Winter is here and with it comes the beautiful snowfall, chilly winds, and cozy blankets. Preschoolers love to explore and experience new activities, and the winter season provides ample opportunities for creating a fun and engaging learning environment for them.
Whether you are a teacher or a homeschool parent, we have curated a list of exciting winter theme activities that you can incorporate into your preschooler’s routine to keep them entertained and enthusiastic throughout the season.
This is not just a compilation of messy crafts and activities that you have to do for your student, but simple songs, books, and more that you can use every day!
What to Teach Preschoolers About Winter
Teaching preschoolers about winter can be a fun and engaging way to introduce them to seasonal changes. Here are some key concepts and activities you can use to teach preschoolers about winter:
Winter Weather: Preschoolers should be taught about the different types of weather that occur during winter. This can include snow, ice, sleet, and freezing temperatures. They can learn about how to dress appropriately for different types of weather and how to stay safe in extreme conditions.
Winter Holidays: Winter is also a time when many holidays are celebrated, such as Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. Preschoolers can learn about these holidays and their traditions through fun activities like making crafts or reading books. It’s important to teach them about cultural diversity and the importance of respecting others’ beliefs.
Animals in Winter: Preschoolers can also learn about how animals adapt to winter weather. They can discover which animals hibernate, migrate, or stay active during the cold months. They can also learn about specific animals that live in the arctic where it’s always cold.
Winter Sports and Activities: There are many fun sports and activities that preschoolers can participate in during winter, such as ice skating, sledding, building snowmen, and making snow angels. These activities not only promote physical activity but also allow children to experience the joys of winter firsthand.
Staying Healthy in Winter: It’s important to teach preschoolers about staying healthy during winter by washing their hands frequently and covering their mouths when they cough or sneeze. They should also be taught about proper nutrition to keep their immune systems strong during cold and flu season.
Check out my Amazon Storefront for great Winter theme preschool activities and games right here. Of course, preschoolers can learn fine from paper and crayons, but it doesn’t hurt to have some fun toys to keep them engaged!
What Discussion Questions Should I Ask Preschoolers about Winter?
When asking preschoolers questions about winter, it’s important to keep the questions simple, engaging, and age-appropriate. Here are some questions you can ask to spark their curiosity and encourage conversation:
What do you like to do in the winter? This can open up discussion about their favorite winter activities such as building snowmen, ice skating, or drinking hot chocolate.
Have you ever seen snow before? This question can help preschoolers share their experiences with snow and discuss what they like or dislike about it. It can also lead to conversations about different types of winter weather.
What animals do you think hibernate during the winter? This question can spark discussions about animals and how they adapt to the changing seasons. It can also lead to learning about different animal behaviors and habitats.
How does the weather change in the winter? Preschoolers may be able to observe changes in the weather during the winter season, such as colder temperatures and snowfall. This question can help them understand how and why these changes occur.
What clothes do you wear to stay warm in the winter? Encourages preschoolers to think about appropriate clothing for different types of weather and why it is important to dress warmly in the winter. It can also lead to discussions about layering clothes and staying safe in cold weather conditions.
How can we keep ourselves safe in the winter? Opens up a conversation about safety precautions that should be taken, such as wearing warm clothing, staying away from frozen bodies of water, and being careful when walking on slippery surfaces.
Winter Weather Activity Ideas
These are not just difficult crafts that make a mess and that you have to end up completing for your student. These are some simple and engaging activities from reading and singing to jumping and playing.
Check them out below!
1. Engage in Winter Sensory Activities
Make a Winter Sensory Bin with fake snow and really whatever small winter-themed materials and manipulatives you can find! I added winter-themed cookie cutters, snowman confetti, glitter, and snowflake sequins.
If you don’t want to take them outside after it snows, bring in the real snow from outside! Throw in some measuring cups, spoons, and items you have around the class or home. The kids may even want to wear gloves because it’s so cold!
The Great Snow Experiment – If there’s real snow outside, fill up a large bucket with snow and have your preschooler sprinkle different colored powders or liquids on top of the snow. You can add a little bit of food coloring to a spray bottle filled with water to get this effect too. They can play and observe how the colors mix and blend together, providing endless sensory fun.
If you live in an area that doesn’t get real snow, you can make fake snow for them to play with using conditioner and baking soda. Recipe here.
2. Sing Songs About Winter
- What’s the Weather Today?
- Snow is Falling All Around
- Let’s Make a Snowman
- Put on Your Boots
- Snowflake Snowflake
- 10 Little Snowflakes
- I’m a Little Snowman
- How’s the Weather?
3. Count Winter Objects
Count snowflakes up to 20.
Counting snow boots up to 10.
Count and match clouds to the correct number.
Use cotton balls as clouds to count them.
Draw dots and a number on clouds. Place pom pods on each dot as you count.
Use these free printable counting clip cards to identify numbers and count objects on a worksheet.
4. Match Winter Items Together
Play a weather matching & memory game by matching snowmen with different color scarves/hats/gloves to each other.
