SNOW Much Fun: Conclusion

Thank you to my good friend Amy at "Living and Learning at Home" who created the above design for me!

We had SNOW much fun with our winter snow series and now I want to finish it up with a few last ideas!  Please make sure you visit all four posts for fun winter/snow themed activities!

Measure the Snow

Snowman Lunch

Gifts

Felt Board

The above picture is my toddler (20 months) playing with snowmen and snowflake window clings!  I shared with you in the "Christmas Window Cling" post that this activity can be great for play and oral language development.  Please check out that post for some ideas of how to interact with your toddler to make this a fun learning activity!  (Notice the REAL snow outside too!)

I love to let my toddler touch EVERYTHING!  I even let her touch things like a snow globe (with supervision)!!  How fun for her to shake it and see the snow fall (cause and effect).  I love watching her discover things for the first time. I desire to give my toddler experiences with as many things as possible.  This will add to her prior knowledge and facilitate her learning as she grows.

And I saved the best for last, DESSERT!  I found these cute snowmen searching online.  They are made out of white powdered donuts!  I used a cookie decorating kit for the eyes, nose, and mouth supplies (see below).

Although, I am sure you can find any type of black and orange edible candy to create these non-melting snowmen!

I hope this series was as much fun for you as me!  January has come to an end and hopefully spring will soon be on the way so on that note I conclude, SNOW Much Fun!!!  Thanks for reading!

SNOW Much Fun! Part 4: Felt Board

Are felt boards a thing of the past?  Well not in my home!  I had an old felt board, some seasonal felt pieces, and numbers.  How much fun is this for a toddler!

Occasionally we take out the felt board and play.  There are many activities you can do using felt and it is toddler proof!  My daughter loves to see the cause and effect of placing the felt on and off the board.  She will also stack the pieces on top of one another until they become too heavy and fall.

I allow her to do this activity independently and sometimes I join in to engage her thoughts and words. For example when I play I might place the correct amount of snowmen next to the number and demonstrate one-to-one correspondence as I count.  I may also verbally label and point to the snowman, his nose, eyes, and buttons.  I might also try saying, "point to the _______" and choose various items for her to find.

Creating your own felt pieces is as easy as a visit to the craft store and some scissors.  One SNOW much fun idea would be cutting out a "create your own" snowman.  For this activity you would need white, black, orange, and one other color of felt.  Trace and cut three white circles (separately so they can be pieced together). Trace and cut small black circles for eyes and buttons.  Trace and cut an orange triangle nose and scarf!  TA-DA!!  You have an instant make your own felt snowman!  This is SNOW much fun!

Looking to create a felt board in your home.  Check out this wonderful blog post from "The Busy Budgeting Mama" for some inspiration.

SNOW Much Fun!! Part 3: Gifts

Welcome back to the "SNOW Much Fun!" Series.  Please check out the previous posts in this series!
Measure the Snow Craft and Snowman Lunch.

As mentioned in Snowman Lunch, I had the privilege of hosting our home school group for our January meeting.  Because this was just after Christmas I took advantage of the Christmas clearance in many of my local stores.  Snowmen can be displayed ALL winter so I was on the hunt for snowman themed items!  I was able to put together some inexpensive children's gifts that were lots of fun!

First, I made "Snowman Soup."  Snowman soup is a cute little poem that one of my students introduced me to at the school I currently teach at.  It goes like this...

I would love to credit the original creator of this poem and picture, please let me know if it is you!

I printed off this cute poem above, rolled it up, then tied it with ribbon.  Next, I gathered hot chocolate mix, mini-marshmallows, and a candy cane.  My wonderful husband found a set of four snowman cups priced at 24 cents, so it gave me the idea to put everything inside the cup!! What a fun, delicious treat for a cold snowy day!  See Below...

Next, I found two after Christmas clearance items,  a snowman bag and a ty stuffed snowman (both 50 cents each!).   See Below...

I added everything together (with a few other goodies) and had a fun snowman themed children's gift!

While linking up to True Aim's Mom's Library I came across a featured blog from Mamas Crafty Place.  I loved her idea so much I made some for Christmas gifts and for my home school group mommies.  Again it is snowman themed so why not use this gift ALL winter!  See Below...

