Snowy Activities That Don’t Stink…And Promote Language
I love snow and snowy days but find that my kids get cold and crabby quickly! Here are some great activities that can be done inside or outside with some fun language tips. Ideas provided by a mom, speech pathologist, and New England native. Yes, I drink my iced coffee during a blizzard.
As a kid snow days were always my favorite! My mom worked for the local public school system that my sister and I attended. We were spared the waiting game of the scrolling names on the morning news program. We knew that if we heard the landline ring (It was the 90s!) at 5:30am then school was cancelled. 🎉
Snow pants and fancy ski gloves for kids weren’t a thing when I was younger. We would layer up in 15 pairs of pants and three pairs of mismatched gloves that got wet and cold immediately. It didn’t keep us from having a fun 30 minutes though! We would come back inside and complain about the wetness and coldness of the pant-heavy winter getup and my mother would entertain us with board games, crafts, and cartoons on VHS. Oh! And cocoa!
Most kids, and many adults, don’t need a ton of prep and planning to have fun in the snow. Both of my kids loved shoveling and face-planting in the snow. It kept them busy for quite awhile while I shoved out our car. Sledding, snow angels, and snowball fights are also a ton of fun. If you get bored with the mainstays and you don’t want to watch Encanto and play Candyland for the eighteenth time try some of my suggestions. And, as a bonus, these can be done inside with modifications!
Note: All activities need to be done with adult supervision :)
Treasure Hunt
Materials needed: Fresh snow, small figurines, spoons
If inside a towel, to prevent a mess, and a large cookie sheet or bowl.
If you are outside, this activity works well on a deck, stoop or confined space. If you want to do this one inside, I scoop some fresh snow into or onto the chosen container. Make sure there is enough to bury their favorite tiny figurines that they constantly leave out for you to step on. Then your child can bury and find their favorite toys. The spoons are great to dig up their hidden treasures. This activity is also great to build attention and independent play skills or turn taking if there are multiple children playing.
Fun vocabulary to target:
Verbs — dig, find, bury, hide
Prepositions — on, under, next to, in
Adjectives — cold, white, wet, hidden
Snow Castle
Materials needed: Fresh Snow, blocks (like duplo), cups, sand pails
If inside a towel, to prevent a mess, and a large cookie sheet or under-the-bed container.
If you do this one outside, you can make a big castle or fort. If inside, scoop some fresh snow onto the desired flat surface. Make sure there is enough snow to build with but not so much that your floors are covered in snow. Use the snow to build a castle just like if you were at the beach. Duplo blocks work surprisingly well for this. This activity is a fun and novel way to play with beach toys in a new way, if outside, and cups if inside. It also promotes problem solving and creativity.
Fun vocabulary to target:
Verbs — dig, build, fall, smash, dump
Prepositions — on, under, next to, around
Adjectives — tall, flat, wide, big, small
Snow Volcano
Materials needed: Fresh Snow, vinegar, baking soda, water-based paint or food coloring (if you are feeling risky), dish soap, and a thin or short cup.
If inside a towel, to prevent a mess, and a large cookie sheet or basin.
This activity is just like the science project volcano, except with snow! This activity can get messy and big as you want it to when outside. If inside, definitely put that towel down first.
Scoop some fresh snow onto the available tray, if inside. Make sure there is enough snow to construct a volcano. Put the cup in the middle of the tray and pack the snow around it. Try to cover the sides of the cup but don’t fill it with snow. Put about 1 -3 tablespoons of baking soda in the cup and mix together with a teaspoon of dish soap and a some water-based paint. Note: the more baking soda you use, the larger the eruption. Once it is mixed, pour some vinegar in the cup and then watch! It will erupt and look like lava flowing out of a volcano. If you are doing this outside, add double the amounts of everything for a big, fun mess. This activity is great to promote prediction skills, cause and effect understanding, and observation abilities.
Fun vocabulary to target:
Verbs — pour, mix, stir, push, foam, erupt
Prepositions — around, in
Adjectives — white, foamy, wet, red/blue/purple (depending on the paint/food dye), sticky
I hope you enjoyed these recommendations and that you have a fun and safe snowy day!
TLC Speech Therapy is a speech pathology private practice, headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, that specializes in feeding, swallowing, and communication skills in infants, children, teens, and adults.
For more information check out our website at tlcspeechtherapy.com or contact us at hello@tlcspeechtherapy.com
