle would have been easier for the children to work with.

Use thumbtacks (not push pins) to attach to the wall. I’m found thumb tacks to be too difficult for little hands to pull out, but push pins come right out.

Next, cut a large rectangle from brown felt and stick it to your tree. This will be your trunk.

Then, cut a large star from yellow felt to put on top of your tree.

Finally, cut out different shapes from various colors of felt for ornaments. I did large and small circles, diamonds, and hearts.

It’s that simple!

How to Use Your Felt Christmas Tree

Color and shape recognition – To do this I ask my child to find a green circle and place it on the tree. Then find a blue diamond. A yellow star. A brown rectangle. Carry on until all the items are on the Christmas tree. To make it even more simple, just ask for a circle or diamond or a blue ornament.

Size sorting – If you cut out different size shapes, have your child find a large circle and then a small circle.

Practice patterns – Put a row of ornaments on the tree and ask your child to make another row just like it. Also do a circle, diamond, circle, diamond and ask your child what comes next.

Counting – Count the ornaments as you put them on the tree.

Talk about symbols of Christmas – I like to share with my children why we use Christmas trees, stars, and ornaments during the Christmas season. As you decorate your felt Christmas tree, share with your children the rich meaning of each item!

If you’re looking for a fun way to engage with your toddler or preschooler this Christmas, try making a felt Christmas tree. It’s always a fun addition to our home during the Advent season. Then, store it in a gallon bag with the rest of your Christmas decorations and enjoy for years to come!