{"id":778,"date":"2022-01-08T08:02:53","date_gmt":"2022-01-08T08:02:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/montessorilearning.ca\/?p=778"},"modified":"2023-06-22T11:06:43","modified_gmt":"2023-06-22T11:06:43","slug":"winter-activities-for-preschoolers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montessorilearning.ca\/winter-activities-for-preschoolers\/","title":{"rendered":"Winter Activities For Preschoolers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Winter can be a challenge for parents and early childhood educators<\/a>! How can we help make it exciting for children while helping them fortify important skills like social development, fine motor skills, and so much more.<\/p>\n

When you can\u2019t go and enjoy the beautiful outdoors, there are still lots of ways for preschoolers to have fun while learning and developing at the same time.<\/p>\n

These activities aren\u2019t just for fun either, they help your child grow and cultivate important skills too! Keep reading to learn about the top ten wintertime activities you can at home or add to your preschool lesson plans.<\/p>\n

1. Tracking Animals In The Snow<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tracking animals is a really fun activity for children, not just to develop their observation skills, but also to learn more about the animals that we share this world with.<\/p>\n

In this activity, you and your preschooler can search for a certain animal, follow tracks, and make up a story about what the animal was doing while leaving the tracks.<\/p>\n

You can also put this in your lesson plan to help preschoolers<\/a> to understand which animals hibernate or the birds that stay behind, while all the others fly south for the winter.<\/p>\n

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2. Mixing Colours In The Snow<\/strong><\/p>\n

Snow painting is a great way to help a preschooler learn about colours. Being white, a fresh blanket of snow is a perfect blank canvas to mix colours and create artwork right outside.<\/p>\n

You can use paint or food colouring for this activity. With the tools, your preschoolers can learn about the 3 primary colors and how to mix them to make secondary colours.<\/p>\n

If there isn\u2019t any snow outside, you can use flour to create fake snow on a tray. To take things up a notch, you can even add glitter for some sparkle to their artwork.<\/p>\n

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3. DIY Snowflakes <\/strong><\/p>\n

Making DIY snowflakes are a great wintertime activity for preschoolers, especially if the weather doesn\u2019t allow for outdoor time with your toddler program.<\/p>\n

There are two ways you can do this; using popsicle sticks that your preschoolers decorate as their own, or by using a sheet of paper or paper plate and cutting with safety scissors.<\/p>\n

Either way, you are helping the preschoolers to refine their motor skills and to express themselves creatively while letting them decorate for the season.<\/p>\n

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4. Sensory Artic Bin<\/strong><\/p>\n

Using a tray or bin, set down some vase-filler gems that have been previously frozen. Then, layer it with artificial snow or flour. Lastly, throw in some artic animal figurines like polar bears, caribou, and penguins.<\/p>\n

Get the children to tell a story, while their imagination runs wild. This can be a great way to aid in sensory development, as well as storytelling and language, as they describe the scene they\u2019ve set.<\/p>\n

This helps to encourage creativity in their own imagination, as well as all of the senses. You can even add real winter elements like pine branches for a wintery aroma.<\/p>\n

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5. Scavenger Hunt <\/strong><\/p>\n

A scavenger hunt is one of the best educational activities you can do with preschoolers<\/a>, no matter the season. Create a winter-themed scavenger hunt list, using all the senses to fine-tune their observation skills and to learn more about the five senses.<\/p>\n

Here are some ideas for your preschool program scavenger hunt:<\/p>\n