Transform Your Home Into a Winter Wonderland
Even though the weather outside might be awful, you can still get your kids excited about wintertime. If there’s not enough snow to go outside and play, then think of transforming your own home into a winter wonderland! It’s possible – and it makes much less of a mess to clean-up and declutter afterward.
You can use these ideas for a special play-date to get your kids into the winter spirit, or just on any afternoon when it’s simply too cold to go outside. With a little imagination, enthusiasm, and a few supplies, you can designate your lounge, front room, or play room as a Winter Wonderland zone. Make it a unique occasion, and your kids won’t have any reason to whine about being stuck indoors.
Decorate the room with homemade paper snowflakes – This classic arts-and-crafts project will teach your kids to concentrate, and inject a bit of wonder as a simple piece of paper is transformed into a beautiful, intricate snowflake. All you’ll need is white paper, child-friendly scissors, and voila! – your kids can create a never-ending supply of snowflakes, each of them unique. Then use sellotape to tape the snowflakes to the walls, windows, furniture and start creating that wintry mood indoors.
Make slushies, ice lollies, and other frozen treats – A slush machine is a unique home appliance that your kids will never tire of. It will make treats simply from ice, which your kids can enjoy flavouring with colourful syrups. Alternatively, there’s lots of other frozen treats you can make, like these healthy ice lollies from fruit and yogurt.
Create a snow-scene diorama – Artistically minded kids will love this chance to create their own snow scene from art or household supplies. Save old shoeboxes to serve as a diorama, or use white cardboard for your kids to draw and glue on. Ask your kids to create their ideal snowy landscape. They can paint or draw, or make a collage of wintry images clipped from magazines, or glue on cotton wool to create a snowy effect on the ground. You can even use old or broken Christmas tree ornaments in a 3D diorama. But whatever it is – mountains, forests, snowbound cottages €” let your child’s artistic imagination run free.
Learn about animals in the polar regions – Winter is a great time for kids to learn about the animals that live in the colder parts of the world. Polar bears, penguins, caribou, arctic foxes, reindeer, wolves – all these animals lead very interesting lives. Find some books or videos about these animals, and teach your kids something about them. This is just one way they’ll start to appreciate the natural world.
Watch snow-themed films – There’s a ton of winter-themed films for kids out there, including Frozen; Ice Age; The Polar Express; The Snowman; The March of the Penguins; The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. After all the fun and creativity of your other activities, reward the kids by settling down to watch one of these wintry classics. It’ll be the perfect ending to special family day they won’t forget.
Of course, after all this wintry magic, you’ll have to clean up afterwards.