Match shapes and colors using these free printable penguin cards.
Use seasonal garment cards to identify and match clothing items that we wear during the winter.
Match letters with this free printable letter matching snowman.
Match numbers to their snowflake counterparts with this free printable.
5. Participate in Art and Creativity
Create snowflake art using basic supplies such as paper, scissors, and glue. Add a variety of materials such as tissue paper, stickers, and even pom-poms!
Use pipe cleaners to build snowflakes.
Paint a moon and stars to create the night sky.
Create a snowman out of cotton balls. Draw an outline of a snowman on construction paper and glue beads on the cotton balls, draw arms, and add a carrot nose out of construction paper.
Use watercolors to decorate mittens.
Color and decorate stormy clouds and lightening bolts.
Use cookie cutters and paint to make clouds for a winter mural.
Try Q-Tips to paint stars to make a night sky.
Use cotton balls to make a cloud on white construction paper.
Make a Snowman handprint craft with paint a those little hands. A keepsake parents will absolutely love!
Place winter stickers on paper to work on pincer grasp.
Make a paper plate penguin craft.
Use these free printable winter fine motor and coloring sheets.
Check out over 100 more ideas for winter crafts here. Check out 21 ideas for penguin crafts here.
6. Read Winter Books
“Winter is Here” by Kevin Henkes
“The Biggest Snowman Ever” by Steven Kroll
“Biscuit’s Snow Day” by Alyssa Capucilli
“Baby Loves Winter” by Karen Katz
“Winter Things” by Dr. Seuss
“Busy Busy Winter” by Richard Scarry
“The Cloud Song” by Margaret Wise Brown
“Ten Sparkly Snowflakes” by Tiger Tales
“Sneezy the Snowman” by Maureen Wright
7. Mystery Bag Activity
Hide a small item related to weather in a mystery box or bag. Have the student try to identify it based on feeling it with his or her hands. Give them clues if needed. Then they can trace and write the word.
8. Winter Writing Activities
Trace and/or write weather words from word strips or a word wall.
Snow Name Writing-Grab some q-tips, white paint, and blue paint for this name writing activity. Students use the q-tips to trace their names on these free printable editable name mats with blue and white paint.
Practice writing and coloring the same picture with these free printable winter coloring and writing sheets.
9. Play Winter Games
Play “Winter” BINGO
Try “Snowman Says” (instead of Simon Says)
Play Snowbrawl to stack snowballs among each other as a great visual motor activity.
Play Freeze Ice Skating. Go ice skating (on paper plates). Play music, and when the music stops, they have to freeze. Whoever freezes last is out.
10. Use Visual Motor Winter Activities
Practice using scissors by cutting these free printable winter-themed strips.
Pin the nose on the snowman game
11. Graph out ideas about winter activities
Ask the students what is their favorite winter activity and have them pick from options on the board. Examples are sledding, building igloos, drinking hot cocoa, tubing, having a snowball fight, sitting by the fire, shoveling snow, skiing, making snow angels, etc. Write down each students response in the box.
Ask the students what is their favorite type of weather and have them pick from options on the board. Examples are sunny, rainy, snowy, cloudy, etc. Write down each students response in the box.
12. Flannel Board
Use a flannel board and felt weather objects to play and learn about winter weather.
13. Pretend Play
Pretend to go puddle jumping while getting some exercise.
To make hot cocoa and sit by a fire.
Pretend to go skiing and snowboarding down a big mountain.
Pretend to be ice skating (on paper plates) in an ice skating rink. Next, play music and when the music stops they have to freeze.
14. Use Winter Sequencing Cards
Use winter sequencing cards to learn first, next, last.
15. Do STEM Activities
Ice and Salt Experiment – Fill a baking pan with water and freeze. Next, add a few drops of food coloring. Then, have your preschooler sprinkle a generous amount of salt on the ice and watch the color spread as the salt melts the ice. This activity provides a great opportunity to teach your child about the concept of freezing and melting, as well as about different materials.
16. Go on a Winter Scavenger Hunt
Take your preschooler on a winter scavenger hunt around your neighborhood or backyard. Try Looking for different winter items such as pine cones, evergreen trees, icicles, snowflakes, and animal tracks. You can also use this scavenger hunt as an opportunity to teach your child about the animals that thrive in the winter season.
17. Use Gross Motor Activities to get that Winter Energy out
Have an indoor snowball fight using soft, plush snowballs. This activity provides an opportunity for physical exercise, as well as for practicing hand-eye coordination and gross motor skills.
Ice skate on paper plates.
18. Learn spelling with word families
Learn how to spell simple cvc words with these adorable free printable snowflake cvc word strips.
There you have it – our top winter weather theme activities for preschoolers that not only provide fun and entertainment, but also serve as learning opportunities for your child.
Incorporating these activities into your preschooler’s winter routine will keep them engaged and excited about the season, while also nurturing their cognitive and social-emotional growth. So, grab a cup of cocoa, warm up those creative minds, and have fun exploring all that the winter season has to offer!
