It can be difficult coming up with fun activities during the months that kids are more likely to be inside. These winter activities for kids are things the whole family can do together, to celebrate the winter season, rather than simply waiting for it to end.
Make a Snow Castle
If there is snow on the ground outside, try building a snow castle, rather than the traditional snow man. Use the same buckets and shovels used in sand boxes and at the beach, larger, utility buckets or simply pile the snow up and begin to carve. Create snow villages, by making several small structures in a ring, pour hot water over small sections of the snow to form ice lakes and lagoons, or pack together multiple tiny snowballs to form igloos, and make an Eskimo village. Food coloring can be used to stain the snow before building to give the structures multiple colors.
If the weather remains cold enough, the village or castle can be added to daily to prolong the fun.
Make a Sugar Igloo
If there is no snow outside, or the weather is too poor to go out, try making igloos at home from sugar cubes or mini marshmallows. Mix confectioners sugar with lemon juice to form a sticky “glue”, and use it to cement the sugar cubes or marshmallows together.
Begin by forming a ring, with a small opening for the doorway, and gluing the ring down to either a small piece of cardboard of a Styrofoam tray. Continue building upward, moving the cubes, or marshmallows in slightly with each go round, so that the igloo curves toward the top.
Paint the base of the card board with the extra glue, and sprinkle with extra confectioners sugar to form a snowy scene. Piece together multiple igloos for a fun home decoration.
Make a Salt Snowflake
For a fun art project for kids that will double as winter wall art when done, make salt crystal snowflakes. To make the snowflakes, gather black construction paper, paint brushes, boiling water and table salt.
Place the boiling water in a cup, and dissolve several tablespoons of table salt inside. With each dip of the brush, mix the salt up from the bottom into the water, and paint snow flakes onto the construction paper. When the salt water dries, sparkling salt crystals will be left behind on the paper, creating realistic looking snow flakes, and snow scenes.
Make this a family activity, and decorate the home for winter with these unique works of art.
Make Decorative Colored Ice Sculptures
Ice sculptures can be simple, or highly creative, depending on the age and skill level of the creator. To make ice sculptures, gather together food coloring, water and containers of multiple shapes and sizes that can stand being filled with water, and then frozen.
Older children can make their own containers from oven baked, or air dried clay, to form truly unique sculptures. Simply create a hollow form that is wider at the base than at the top, or is even in width throughout. Brace the hollow form upside down with toothpicks, to help it remain stationary once in the freezer.
To make the ice sculptures, pour water colored with the food coloring into the bottom section of a container, and place in the freezer until hard. Then, add a second layer of colored water, in a different color from the first. Repeat freezing and adding layers of color, until the container has been filled to the top.
Once the water has frozen solid, remove the container from the freezer, and leave out at room temperature for a few minutes to help loosen the sculpture from the container. Remove the container, and display the colorful works of art outside in the cold, to brighten the front porch or walkway.
Winter activities for kids can help pass the time on dull winter days, while brightening the home around them. Learn to make a snow castle, sugar igloo, salt snowflake or decorative colored ice sculptures. Try any of these simple and inexpensive ideas this winter and find new joy in the winter season.
 |
