Indoor Snowball Fun

When the weather is cold or the snow doesn’t pack well, it’s time to be creative indoors. Children love to read and do quiet activities, but they also need to be active even if there is crazy weather outside. It’s the way they are. When adults put them in front of DVD’s to quiet them, too often behavior problems occur when the DVD is finished because they still need to run around.
Snowballs Inside
  Snowballs can be made from crumpled paper towels or newspapers and secured with cellophane or duct tape. They are fun to make and easy to store until needed again. Keep the balls soft, remove the breakables, and have a snowball fight.
  If families want the real feel of snowballs there are fluffy balls on-line that are fuzzy and squishy.  Google “fake snowballs.” These snowballs are durable, washable, and don’t hurt.
Design Forts
  The quickest defensive forts are behind the couch or chairs covered with blankets.
  If there are some cardboard boxes around children can design their own fort held together with duct tape. Families can split up and discuss strategy of attack and defense. Often the youngest has fun sneaking around gathering snowballs and supplying older throwers.
Families can also throw snowballs in a laundry basket or paper bag for target then add up the points. How far can each person throw and measure the distance. Invite grandparents over for an inter-generational snowball fight and hot chocolate on a wintery evening.
Snowball Launcher
  Picture a tube within a tube with a rubber band slingshot at the end. For this launcher families will need two cardboard sturdy shipping or wrapping tubes about the same length. One must slide easily inside the other. Also needed are four sturdy rubber bands, duct tape, pointed scissors and pom- poms.
  Adults poke one hole one inch from the edge on either side of the larger tube and insert, tie, knot the rubber band and reinforce the hole with duct tape so it will not rip the tube.  Cut the smaller tube in half to be the pom-pom stuffer.
  Affix the rubber bands the same way as the large tube. Secure the two sets of rubber bands to each other with the remaining bands. The tubes and rubber bands are now connected. The tubes may need to be reinforced as they are used.
  Stuff a pom-pom in the launcher with the extra tube, pull back gently on the rubber bands and let go.
The technique will require a little practice.
  Later relax with a few newly published snow books:

“Blizzard” by John Rocco; “Outside” by Deirdre Gill; and “First Snow” by Peter McCarty.

More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest

Study Snow with Kids

fdarling fotos

Families can study snowflakes almost like Snowflake Bentley (1865-1931) did throughout his life in Vermont. On a snowy day put a mirror on a piece of cardboard. Place a can of hairspray, a cooking pan lid, the mirror and cardboard outside until cold. The equipment must be as cold as the air. When cold enough, spray the mirror with hairspray.
  Catch a few snowflakes on the mirror. Quickly cover it with the pan cover. Leave the covered mirror outside for about an hour. Take the all inside and show children snowflake imprints on the mirror. Study them with a magnifying glass. Try taking pictures of the snowflakes or drawing the snowflakes on paper.
   How many points do they have?  If they were not damaged by the wind, most should have six points. At the next library visit check out “Snowflake Bentley” by Jacqueline Briggs Martin or Wilson Bentley’s book “Snow Crystals” filled with hundreds of his snowflake photographs.
Never Eat Snow
  Children find clean snow so tempting to taste. Unfortunately even fresh snow is full of dirt. How can you convince them to stop eating snow?
  A snowflake begins to form when an extremely cold water droplet freezes onto a pollen or dust particle in the sky. This creates an ice crystal. As the ice crystal falls to the ground, water vapor freezes onto the primary crystal, building new crystals, which are the six arms of the snowflake.

fdarling fotos

  Show children how dirty snow is with a pan full of snow and a white or glass plate. Bring in a pan of snow and allow it to melt on a plate. Then take out a magnifying glass and look at the dirt specks. You will find even more dirt when snow is a few days old.
  Since children also like to lick icicles off the roof, melt a few of those also and look at the dirt specks.  When her grandchildren were unimpressed, one grandmother informed them these specks could come from anywhere, anything, and be very old.  Grandma asked her grandchildren to think of the grossest kind of dirt and they made a long list. She asked the kids to think of that when they are even tempted to eat snow and ice. They no longer eat the stuff. Instead, Grandma gives them fruit slushes or popsicle treats even on cold days while she reads a book to them.
Measuring Snow
  Young children can compare their snow measurement with the weather forecaster’s. Place a tall cold container outside in an area protected from wind. Insert a ruler. When the snow stops, mark the ruler and compare with the snow reported.
Photos: Fran Darling: fdarlingfotos
More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest