A Christmas maze that is quietly pre-writing practice.

Dexte has to reach the North Pole sign. Your child steers him there — and every curve and corner on the way is a stroke that letters are made of.

The free Christmas maze printable: Dexte the reindeer car at the top, a maze in the middle, and the North Pole sign at the end.

Take it two ways

🖨️ Print it📱 Play it on a tablet

The printable is one page. The tablet version is the same maze — it works on the go, no wifi.

Download the printable Play it on a tablet

No email needed. It's yours — go and have a nice afternoon with it.

What their hands are actually learning

It looks like a maze. Here is what is going on underneath.

Pencil control Steering a line through a corridor without touching the sides is the same control that keeps a letter sitting on the line. A maze asks for it without ever calling it handwriting.
The strokes letters are made of Straight lines, corners, and long curves — the shapes hiding inside every letter they will write next year. They practice them chasing a reindeer, not tracing a row.
Planning before doing Looking ahead for the opening, backing up, trying another way. That is problem solving, and it is the part that carries off the page.
Finishing something A maze has an end, and reaching it feels like a win. For a three-year-old, sticking with one thing until it is done is its own real skill.

Children's book author with a passion to support parents of future writers through pre-writing and early writing resources. DexteDoodle grew out of watching my four-year-old build from a Lego, a pencil and a rubber band. These are the stories and activities that build fine motor skills. Kasandra Hart

This maze is one page of a whole Christmas story.

The full Story & Activity Set follows Dexte all the way to the North Pole — a story to read, pages to color, mazes to drive, and a place for your child to draw themselves into it.

See the whole set

A Christmas maze that is quietly pre-writing practice.

Take it two ways

What their hands are actually learning

I'm building the rest of these.

This maze is one page of a whole Christmas story.