We switched things up and made a graham cracker nativity instead of a traditional graham cracker house for Christmas and couldn't be more thrilled with how it turned out. A fun twist that brings the spirit of Christmas into our home. This post contains an affiliate link.
You might also like our pop tart gingerbread houses! Such a fun activity for the family!
Watch our step by step video!
One of my favorite holiday traditions is making graham cracker houses. I remember making one in kindergarten, using a small milk carton, and being so excited to bring it home. I couldn't wait to continue the tradition with my children and I am thrilled that they love making them as much as I do! Here is a darling twist on the classic little house. It actually isn't a house at all, it's a stable! A graham cracker nativity!
You might remember the cute peanut butter version that we made in 2014. We made them again this year and I made a video of the process!
I just love the little gumdrop shepherds! The girls couldn't get enough of baby Jesus. They had a great time rolling him up in his little fruit-by-the-foot swaddling clothes.
Let me show you how easy this project was to make each graham cracker house nativity!
Graham Cracker Nativity Scene
Supplies
- Graham crackers
- Royal icing* or peanut butter**
*You can make royal icing with powdered sugar, meringue powder, and water. I skip the meringue powder and simply use a ½ cup of powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons of water. It takes a little longer to dry, but I haven't had any issues with it. You want a nice, thick icing to hold everything together. Alternatively, you can use a tub of vanilla frosting from the store.
**I sometimes like using peanut butter because my kids think it tastes better than royal icing. It's a fun twist on the traditional iced gingerbread house, but it does not harden like royal icing does. So only use peanut butter if your kids are going to snack on it right away. You'll notice that some of ours are made with icing and others are made out of peanut butter. Both work, depending on what you intend on using it for. Our royal icing one will be on display for a few weeks.
My favorite divided tray with lid. So great for making gingerbread houses, snack trays and more.
Candies
- gumdrops
- mini candy canes
- animal crackers
- toasted coconut
- fruit by the foot
To keep it easy and as mess-free as possible, we put the icing or peanut butter into a quart-size freezer bag and cut off the corner. This makes assembly a snap!
Start with the bottom. Use your icing to attach the bottom graham cracker to your base (cardboard wrapped in foil, or a sturdy paper plate). Then add the half graham crackers for the sidewalls, a full graham cracker for the back, and another one for the top. There might be a small gap between the top of the back wall and the roof. You can trim your graham cracker side walls to fit perfectly if you’d like. Trimming your side wall crackers to fit just right will prevent your roof from eventually bowing down under the weight of candy. I don’t worry about it because we only put an angel on top of ours.
My boys were able to assemble theirs on their own, but I helped the girls. They did the people and decorations on their own and had a great time doing so!
To create Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, and the angel, slide gumdrops onto a toothpick. Baby Jesus is two gumdrops wrapped in a piece of fruit by the foot, resting on a graham cracker.
The angel has two candy canes for wings.
Use icing to attach them to your nativity scene. You can trim the excess toothpick off from the bottom with scissors. If you have a cardboard base you can also just push the toothpick through the cardboard base for more stability instead of trimming it.
Animal crackers make quick and easy stable animals. We found a donkey, camel....and even an elephant?? The kids thought the scene definitely needed the elephant. Fill in any gaps and spaces on the stable floor with toasted coconut.
Such a sweet little sight.
3 More Christmas Crafts For Kids!
Snowboarding Polar Bear Treats
Graham Cracker Nativity Scene
Graham Cracker Nativity
Equipment
- toothpicks
- paper plate or cardboard covered with foil
- plastic baggie for icing or peanut butter
Ingredients
- 5 graham crackers
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 2-3 teaspoons water
- gumdrops
- mini candy canes
- fruit roll up (fruit by the foot)
- toasted coconut
- animal crackers
Instructions
- Mix powdered sugar and water to create a thick icing. Add more sugar or water, if necessary to achieve desired thickness. You want a thick icing.
- Fill plastic baggie with icing. Cut a small snip across a corner.
