A History Advent Calendar for Curious Minds

What happened on this day in history?

That's the question you'll be asking throughout December with this wonderfully different way to count down to Christmas.

Forget another chocolate calendar. Instead, open a card each day and discover something fascinating, surprising or downright strange that happened on that date.

From world-changing discoveries and famous historical figures to incredible achievements and wonderfully quirky moments, every day brings a new piece of history to uncover. 

What is a history Advent calendar?

A history Advent calendar is a Christmas countdown with a difference. Instead of opening a door to find a chocolate or small gift, each day reveals a historical event that happened on that date. It's a simple idea, but one that can turn into a lovely daily ritual.

Read the card over breakfast. Share it around the dinner table. Use it as a conversation starter. Let the kids ask questions. Or simply enjoy discovering something you didn't know before. Because history isn't just dates and dusty textbooks.

Sometimes it's a woman refusing to give up her seat, a spacecraft disappearing on Mars, a famous painting being stolen, an explorer reaching the South Pole or an emu somehow winning a war.

A few of the things you'll discover...

The On This Day Advent History Cards are deliberately varied, so every day offers something different. You might discover that:

• Rosa Parks was arrested on December 1st, 1955, after refusing to move to the back of a bus in Montgomery, Alabama.
• Charles Dickens gave his first public reading in the United States in a New York City theatre on December 2nd, 1867.
• NASA revealed photographs suggesting liquid water on Mars on December 6th, 2006.
• The Mona Lisa was recovered two years after being stolen from the Louvre.
• Roald Amundsen's expedition became the first to reach the South Pole on December 14th, 1911.
• The Wright brothers made their first sustained motorised aircraft flight on December 17th, 1903.
• A Christmas Carol was published by Charles Dickens on December 19th, 1843, selling 6,000 copies.
• The first crossword puzzle was printed in The New York World on December 21st, 1913.
• And on December 19th, 1922, a 24-year-old woman from Sheffield confessed in court to being married 61 times over five years.

And that's exactly the kind of variety we wanted. Some facts will teach you. Some will surprise you. Some will make you say, “Wait... WHAT?”

Ready to dive in? Download your copy today.

Why make Advent educational?

Because learning doesn't have to feel like learning. A daily history fact takes only a couple of minutes to read, but it can lead to much bigger conversations.

A child might want to know what happened next. A teenager might disappear down a fascinating research rabbit hole. A parent might discover something they never knew. And suddenly, your Advent calendar has become a little daily moment of curiosity, conversation and discovery.

It's also a lovely alternative for older children and teenagers who have outgrown some of the more childish Advent calendars.

7 ways to use a history Advent calendar

1. Read a card over breakfast

Start the day with a fascinating fact. It takes a couple of minutes and gives everyone something interesting to talk about.

2. Turn a card into a mini research project

Older children and teenagers can spend a little longer finding out about it. Who was involved? Where did it happen? What happened afterwards? Perfect for home-schoolers.

3. Keep a favourite-facts list

Write down everyone's favourite discoveries throughout December. Then see which fact wins on Christmas Eve.

4. Use them as classroom starters

A daily historical event makes an easy morning discussion, lesson starter or end-of-term activity. It's educational without requiring another elaborate Christmas craft project.

5. Challenge everyone to remember

At the end of the week, see how many facts everyone can remember. Who has the best memory?

6. Choose the weirdest fact

There are plenty of candidates! The Great Emu War, for example, is one of those historical events that sounds made up until you discover it actually happened. 

7. Simply enjoy being surprised

You don't have to turn every card into an activity. Sometimes the best thing about a history Advent calendar is simply thinking: “I didn't know that!”

Purchase a copy for your Advent calendar and try something new.

Why are there 48 cards for 24 days?

Good question.

We've included two historical events for every date, giving you a choice of what to discover each day or content to create two completely unique Advent calendars.

Pick the event that's most interesting to you, save the others for another year, or use them to explore even more history once you've finished your Advent countdown. It also makes the cards much more flexible for families, classrooms, homeschoolers and different age groups.

Who is this Advent calendar for?

⭐ History-loving kids and teenagers

For children who are always asking “Why?”, “How?” and “What happened next?”, this is a Christmas countdown made for curiosity. Finding Advent calendars that don't feel too young can get harder as children grow. A daily historical discovery gives older kids something genuinely interesting to look forward to.

⭐ Homeschool families

Use each card as a springboard for further research, writing, geography, science or discussion. Or keep it wonderfully simple and just enjoy one fascinating fact together each day.

⭐ Teachers and classrooms

A daily card makes an easy December lesson starter, discussion prompt or quick history activity. No elaborate preparation required.

⭐ Adults who love learning

Who says Advent calendars are just for children? If you're the sort of person who loves unusual facts, historical stories and learning something new, this could be a much more appealing countdown than another box of chocolates.

⭐ Families

Perhaps the best audience of all. Read a card together, discuss it, argue about which fact is most interesting and see where the conversation takes you.

How to make your history Advent calendar

You don't need a special Advent calendar to use the cards. Simply print the cards, cut them out and add them to your own Advent setup. Try:

💡 A homemade Advent calendar
Add one card to each numbered pocket, envelope or drawer.

💡 A Christmas tree countdown
Hang the cards from your tree with mini pegs.

💡 A history jar
Fold the cards and pop them into a decorated jar, then choose one each day.

💡 The dinner-table method
Keep the cards somewhere accessible and read one aloud each evening.

💡 A classroom countdown
Display the day's card where everyone can see it and spend a few minutes discussing the event.

There's no complicated preparation — just print, cut and discover.

A Christmas countdown you'll actually want to open

There are plenty of things competing for our attention in December. Another chocolate? Another little toy? Another piece of plastic destined for the back of a drawer? Or... What if you could discover something genuinely fascinating instead?

That's a pretty good Advent countdown in my opinion.

Not everyone in the family is a history buff?

That's okay — there's an Advent idea for everyone! If one person loves history while someone else would rather solve a puzzle, tell jokes, get creative or take on a daily challenge, you can mix and match your Christmas countdown. Explore our Advent activity cards, with ideas ranging from puzzles and trivia to kindness, creativity, exercise, Christmas movies and more.

Find an Advent activity for everyone →