How to Keep Your Exchange Student Active and Engaged During the Holidays
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Originally published Dec. 12, 2018. Last updated Dec. 9, 2025.
The holiday break often means two things for exchange students: spending time with family and enjoying some relaxing time off from school.
But if they’re not with family, and they’re not sure how to take advantage of so much free time, the feeling of homesickness may set in.
The experience of exchange student homesickness during the holidays is quite common. And for host families, that may mean it’s time to provide extra emotional support and a stronger sense of belonging.
Now is the time to start thinking of ways to incorporate your student into your host family holiday activities.
How One Participant Brought German Christmas to the U.S.
“What I did (about homesickness) was tell my host mom about a tradition from Germany called Nikolaus. It’s basically getting little treats in your shoes. That day, my host mom brought some Kinder Joy and gum and put it in the kids’ shoes. It was really nice to still be able to follow that tradition.”
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Holiday Activities for Exchange Students in the U.S.
While you don't have to entertain your student every second, you may want to offer suggestions for keeping your exchange student engaged – on their own, with friends, or with your family.
Check out these 10 ideas to stay busy over break:
- Volunteer: Encourage your student to give back to their new community this holiday season. Explore local opportunities together, such as assisting at nursing homes or animal shelters, running a food or coat drive, or participating in a cleanup in your town.
- Read: Recommend some of your favorite books to your student. You could even discuss the books after your student has finished reading them.
- Listen to podcasts: American and international students alike love to spend hours catching up on their favorite podcasts. Recommend some English-language ones to your student.
- Cook and bake: Prepare your student for the amount of food December usually involves. Ask them what their favorite dishes are at this time of year, or see if they’d like to help make your famous cookie recipe.
- Learn a new skill or hobby: Just because your student is on break from school doesn’t mean they have to stop learning. Encourage them to pick up a new skill or hobby such as playing an instrument, cooking, or photography. It doesn’t matter what it is; help them find something they like and encourage them to practice.
- Exercise: Students who stay physically active tend to do better. If it’s warm enough, your student can look for opportunities to get outside. Or they could take classes (such as yoga) at a nearby gym. (Consider beating the January gym rush!)
- Play sports: Along those lines, if they’re the athletic type, find out if they’d want to join a pickup basketball game or take on some winter track workouts. Maybe they’d want to take ski lessons or even just go tubing down the local hill.
- Journal: Having a break from school gives international students time to reflect on the experience. Encourage them to blog or journal about it!
- Visit holiday markets: These pop-up stores are usually operating for a limited time, so take a trip out to either “window” shop or buy gifts.
- Take a tour of holiday lights: Find a list online of the most popular homes in the area to visit. They might get lucky and discover an entire neighborhood that participates in light shows!
Use These Host Family Tips for Holiday Break
If you have holiday break ideas for international students, be sure to share them with other host families in your area. And if none of these activities sound interesting to them, have a conversation with your student and come up with something together.
Your student will appreciate the efforts you make to include them in your own American festivities, as well as including some of theirs from their own family.
Are you interested in sharing your holiday traditions with your own exchange student next year? Learn more about becoming a CIEE BridgeUSA Host Family.