Winter Holiday Activities

  -Winter Vocabulary: Create different flashcards with winter vocabulary and corresponding pictures to go on each card.  Children love to choose words out of a box or some type of prop, I used a mini stocking from Walgreens ($1).  The vocabulary can be used with a game, the vocabulary and board game can be modified according to age group and level.
     ~Reindeer-talk about the reindeer's antlers, where you would find a reindeer
     ~Chimney-What might you see come out of a chimney? What is a chimney? Where do 
       you find a chimney?
     ~Holly-What is a holly?  Discuss why you would not eat the berries from a holly.
     ~Ice Skating-Discuss if children have ever been ice skating before. 
     ~Clothing you may wear in the winter time:  Scarf, Coat, Mittens, Gloves, Boots, Hat 
     ~Snow-How cold does it have to be in order for the snow to stick?  Where are   
        some states where it snows a lot?     
     ~Wreath-Where do you find a wreath?  What is a wreath used for?
     ~Ornaments-Where do you find ornaments?  What are they used for? 
     ~Other words:  Icicle, Shovel, Plow, Precipitation, Slush, Blizzard, Avalanche, Sled,
     Skiing, Present, Garland, Earmuffs, Snowmobile, Melt, Poinsettia, Ribbon, Snowdrift,
     Frostbite, Toboggan, Hot Chocolate, Wind Chill, Evergreen Tree, Hearth, Greeting Card

"Going on a Winter Trip" Activity:  I brought a suitcase in with lots of different items someone could wear in the winter time, as well as objects that you may bring on a trip.  We pretended like we were going to Alaska and each child got to pick an object out of the suitcase and say the carrier phrase, "I am bringing a _______ with me to Alaska."  After each child picked objects from the suitcase, they colored all of the items they saw in the suitcase on a worksheet. 

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Snowman Activity:  I brought in a miniature light up Snowman ornament from Walgreens ($1.99) which is shown on the left above.  The light up Snowman had all of the parts of the Snowman and it served as a model for children to view in order to put together their own Snowman using construction paper.  To create the Snowman we used buttons, yarn for the scarf and construction paper for the head, body, eyes, hat, nose, mouth and background.  I worked with the children in small groups so we made one big Snowman. Each child had an opportunity to participate in making the Snowman, I had different directions on a sheet of paper that the children had to follow (i.e. "Glue the mouth under the nose").