These Candy Cane activities for toddlers will be sure to make your toddler or preschooler happy this December! Here are our favorite candy cane activities!

1 Candy Cane Sensory Bin

You know I can’t celebrate a theme without a sensory bin…so here’s our candy cane sensory bin! (Be sure to download your sensory bin guide!) I used red and white pasta with some peppermint extract added in! 

I added some Christmas-themed erasers I found at the dollar tree and let the kids play! They loved scooping the pasta into bowls and cupcake tins!

I love how easy it is to clean up pasta, but rice would work really well too!

To make colored pasta, put dry noodles, paint, and a few squirts of hand sanitizer into a bag. Shake it until it’s covered. Then dump it onto a cookie sheet to dry!

2 Candy Cane Patterns

If you’re looking for an easy way to incorporate some math into your day, try these pattern cards! It includes AA and  AB patterns, which is the perfect challenge for this age! It helps my toddlers when I say the pattern out loud. They start to catch on and begin saying it out loud too!

Here’s where you can get the candy cane pattern activity you can try too! I put these into zipper pencil pouches for my toddlers to do on the go!

3 Candy Cane Playdough

My toddlers are OBSESSED with playdough trays! This candy cane playdough tray is the perfect addition to your candy cane play…and it smells delicious!

Here’s how to make it:

Mix together 1 cup flour, ½ cup salt, and 2 tbsp cream of tartar (*if you plan on making playdough often, get your cream of tartar here. It will save you so much money!)

Microwave 1 cup of water for about 2 minutes, until it’s boiling,

Add about 1 tbsp of olive oil to your boiling water and pour it into your dry mix.

Stir until it is combined, and dump onto cling wrap or parchment paper.

After it has cooled enough to touch, add a few drops of red food coloring and peppermint extract. Knead together until your dye has marbleized your dough.

Now pair your playdough with some themed items and playdough tools and you’ve got yourself the perfect Candy Cane playdough tray!

4 STEM Challenge: Build an Elf house

This Build an Elf house challenge is the perfect way to incorporate STEM into your toddler’s learning! Your toddler will try to build the elf house (and other shapes) out of candy canes! Younger toddlers may need to build their house directly on the sheet, almost like they’re putting together a puzzle. Older toddlers may be able to use the picture as a map for how to build their elf house! 

This is such a fun challenge for your toddler…and afterward, they can enjoy a candy cane! Eating the candy cane makes candy cane activities for toddlers more fun!

5 Candy Cane Clips

This is such a fun fine motor challenge! Toddlers have this weird fascination with clothespins, so this is the perfect themed activity!

Here’s how to do it!

1 Cut out a candy cane shape on a piece of cardstock.

2 Either use colored clothespins or use a sharpie to color some clothespins red and chalk to color some clothespins white.

3 Have your toddler clip the clothespins onto the candy cane to make a candy cane

** This is such an easy activity to modify to meet your toddler’s level! You could add colored dots to the candy cane for your toddler to match up. You could put a pattern on the wall (red, red, white) for your toddler to try to recreate, or you could let your toddler free create a candy cane!

6 Candy Cane Reindeer

This is the classic Candy Cane craft that I have been doing since I was a child! When I taught, I did this with my students each year. And, now, I have to pass this down to my toddlers too! I love how instant this craft is…and your toddlers will love seeing their candy cane transform into a reindeer!

Here’s how you can recreate:

1 Help your toddler attach a pipe cleaner on the bend of the candy cane.

2 Use a pencil or your finger to twirl each side of the pipe cleaner.

3 Add some googly eyes (I highly suggest adhesive googly eyes!)

4 Add a pom pom nose (glue dots work best!)

5 Enjoy your reindeer!

Bonus Candy Cane Activities for Toddlers!

An activity we do with every theme is dot sticker or dot marker sheets. My toddlers are obsessed with these and they’re such an easy activity to set up. 

Also, be sure to check out my Candy Cane bundle on TPT! It has plenty of candy cane themed printables for you to use with your toddler!

Looking for more Christmas ideas? Check out these Polar Express ideas for your toddlers!

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.