The December school holidays in Singapore are long enough to rest properly and still learn something new, as long as you give the weeks a little shape. Most parents want fewer hours on screens and no tuition marathon.

Below are 12 activities for children aged 5 to 14, each with an age range, time needed and what it builds, plus a sample week, post-exam advice and a printable checklist.

1How long are the December school holidays in Singapore?

For 2026, MOE lists the year-end holidays for MOE Kindergarten, primary and secondary students as Saturday 21 November to Thursday 31 December, which is about six weeks. JC Year 1 and Millennia Institute Years 1 and 2 break from Saturday 28 November. You can check every date on the official MOE school terms and holidays for 2026 page.

Without a plan, six weeks slides into late nights and long gaming sessions. With too much plan, it becomes a second school term. Aim for the middle.

2What makes an activity brainy and screen-smart?

A screen-smart activity makes your child think, create or move, and uses a screen only as a tool, not as entertainment. Singapore’s Ministry of Health guidance on screen use, updated in January 2025 under the Grow Well SG strategy, suggests that children aged 7 to 12 keep recreational screen time outside school to under two hours a day.

A live coding lesson is active and social. Scrolling short videos is not. Each idea below passes three tests: it stretches thinking, involves another person, and leaves something behind.

3Activities 1 to 4: brainy games at home

The easiest brainy activities need only a kitchen table and suit rainy afternoons.

1. A family chess tournament

Ages: 5 and up. Time: 20 to 40 minutes a game. Builds: planning, patience and graceful losing. Draw a bracket on paper and play one round a day. Grandparents count. Younger children get one “take back” per game.

2. Learn the Rubik’s cube in a week

Ages: 7 and up, or 6 with help. Time: 15 to 20 minutes a day. Builds: memory, sequencing and persistence. Learn one stage of the beginner method per day, starting with the white cross. By the weekend, a solve with notes is realistic.

3. A puzzle-a-day calendar

Ages: 5 to 14. Time: 5 to 10 minutes. Builds: logic and a daily habit. Hide one riddle or logic question on a sticky note each morning. Older siblings can write puzzles for younger ones.

4. A “teach the parent” day

Ages: 6 to 14. Time: 30 minutes. Builds: confidence and deep understanding. Your child teaches you something they know well, such as a maths method or a chess opening. Explaining a skill is the fastest way to own it.

4Activities 5 to 7: learning out and about in Singapore

Singapore’s hawker centres, MRT, libraries and parks make brilliant free classrooms.

5. Maths on the move: hawker bill and MRT games

Ages: 6 to 12. Time: 5 to 15 minutes, anywhere. Builds: mental maths and number confidence. At the hawker centre, your child estimates the bill and works out the change. On the MRT, count stations and estimate the journey time. Older children can try a Vedic maths shortcut.

6. A National Library Board reading challenge

Ages: 5 to 14. Time: a weekly visit plus 20 minutes of daily reading. Builds: vocabulary, focus and independence. Visit your nearest public library and set a target together, for example one non-fiction, one mystery and one Mother Tongue book.

7. A park science walk

Ages: 5 to 12. Time: 45 to 90 minutes, early morning. Builds: observation and scientific thinking. Try a neighbourhood park or the Singapore Botanic Gardens with a mission: find five leaf shapes or sketch a bird.

5Activities 8 to 12: one new skill for the new year

December is the perfect window to try one new skill, with no homework competing for energy.

8. A mini coding project

Ages: 7 to 14. Time: 30 to 45 minutes, three times a week. Builds: logic, creativity and debugging patience. Set one goal, such as an animated greeting card or a family quiz game. This is screen time with a purpose.

9. A music practice goal

Ages: 5 to 14. Time: 15 minutes a day. Builds: discipline, memory and listening. Choose one song to perform at a family gathering in late December. A performance date turns practice into a countdown.

10. A language “word of the day”

Ages: 5 to 14. Time: 5 minutes. Builds: vocabulary and cultural curiosity. Stick one word in a Mother Tongue or new language on the fridge each morning. Everyone uses it at dinner.

11. A holiday learning journal

Ages: 6 to 14. Time: 10 minutes before bed. Builds: writing, reflection and memory. Each night, three lines: something I did, something I learned, something I want to try. Younger children can dictate.

12. An online 1 on 1 holiday course

Ages: 5 to 14. Time: one or two live lessons a week. Builds: a real new skill with expert guidance. A few live 1 on 1 online classes give the holiday a gentle anchor, paced around one child.

6A sample weekly holiday rhythm

A good holiday week has a loose rhythm, not a timetable: one outing, a few short learning bursts and lots of free play.

• Monday: Lie-in, then a 15 minute Rubik’s cube stage. Afternoon free play.
• Tuesday: Morning park science walk. Evening chess tournament round.
• Wednesday: Library visit and reading time. Short coding session.
• Thursday: Online 1 on 1 class or music practice. Afternoon with friends.
• Friday: Hawker lunch with bill maths. “Teach the parent” in the evening.
• Weekend: Rest and a family outing your child picks.

7How to avoid burnout after PSLE and exams

The best way to avoid holiday burnout after PSLE or year-end exams is to give your child a full week of genuine rest first, with no assessment books at all.

After that, let your child choose most activities, because choice restores the control exam season takes away. Praise effort, watch for irritability or poor sleep, and if results disappoint, a new hobby can rebuild confidence faster than worksheets.

8Your printable holiday checklist

Screenshot this list and let your child tick items off during the December school holidays.

• ☐ Play every round of the family chess tournament
• ☐ Solve the Rubik’s cube once, with or without notes
• ☐ Work out a hawker bill and the change in your head
• ☐ Borrow and finish at least five library books
• ☐ Complete one park science walk mission
• ☐ Finish a mini coding project
• ☐ Learn 20 new words in another language
• ☐ Fill 20 pages of the holiday journal
• ☐ Try one live class in a brand new skill

Make this December count

A memorable December holiday in Singapore needs a few good habits, curiosity and time together, not a packed schedule. Pick three or four ideas, add rest, and let your child lead. Singapore’s Grow Well SG strategy was set up to help families build healthy habits in children, and the holidays are the easiest time to start one small routine.