Snowy days are exciting for young children. The falling snowflakes have a magical quality that makes preschoolers curious and motivated to play outdoors. Coming inside from a frosty adventure has a special quality as well, especially when warm treats and family activities await. Prepare for snowy days with your preschooler in advance so you have supplies when Mother Nature surprises you with a winter wonderland.
Snow Painting
After you've gone sledding, marveled at icicles and made snowmen with your preschooler, keep the outdoor excitement going with snow painting. Help your little one see the blanket of snow as a huge white canvas that's just waiting for her artistic touch. Fill a few spray bottles with water and add different shades of food coloring. About 10 drops in each bottle should do. Then let her start expressing her creativity by spraying colors on the snow and making snow paintings. Take pictures of the snow paintings so you can remember them long after they've melted.
Snow Ice Cream
Preschoolers love ice cream, and since you'll be playing outside in a key ice cream ingredient, go ahead and turn it into a tasty treat. First, bring out bowls, spoons and ingredients: a 14-ounce can of condensed milk, a teaspoon of vanilla extract and chocolate syrup. Next, go to a clean area of snow and remove the top layer so you can scoop up even cleaner snow beneath it. Then place 10 cups of fresh snow in a large mixing bowl. Add the condensed milk and vanilla extract and stir. Drizzle with chocolate syrup and dig in.
Inside Activities
When you come in from the cold, entertain your preschooler with activities that continue the focus on snow. Use safety scissors and paper to create snowflakes. Simply fold any piece of paper in fourths and cut shapes along the folded lines. Open it back up to see the intricate designs, then tape several paper snowflakes together along the windows for a winter display. Or help your preschooler make a snow scene to put on the refrigerator. Have him illustrate your outdoor fun using crayons, then glue on cotton balls for snow. If your preschooler still needs to expend some energy, put on some music and have a snow parade. Shake jingle bells and march around the house in time to the music, or improvise instruments by allowing your preschooler to bang small pot lids or tin cups with spoons.
Baking
Nothing beats the smell of something baking in oven on a cold winter day. For preschoolers, the real fun is making the goodies. Keep a box of mix in your pantry so you can easily make cookies, brownies or muffins together. Let your little chef try her hand at cracking eggs and stirring the mix. Teach her about measuring spoons and cups. If you don't have icing to decorate the treats afterward, just take powdered sugar and add water until you get a thick consistency, then stir in food coloring until you get the desired icing color. Place the homemade icing in a ziplock bag and cut off a tiny piece of corner for a makeshift icing bag.
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