Holiday Scattergories (free printables)

We absolutely love playing holiday scattergories both in our homeschool and just for fun.

If you want to have some holiday fun at school, homeschool, or even at a party you are going to love these free holiday scattergories. These are the best games for kids because they not only entertain but also encourage critical thinking, creativity, and vocabulary expansion while celebrating the festive spirit.

I have enjoyed playing scattergories for a long time, so I wanted to create some holiday category boards that we could play in our homeschool and on our family game nights.

You don’t need the alphabet dice to enjoy these as I have included the letters at the top of each board.

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Table of Contents

How to play scattergories?

Playing Scattergories without the official game and using free printables is a fun and creative way to enjoy the game. Here’s how you can do it:

Prepare the materials:
- Pen/pencil for each player
- Timer (use a smartphone or a separate timer)
- Scattergories category lists (choose which free scattergories boards below)
Set up the game:
- Gather all the players around a table or in a comfortable playing area.
- Distribute a category list and a pen/pencil to each player.
Determine the number of rounds:
- Decide on the number of rounds you want to play. Typically, players complete three rounds in the official game, but you can adjust it to your preference.
Set the timer:
- Choose a time limit for each round, usually around 2-3 minutes. Use the timer to keep track of the time.
Start the round:
- The starting letter is at the top of each category board, when everyone is ready start the timer.
Complete the categories:
- Players must come up with words that start with the chosen letter and fit each category on their list.
- Each word must be unique and not repeated by other players.
- Encourage creativity and originality when filling in the categories.
End the round:
- When the time is up, announce it to the players, and everyone must stop writing.
- Players take turns reading their answers aloud, going category by category.
- If another player has the same word, both players cross it out. Only unique answers score points.
Score the round:
- Players receive one point for each unique answer they have that was not crossed out.
- Make sure to agree on any specific rules or guidelines for scoring before starting the game.
Repeat the process:
- Repeat steps 5 to 8 for the remaining rounds, selecting new letters for each round.
- After the final round, tally up the scores to determine the winner.

Playing Scattergories without the official game allows for customization and flexibility, so feel free to adapt the rules or add additional challenges to make the game more exciting.

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Holiday Scattergories Printable

You do not need the original Scattergories board game to enjoy this fast-paced game of categories. However, if you don’t have it, I highly recommend it.

All you need to do to get your free scattergories printable is to choose the holiday you want below. Scroll to the end of that page, fill in your name and email address and it will be in your inbox within 5 minutes and you can download and print it directly from there.