To make this adorable snowman gift you need the following items...

1. A box of candy (movie theater style)
2. A pair of gloves
3. Snowman candy wrapper printable found here
4. Ribbon
5. scissors/tape

Simply wrap the box of candy with the snowman paper (Tip: I placed the snowman's face down a bit so the gloves would not cover it)...

Add gloves to the top (Tips: I placed one glove inside the other.  I found the gloves at Target two pairs for $1.50!)...

Then finish with a bow (see 1st picture).

It was wonderful to give the children AND the mommies their gift.  I had SNOW much fun making each of them! 

SNOW Much Fun! Part 2: Snowman Lunch

Welcome back to the "SNOW Much Fun!" Series.  Please check out the previous post, "Measure the Snow Craft" for another snow themed idea!

"Have you ever eaten snow before?"  That is how I started out this fun lunch time meal while hosting our home school group in January.  This is an easy lunch time activity that can be enjoined at any age!  I prepared the bread cut outs and snowman edible items before hand and placed them in Ziploc bags for an easier start!

The above picture is a large snowman meal.  He takes four pieces of bread.  I used this snowman for the mommies in our group.

You will want to get out your cutting board, two different sized glasses to cut the circles, and four slices of bread.  Place your cups down like cookie cutters and press.  Use a knife to cut around the cup.  Set aside your "scrap" pieces of bread.

Next, gather edible items to decorate your snowman with.  I used chocolate chips for the eyes, mouth, and buttons (you may also use raisins).  I cut a small carrot nose.  Then, I sliced a fruit roll-up for the scarf (you may also use a strip of cheese).  Last, I purchased honey wheat pretzels for the arms (not pictured).

All the pieces were then placed in a Ziploc bag to be used the following day for lunch.  We made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches although you could make any sandwich you enjoy eating!

For the children in our home school group (4 and under) I used a snowman cookie cutter that only required two pieces of bread.  The edible items used for decorating are a bit more squished but the children still had fun!  Below is the small snowman meal. 

On the day of our home school group meeting I had all the supplies ready to go.  The mommies made their child's sandwich and the children decorated and ate!  I stood back and enjoined the fun!!

This is SNOW much fun!

SNOW Much Fun!! Part 1: Measure the Snow Craft

Welcome to my first post in the "SNOW Much Fun" series!  Please check back for more fun snow themed ideas for your family!

Let It SNOW!  This craft serves a dual purpose, fun and learning!  The fun is creating a snowman and the learning is focused on measuring in inches! 

Supplies Needed:

1. Painting Wooden Stir Stick
2. Ruler
3. Pencil
4. Black Permanent Marker
5. Orange Marker
6. Goggle Eyes
7. Black Foam Paper
8. Scissors
9. Buttons or Craft Rhinestones
10. Craft Glue
11. Small Scarf Material (strip of fabric fleece, I used a "shag craft pipe cleaner")

Start by stopping at your local home improvement store to pick up a FREE painting wooden stir stick.  Sometimes they come in two sizes, you want the longer one!  See below...

Next, paint the entire stick(s) white.  I decided to paint both sides white, although you will only be decorating one side.  I cut apart a paper grocery bag as my backdrop so there would be no mess on the counter and an easy throw away clean up!  See below...

Allow the paint to dry.  Then with a pencil and ruler mark the inch lines and pencil on the numbers.

Trace a top hat onto a black foam paper and cut out.

 

If you have older children the above steps could be done by them independently.  I used this craft with ages four and under so the above steps I completed before hand.  Below are the following steps that the children completed with some assistance.

With a permanent marker, allow the child to trace the inch lines and numbers.  You will want to use a permanent marker because this is the part of the stick that will be stuck in the snow for measuring!!  With this step discuss what a ruler and inches are and show how the ruler matches the stick.

Now it is time to construct the snowman!  Glue the top hat at the very top, glue the goggle eyes below the hat, then draw a nose and mouth, tie the scarf, last add 3 buttons or craft rhinestones!

TA-DA!  I love when learning and fun collide!  Now all you need is some snow!  We kept our snowman in a large vase with some fake snow at the bottom.  He is in a handy spot for the next snowfall.  

This is SNOW much fun!