Activities to Maintain Snow Day Sanity
Indoor activities to help parents and kids have fun on snow days.
- 3 min read
- child development
If you live in an area that enjoys long winter months, you're probably familiar with hearing this announcement on your TV or radio: "School and all school activities are canceled due to inclement weather." While kids usually jump for joy when a snow day is declared, parents feel like their schedules are turned upside down. An unplanned day at home can inconvenience your plans to work, run errands, or do other things.
Even with the hassle of an unexpected day at home, it's important to remember that a snow day is an excellent opportunity to make memories with your children. Weather permitting, the ideal snow day starts by bundling everybody up and enjoying the snow outside. There's plenty to do in the fresh, cold air, like making snow angels, sledding, or having snowball fights.
Having fun outside on a snow day is a no-brainer, but the real challenge is that staying inside requires real thought and imagination. Embrace the joy of a surprise day of family time at home and avoid feeling cooped up by keeping your kids entertained with some fun activities. So, before the kids come in from playing outside, do some prep work inside and have them collect some snow to try these three snow day activities.
Melted snow art
If your kids have a knack for creative crafts, this melted snow art project is an excellent option for snow day sanity. This activity brings the fun of winter indoors with your child's artistic skills. The finished product is an abstract masterpiece your kids will have a blast making, and you'll love displaying it on your fridge door to remember the fun moments you shared that day.
To do this activity, you need snow, sheets of white construction paper, liquid food coloring, a tray, and a hairdryer. Place the construction paper in the center of the tray, and have your kids create a random pattern on the paper using different colors of food coloring. Then, have them scatter a handful of snow over the surface of the page. Finally, melt and dry the snow with a blow dryer to see how the colors move and settle on the paper.
Snow ice cream
If you want to try something more adventurous and hands-on that ends with a sweet treat, you can make ice cream using snow. This simple, tasty recipe calls for 1 cup of granulated sugar, one tablespoon of vanilla extract, 2 cups of milk, and a gallon of clean snow. If you want to make smaller amounts, you can adjust the recipe by cutting each ingredient in half or more. Set a clean bowl outside when it starts snowing to ensure it's free of dirt and other things you don't want in a dessert. Mix it all up once you have enough snow, add some sprinkles or chocolate chips, and dig in!
Pillow forts
Building pillow forts is a great activity that can help kids learn problem-solving and collaboration skills while using creative techniques. And what kid (or adult) doesn't love a fort? If you have to work from home or do chores around the house, your kids can spend the afternoon building and playing in one with minimal supervision. If you want to join the fun, work with your kids to build a fort you'll all want to play in for hours.
Begin by helping them pick a building location and supply the materials. A great start to a fort can include couches and chairs for the base, blankets or bed sheets for the roof, sofa cushions for the walls, and extra pillows and blankets to make it comfortable inside. Let them use their imaginations to make it their own!