- Start with the bottom. Use your icing to attach the bottom graham cracker to your base (cardboard wrapped in foil, or a sturdy paper plate). Use two half graham crackers for the sidewalls, a full graham cracker for the back, and another one for the top. Tip: add the back wall, then prop it up with a cup while you add the side walls.
- Let graham cracker stable sit until icing has had a chance to set up (15-20 minutes)
- Assemble Mary, Joseph, Shephards, and Baby Jesus while the graham cracker stable dries. To create these figures, slide gumdrops onto a toothpick. Baby Jesus is two gumdrops wrapped in a piece of fruit by the foot, resting on a small piece of graham cracker.Trim off the excess toothpick with scissors, if desired.Mary and Joseph are 3 gumdrops.The shepherds are 3 gumdrops with a fruit by the foot head covering. We also added a mini candy cane as a staff.
- The angel has two candy canes for wings.
- Use icing to attach the figures. Add a couple of animal cracker animals. Allow them to dry. Prop them up if necessary, but they should dry in about 5 minutes or so.
- Sprinkle toasted coconut around for straw.
Notes
Nutrition
One more flashback of our original nativity scenes. SO fun.
Elizabeth Stalker says
Very sweet and great time to tell the story of Jesus’ birth and that that is the reason we celebrate Christmas.
Love it.
Nicole says
Where do I buy toasted coconut or did you toast it yourself?
Brandy says
Hi Nicole! I toasted it myself. 🙂
sherri wendorff says
Thank you for the nativity idea. We are going to make 15 of them at a cousin party next week.
Thanks
Brandy says
How fun!!
Leanne says
I’m going to do this with my Grandboys when they visit for Christmas. Such a doable craft with the true Christmas meaning.💚❤️
Brandy says
What a fun grandma! I love this!
Lana Cannon says
Saw this adorable idea last week. Two of my grands are spending the night tomorrow. So we will be doing this. Thanks so much for sharing.
Brandy says
What a fun grandma! I love it!
Frances Fogle says
Our church hosts an annual nativity exhibition with nativities from around the world. We also include children's nativities. We will definitely add the graham cracker nativity to our display this year. It is precious.
Brandy says
So fun! I love that your church does that!
Kippi says
Sweet project to do with the kids. Happy Holiday Season, Kippi
Jennifer Wise says
This is SO adorable! I love the idea of a gingerbread nativity. And it's so simple, too. Love it.
#inspirememondaylinkup
The Freshman Cook says
So sweet! I love that you made your graham cracker house a nativity! Every piece is adorable! Thank you for sharing at Celebrate it!
Marion Boyer says
We will be doing this graham crackers nativity for our second year. My kids love it, and it is becoming a tradition for our family. Thanks and God bless you!
Brandy says
This made my day, thank you! Such a fun tradition. 🙂
Maria | passion fruit, paws and peonies says
What a cute idea!! Love this - I'll share it with my sister who has little ones xx
Florence @ VintageSouthernPicks says
This has got to be the cleverest craft I've seen for kids in a long time! And it's a great way to emphasize the meaning of Christmas to the young ones. Love the idea of all the elements that make this up!
Brandy says
Thank you so much, Florence!
Natalie A says
I love this idea! I bet the kids love making the nativity scene and it entertains them. I pinned this fun nativity scene so I can use this later. I think it would be fun to make with my nieces and nephews. Thanks for sharing!
Lisa says
Your Graham Cracker Nativity scene is so cute. I used to make graham cracker houses with my kids when they were little but I love the idea of using animal crackers and gumdrops to create the Nativity. My kids are in their 20's now but I am collecting ideas for potential grandkids. Thanks for an adorable idea!
Brandy says
Thanks so much, Lisa!!
Brandy says
Thanks so much, Lisa!
Lisa/Syncopated Mama says
What a cute idea! Pinned & tweeted.
Brandy says
Thanks so much, Lisa!
Victoria @DazzleWhileFrazzled says
So cute and fun! I should do this with my kids. Visiting from Friday Favorites party.