Winter days can seem endless when you and your toddler are suffering from cabin fever. Television and movies aren't the only form of winter entertainment. With a little creativity you can easily fill those winter days with a lot of fun and maybe even a little learning.
Bring the Outdoors In
If you have a lot of snow outside and your little one is begging to play in it, but it is just too cold to venture out, Family Play and Learn suggests bringing the great outdoors inside. First, search inside your house for things that will make suitable accessories for a snowman (small hat, buttons, carrots, etc.) Let your child use his imagination. Prepare an inside area for snow. Either cover a table with a tablecloth or the floor with towels. Next, quickly go outside and fill a large bowl with snow. As soon as you bring in the snow let your child get to work building a small snowman. Store it in the freezer so your toddler can visit his winter friend as often as he would like.
Imaginary Snowman
Having little or no snow on the ground shouldn't stop you from building a snowman. All you and your toddler need is a little imagination! Preschool Learning and Crafts suggests building a pretend snowman as a great way to get your toddler to use his imagination, learn how to pretend, and develop memory skills. Tell your tot to help you make it snow inside by holding your hands above your head and waving your fingers in a downward motion.
Next, pretend to make big, medium and little snowballs. The big snowballs will be very heavy so you and your toddler may have to pretend to roll them together. Pretend to stack the snowballs and then figure out together what pretend items would make good accessories for your new snowy friend. Decorate him accordingly. You may even want to dress in your real coat and hat for this activity.
Silly Snowman Pictures
This activity turns your tot into a snowman. All you need is some snow and a camera. The website, Family Fun Go, bills this headless snowman activity as an excellent silly winter photo opportunity. Build and decorate a snowman outside, but only give him two snowballs. Don't build a head onto him. Next, have your toddler stand behind the snowman so that his head is where the snowman's head would be. You may need to place a small stool behind the snowman. Take pictures of your child with a hat on or a corn cob pipe in his mouth acting as silly as he can. Your toddler will squeal in delight when he looks at the pictures and sees the snowman version of himself!
