Finally snow!!!! The first real snow accumulation in 2 years! I know most of you are playing in that snow with your children. But you can only play in the snow for so long before your little ones' cheeks are pink and their gloves are soaking wet. You trudge inside for some lunch and hot chocolate and what else? A few tv shows, maybe some imaginative play. However there are also some arts & crafts activities you can do for the rest of the day (or when they wake from nap) that will keep your kids engaged as well as work on specific skills.
First up is making snowflakes. This is great fine motor work. Get a bag of marshmallows (big and small) a bunch of toothpicks and go to town. How’s that for instant snow that won’t melt? Here’s a tip: let them harden over a few hours and then paint them. Now you have colorful snowflakes! Another tip…sprinkle salt on them and watch them glisten in the sun.
Next up, kaleidoscopes. I got the idea for this activity from teachpreschool.org and tweaked it to fit my own classroom of students using the materials I had. The kids had a blast. All I used were paper towel tubes, contact paper, some left over collage materials (the kind you may need to glue) cut into small pieces, and extra thin cardboard [like you might get from a cereal box] cut into circles for the top. Pop a hole into the cover with a screwdriver and you have an instant peephole. Check out the full article to see step-by-step directions and photos on how to do it.
Lastly, M&M painting. Again I got this idea from Teach Preschool (some wonderful stuff there). All you need is a bag (medium is just fine) of m&ms, some paper, paintbrushes, and clear plastic cups (although clear is not necessary for the activity). Click here for the step-by-step process and photos.
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