Hans Christian Anderson's tale of
two little children, separated by a selfish snow queen. True
love leads the little girl threw all kinds of difficult and wondrous
adventures in hopes of helping her kidnapped brother, Kay.
Will he awaken from the Snow Queen's spell and remember love?
(Nice online etext with charming illustrations by
Meri C Fox-Szauter.)
An old folktale about a mitten dropped in the
snow that becomes a snuggly home for several forest animals, each
bigger than the last. How does the mitten stretch so big?
And how does it shrink right back to size when the little girl finds
it? Click
here for a printable mitten
that kids can decorate and lace. (Hint: print on
cardstock or cut out mitten and glue onto construction paper for
thickness.)
For the flannel board: print the
mitten and use it for a felt
pattern. Then
click here for some little
animals to go in the mitten.
Recommended reading: Check your
library for a copy of The Mitten, by Jan Brett. This is
a beautifully illustrated version of the folktale. (A big book
version exists as well.)
The play's the thing! Act out
your own version of The Mitten by creating simple animal masks.
To see how one class did it,
click here.
Here's a fun mini-book for 4-6 year olds
that you can print out at home to make and do. Kids can help
cut the pages, color the pictures, and practice writing each printed
winter word. Best of all they can help you assemble it
into a little book that they can read over and over to help learn
some new "sight" words (words they can recognize and read on sight).
From Scholastic.com
Songs,
Fingerplays, & Flannel board Circle Time fun for Preschool and
Kindergarten
Five little
snowmen
Five little snowmen all in
a row Each had two button eyes and a big carrot nose Out came the sun and it shone all day
And one little snowman melted away.
Four little snowmen all in
a row... <repeat,
counting down to...>
One little snowman
standing all alone Out came the sun and it shone all day And one little snowman melted away.
Baby Beluga
Baby beluga in the deep blue sea,
Swim so wild and you swim so free.
Heaven above and the sea below,
And a little whale on the go.
Baby beluga, oh, baby beluga,
Is the water warm?
Is your mama home with you so happy?
Way down yonder where the dolphins play,
Where you dive and splash all day.
Waves roll in and the waves roll out!
See the water squirtin’ out of your spout.
Baby beluga, oh, baby beluga,
Sing your little song, sing for all your friends.
e like to hear you.
When it’s dark, you’re home and fed,
Curl up snug in your water bed.
Moon is shining and the stars are out.
Good night, little whale, good night.
Baby beluga, of, baby beluga,
With tomorrow’s sun, another day’s begun.
You’ll soon be waking.
Baby beluga in the deep blue sea,
Swim so wild and you swim so free.
Heaven above and the sea below,
And a little whale on the go.
Five little snowflakes
Five little snowflakes Flying by my door One blew away,
and then there were four.
Four little snowflakes Falling down on me One blew away And then there were three.
Three little snowflakes Falling down on you One blew away And then there were two.
Two little snowflakes Having lots of fun One blew away And then there was one.
One little snowflake Sitting in the sun It melted away, And then there were none.
Did you know that the biggest snowflake ever
measured was 15 inches (38 centimeters) across? Wow!
Would we like a picture of that! But most snowflakes are
about .5 inches to 1.5 inches. Click the link above to
learn more about snowflakes. (Middle school and up)
It's great to make snowflake art and and so
on. But what do real snowflakes look like? Take a
peek at these photos. Don't forget to take a peek too at
these images taken with a
scanning electron microscope. To see even more
examples, and learn about an early snowflake scientist,
click here.
Students will learn how different crystals are
formed, observe crystals in the making, observe with a hand lens and
cite the geometric qualities, and relate the necessary natural
occurrences needed to create crystals. Working with
scalding hot liquid makes this lesson plan appropriate only for 4th
grade and older.
