Snow Day Activities

With all this snow outside, don't think nature is hiding! Winter is still an exciting time outdoors, and there is plenty to do and see.

• Take a walk through your yard or a local park to look for animal tracks in the snow. Draw a picture of them. Can you identify what animal left the tracks? What direction was in going? What does that animal eat? Was it chasing another animal?
• To attract birds, make your own feeder. Tie a string to the top of a pine cone, and roll smear the cone with Crisco or peanut butter. Then roll the pine cone in bird seed. Hang it from a tree in your yard and watch the birds as they come to feed!
• From outdoors or indoors, do a little bird watching. Even though it's chilly, the birds are still out, especially if you have feeders to attract them in your yard (like the pine cone feeder!). How many different types of birds did you see? What sizes were they? What color feathers did they have? Can you identify them?
• With all that snow on the ground, there is plenty of building materials! Forget about the traditional snowman - make some imaginary creates! Create your own world in the snow.
• Take a nature walk to look for animal habitats. Without leaves in the trees, it is much easier to see nests. Did you know birds aren't the only animals to makes nests in trees? Squirrels do too! How many nests did you see? How big were they? Were they up high or low in the tree branches? Do you know what kind of trees the nests were in?
• Play a game of explorer outside! What are some really cold places? What do people do in those places? What kinds of animals live there? Pretend you are exploring one of these cold places.
• Whatever you decide to do on these cold days, have fun!