Snowkids |
When the cold weather arrives don't hide inside. Get out and enjoy all that winter has to offer with these fun and easy outside activities.
How to Build a Snow Fort
Choose an open spot with lots of snow. Scoop up snow and push it together to form the bottom of the walls. Make the base of the fort in a circular shape, leaving an opening wide enough to fit through. Then start picking up big clumps of snow in your arms, and press them together to form large snowballs. Stack these snowballs on the base by pressing them down onto the already existing walls. Fill in any gaps with handfuls of snow. Keep working your way up until the walls are as high as you like.
How to Paint in the Snow
Fill empty spray bottles with water and add a few drops of food ing (or washable tempera powder paint). Put rubber dishwashing gloves over your child's mittens and let your child spray art onto the snow.
How to Make Snow Sculptures
Start with a large cube or cylinder of well packed snow. Make this by filling any container (garbage cans or buckets work well) with snow and pressing down, then fip over. Begin carving your sculpture using first a snow shovel, then sand shovel for finer points, finishing up with a kitchen spoon. Also try using a spray bottle to lightly mist the surface. The mist will melt a thin layer of snow and should quickly refreeze to a sheen of ice. This will make it easier for you to sculpt the finer details. The trick is not to use too much water.
How to build an ICE Castle
Make blocks of ice by filling household containers (buckets, small wastebaskets, plastic ice-cream containers, milk cartons) with water and setting them outdoors to freeze. (You can even stir in some food ing for a special effect.) Then, all you need is a spray bottle filled with water to cement the blocks. To assemble the blocks, just spray water on the surfaces to be joined and hold the blocks in place for several seconds until they freeze together. Extra tips: Make towers by removing the tops from plastic soda bottles. Make windows with gelatin molds or Bundt-cake pans. Make spires by plugging the end of a funnel with clay.
How to make Angels
Lie down flat on your back in some untouched snow and face up toward the sky. Swing your arms (up/down) and legs (open/close). Carefully get up and see the angel you have created.
Surprise your child with a Snowman in a Box!
Make it easy and fun for your child to build a snowman by handing them a box containing all the fixin's for their very own creation. Box may include: carrot (for nose), hat, scarf, buttons,charcoal.... get the picture?
Safety in the Snow
- Dress warmly; layers work best. Always wear a warm hat as most body heat escapes through your head. Make sure all clothing is dry from previous uses.
- Consider providing eye protectors or face shield for snowball fights.
- Wear a safety helmet when sliding.
- Don't slide on or near roadways.
Cosy Snacks After Play....
There's nothing quite like those rosey cheeks after an afternoon in the snow. Warm up your child with a yummy treat. Try our Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix and Big Chocolate Chip Cookies!Snow Trivia
- The largest snowflake ever found was 8" by 12" (about the of a sheet of typing paper). It was reported to have fallen, probably with a thud, in Bratsk, Siberia in 1971. Can you imagine shoveling a driveway full of those giants?
- Fresh snow is an excellent insulator. Ten inches of fresh snow with a density of 0.07 inches, seven percent water, is approximately equal to a six-inch-layer of fiberglass insulation with an insulation R-value of R-18.
- It takes about nine minutes for a snowflake to fall to Earth from a height of 1,000 feet.