Ages 3-6. The
simple text and full-color illustrations
show how various animals in that place
prepare for winter. Some birds and
insects migrate. Bats and woodchucks
hibernate. Squirrels gather food and
store it. Some don't prepare for winter
at all; they must hunt for food all day
long.
There are some easy practical
suggestions for helping animals in
winter. A final picture shows the
children looking forward to spring. The
words are immediate ("His heart beats
slowly. He sleeps, sleeps, sleeps. He
hibernates"), and the clear, active
illustrations will draw new readers to a
popular subject.
The beginning of winter is marked by the solstice, the
shortest day of the year. Long ago, people grew afraid
when each day had fewer hours of sunshine than the day
before. Over time, they realized that one day each year
the sun started moving toward them again. In lyrical
prose and cozy illustrations, this book explains what
the winter solstice is and how it has been observed by
various cultures throughout history. Many contemporary
holiday traditions were borrowed from ancient solstice
celebrations. Simple science activities, ideas for
celebrating the day in school and at home, and a
further-reading list are included.
Illustrated by Jesse Reisch.
About the Author
Wendy Pfeffer is the author of many science-oriented
children's books, including From Tadpole to Frog
and A Log's Life, which won the Giverny Award for
Best Children's Science Picture Book.
Interactive math fun with
Jan Brett! The three little kittens have lost some mittens.
Can you help figure out how many they've lost this time?
Winter Arts & Crafts
Textured Winter Trees
Use large size sheets
of green construction paper to cut simple Christmas tree shapes.
Supply children with glue and an assortment of materials in
white. Try white glitter, white crinkle confetti,
white pom poms, white cotton balls, white rice, white beans,
etc.
Wow! Learn how
to make beautiful paper snowflakes to decorate your home or
classroom! Lots of different patterns with instructions.
From KinderArt. Suitable for older children only.
Fun to play in for all ages and it's great
for finger painting or painting with brushes
or glue spatulas.
Ingredients:
Ivory Snow (laundry
soap) powder Water
What To Do:
Place Ivory Snow in a
mixing bowl and begin to gradually add a little water -- stir with
electric mixer for several minutes until mixture resembles soft
fluffy snow.
Play:
Use for finger painting,
brush painting, or spatula painting. (Caution students not to rub
soapy fingers near eyes. Not suitable for young toddlers.)
Pinecone Feeders for
the Birds
This is an easy activity that even
young children can participate in. Start with some dried
pinecones, the type which have popped open and dropped their
seeds. You could plan a trip to the woods to collect your
own, or stop by the craft store. (Just be sure NOT to use
the type soaked in fragrance.)
Tie a string or ribbon onto each
pinecone, so you'll be able to hang it outside in a tree when you're
done. You may need to secure it with hot glue.
Alternatively, you could use floral wire for the hanger. Next, get out the peanut butter and slather it
over the pinecones, being sure to get it into the cracks and
crevices. Then, pour some wild birdseed into a shallow dish
(an old pie tin works great). Roll the peanut butter covered
pinecones in the seeds, until the peanut butter is completely coated
in seeds. Now you're ready to hang it in the tree!
Variation: replace the peanut
butter with vegetable shortening. To make it more
appealing to the birds, whip it in the food processor with
honey.
Instructions call for using an old baby food jar, but almost any
type of small glass jar could be used.
Make Your Own
Snow Globes
You'll need a baby food jar, corn syrup,
glitter,
and some small plastic figurines or toys to place inside.
You'll need super glue as well, to attach the figurines and
secure the lid.
Glue the figurines to the lid -- the
baby food jar snow globe will sit upside down, so figurines
should have their feet or etc. glued to the inside lid bottom.
Be sure not to get them too close to the edges of the lide; you
want to be able to screw the lid back on when you are done.
Let glue dry.
Add glitter to jar -- white opalescent
glitter works very nicely.
Fill jar with corn syrup.
Screw on the lid, sealing it with
super glue.
When the glue is dry, you can flip your
globe over and enjoy!
)
