25 Low-Effort Holiday Activities to Get Your Teen Off Their Phone This Christmas

Simple, screen-free ideas that actually work—no forced fun, no family retreats, no guilt trips.

If you read my Substack piece last week about the screen-time battle at Christmas, you already know this:
the challenge isn’t that teens are “addicted to their phones.”

It’s that we often remove screens without replacing them with connection.

When school slows down, routines disappear, and daylight fades at 5:30 p.m., screens naturally fill the gaps. That doesn’t mean parents have failed. It means we’re living in modern reality.

So instead of declaring war on devices, this list is about quick wins—low-effort, realistic activities that gently pull teens back into family life without turning Christmas break into a forced march.

No Pinterest perfection required.

🎄 Cozy & Low-Key (Minimal Energy Required)

1. Holiday Movie Night—with a Twist
   Add trivia, quote challenges, or “spot the cliché” rules.

2. Rate the Christmas Cookies
   Blind taste test. Everyone ranks. Debate is mandatory.

3. Drive Around and Judge Christmas Lights
   Categories help: “Most Effort,” “Most Questionable,” “Boldest Use of Inflatables.”

4. Hot Chocolate Night
   Extra toppings. No nutritional commentary.

5. Read a Short Christmas Story Aloud
   Yes—even with teens. Especially with teens.

🎁 Light Interaction, Big Payoff

6. Christmas Music Draft
   Each person drafts five songs. One playlist rules the house.

7. Fast Board or Card Games
   Uno, Dutch Blitz, Exploding Kittens. Keep it under 30 minutes.

8. Wrap Gifts Together
   Uneven wrapping builds character—or at least humility.

9. Family Trivia Night
   Include questions about them. They secretly love this.

10. Decorate Gingerbread Anything
    Houses. Cookies. Graham crackers. No rules.

🎅 Get Out of the House (Without Overplanning)

11. Volunteer Together (One Afternoon)
    Food pantry. Toy drive. Soup kitchen. One shared experience matters.

12. Post-Dinner Walk
    Phones optional. Conversation encouraged.

13. One-on-One Coffee or Cocoa Date
    Short. Intentional. Hugely underrated.

14. Errand Runs Together
    Some of the best conversations happen in the car.

15. Local Christmas Event
    Parade. Tree lighting. Church event. Show up imperfectly.

🎄 Creative Without Pressure

16. Recreate an Old Family Photo
    Awkward is part of the fun.

17. Christmas Memory Jar
    One memory from the year. Read them later.

18. Make a Family Meme
    Humor is relational currency with teens.

19. Build Something Together
    Puzzle, Lego set, or IKEA furniture (proceed carefully).

20. Cook One Special Meal Together
    Not every meal. Just one.

✨ Meaningful but Manageable

21. Christmas Eve Reflection (10 Minutes)
    What was hard this year? What was good?

22. Advent or Scripture Reading
    Short. Consistent. No overteaching.

23. Family Gratitude Round
    One thing you appreciate about each person.

24. Plan One January Thing
    A trip, goal, or tradition to look forward to.

25. Do Nothing—Together
    Sit. Talk. Be bored. Presence matters more than productivity.

A Final Word for Parents

This list isn’t about “fixing” your teen.

It’s about creating enough relational pull that screens don’t dominate every quiet moment. Research consistently shows teens disengage from devices more easily when connection feels natural—not forced.

Christmas gives us a rare window. Slower days. Shared space. Lower expectations.

You don’t need all 25.

Pick one.
Then another.
That’s usually how real family rhythms begin.

Want the Deeper Story Behind This List?

This list grew out of a much more personal—and honest—conversation I shared last week about our family’s ongoing screen-time battle at Christmas.

Not the “rules chart on the fridge” version.
The real one.
The quiet tension. The good intentions. The lessons learned the hard way.

If you want the research, the family stories, and the why behind these ideas, you can read the full Substack article here:

👉 Read: The Christmas Screen-Time Truce That Saved Our Holiday

Start with one idea from the list.
Then, if you’re ready to go deeper, I’ll meet you there.