Don’t let winter stop you from playing outside! There’s something magical about playing outside in the snow. It may be cold, but it’s important to keep playing outside even in the winter months. Not only is playing outside essential physical exercise, outdoor play encourages children to use their imagination to find new ways to play in the snow. Winter tends to linger here in Illinois, so I’ve compiled a list of great snow play ideas to last you until spring.
- You’ve heard of a snowman, but have you ever made a snow dinosaur before? You could even challenge kids to a contest. Who can build the most creative snow sculpture?
- You can still play with bubbles in the winter! Blow bubbles and watch bubbles freeze. If you blow them onto a surface, instead of in the air, you can carefully pick them up and be able to examine frost patterns inside the frozen bubble.
- Did it snow, but it’s not the right consistency for a snowman? Gather sticks, leaves, rocks, and other naturally found items and make a face on a big pile of snow.
- Take a snow walk. Walk around the block and observe how nature has changed with a blanket of snow.
- Snow painting is an option for an art activity. Combine liquid food coloring and water to make snow paint.
- Play hide and seek, but use footprints to follow tracks and make guesses as to who is at the end of the footprint path!
- If snowball fights aren’t your thing, try a snowball toss! Draw a big target in the snow and see who can hit it.
If it’s just too cold for you to play outside, here are some indoor friendly options.
- Make paper snowflakes and hang them in windows. You could adapt this and have older kids cut snowflakes and have younger kids decade them.
- Bring snow inside, contain it in a bin, grab kitchen utensils, and make a snow kitchen!
- Freeze plastic animal figurines in ice and challenge your kids to rescue them.
Of course, you could always snuggle up inside with a great snow book!