Christmas paper chain decorations
Consider colour sequences and measurements while making paper chains for Christmas
Learn how to make DIY Christmas paper chains
Paper chains are super easy to make and a great way to decorate a room or Christmas Tree. In this Christmas STEM activity, students are going to try to make the longest chain possible with three pieces of paper. Students will consider the different sequences that are all around them, while thinking about colour patterns and number sequences.
This Christmas paper chain decorations activity has been created to support the teaching of the primary national curriculum. It’s also a fun craft activity for making colourful Christmas decorations for the home or classroom.
Activity: Christmas paper chain decorations
Supplies/tools needed:
- Glue stick
- A ruler
- Two sheets of red paper
- Two sheets of green paper
- Two sheets of yellow paper - learners can choose their own colours, as long as they are different!
- Scissors
Follow our step-by-step guide on how to make DIY Christmas paper chains
Adults can help children make their DIY Christmas paper chains by following our step-by-step instructions:
- Take one sheet of each colour. Use the scissors to cut the paper into thick strips, approximately 3cm wide. When all three sheets have been used, place the strips to one side.
- Repeat step 1 with the other three sheets, but this time make the strips thinner (approximately 1cm wide).
- Learners should predict which set of strips will make the longest chain - will it be the thick strips or the thin strips? And why?
- Decide on a sequence to use to mix up the colours (a sequence is a pattern). Some examples of colour sequences are below, or learners could make up their own sequence. As learners are making two chains, they can have two different sequences or have the same for both thick and thin strips.
- Red – Green – Yellow – Red – Green – Yellow – Red – Green – Yellow
- Red – Red – Green – Green – Yellow – Yellow – Red – Red – Green – Green – Yellow – Yellow
- Red – Yellow – Red – Green – Red – Yellow – Red – Green
- Use the glue stick to glue each strip into a loop, each one looping through the one before to make a chain.
- Use a ruler to measure each chain to find out which one is the longest. Was the prediction correct?
Download our DIY Christmas paper chains worksheet for a printable set of instructions.
This worksheet also explores mathematical sequences.
The resource is also available as a family activity.
The engineering context
The Fibonacci sequence is widely used in engineering applications including computer data structures and sorting algorithms, financial engineering, audio compression, and architectural engineering.
Suggested learning outcomes
In this activity children will learn how to make paper chains. They will also be introduced to mathematical sequences.
Download our activity sheet and other teaching resources
You can download our step-by-step instructions below as a classroom lesson plan or a family activity.
All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs.
And please do share your learning highlights and final creations with us on social media @IETeducation #SantaLovesSTEM or send them via email to IETEducation@theiet.org to be featured in our online gallery.
