December doesn’t have to be a stress test. We unpack five blissful, low-prep strategies that keep kids learning and let you breathe, so you can walk into winter break proud, present, and not wiped out. We start with Elf Diaries, a creative writing approach that turns classroom elf hype into voice, perspective, and narrative skills without the daily setup grind. From there, we pivot to Holiday Would You Rather—fast, funny prompts that spark movement, debate, and opinion writing, with easy extensions like quick writes and class graphs that take minutes to run and deliver big engagement.

December doesn’t have to be survival mode. We’re sharing ten Christmas read‑alouds that bring the room to a cozy hush while still nailing essential skills like character analysis, sequencing, vocabulary, point of view, and fluency. Each pick comes with a clear teaching angle and simple prompts you can use tomorrow, so you can steer into the season’s energy without losing rigor.