Any tips...

[Biciclista]

paper, pencil, crayons, pastels, watercolors. encourage her to make christmas cards

[Irulan]

board games, fun movies

[Blueberry]

Baking cookies. Making snowflakes. Maybe help her make a crafty thing for her parents and sis as a present? Might cheer everybody up!

CA

[alpinerabbit]

nice xmas cards can be made with cut-out shapes, watercolor, a toothbrush and a tea sieve.

rub the toothbrush inside the sieve to spray the color onto cards.

cover the area well in newspaper.

a Tree shape, and a couple gold star stickers - done.

[Grog]

I was a big sister for a while. My little sis' was about that age and loved to bake and cook with me.

[Aquila]

The kids (my niece and nephew) I interact with at that age are pretty willing to do just about anything so long as there's adult interaction. (They're also really good at entertaining themselves by reading and playing alone, but when I see them, I get to focus on them for a bit.) Adult interaction may also be especially important if she's worried about her sister or if she's been feeling left out (if the parents have been focusing on the other child).

I really like that craft ideas and holiday ideas that people have come up with.

I have had a great time doing gingerbread houses (you can make the houses out of cardboard, and either buy a couple tubs of cheap frosting or make it yourself. Food coloring and some random candy, and voila. Hours of fun, AND it's a cool thing to get to display for a little while.

We've also done tie dye, painted birdhouses, played endlessly in the park (kids don't tire quickly of swings, at least that's my experience).

Board games and legos are also big for us.

Finally, my niece especially likes to help me with cooking stuff. Bake some cookies together or something, make pancakes, whatever.

And a visit to the local library for books for down time

[alpinerabbit]

Or you could make the gingerbread house out of - shock! gingerbread.

Surely there are recipes out there, possibly even kits, with frosting and all.

[solobiker]

Does she like to do crafts? Do you have any old clothes pins she could paint? I have seen people that have made them into snowmen and santas. How about making her own jewlery with beads? These are just some things I have seen my niece do when she was aoubt that age.