I’m not a great fan of homework for kids, but these are some excellent outdoor fun activities to try with the family on snowy days or when there’s no school. Fun winter inspiration for parents, carers, home schoolers, teachers & outdoor educators.
We didn’t get a snow day today đȘ For a change Northumberland has had less snow than the south.
We did get pea-sized hail this morning, and the estuary was frozen, but Caroline’s school are still spending their usual Friday at beach school! Rock hard northerners!
Outdoor Learning on a Snow Day
A friend (in the south) posted her school’s snow day homework suggestions on Facebook just this morning, where it’s obviously too cold for school, and being a huge advocate of outdoor learning I’ve had to steal it and share!
These are some really clever ideas for how to have fun on a snow day without the kids knowing they’re learning!
Too Cold for School
Here’s what the parents at Buryfields Infant School received:-
Snow Day Homework
Just because you arenât in school today, it doesnât mean you get a day off learning! Here are some of the things we would like you to do today:
- Dress up really warm
- Go sledging â a tray works if you havenât got a sledge!
- Snowmen are old school. Make a snow-something â an animal or have a go at making your class teacher!
- Make a snow angel
- Make hot chocolate with loads of marshmallows on top
Maths
- Measure how deep the snow is
- Bake! (Try Kids of the Wild’s delicious and super-quick recipe for Singing Hinnies, perfect served warm after a day in the snow and ideal for kids to make!)
- Make a symmetrical snowflake by painting half and folding the paper over
Science experiments
- Does snow sink or float? Predict then test. Does it matter if it is a sprinkle or a snowball?
- Who can make a snow-thing (person or animal or just a snowball) that lasts the longest? Where can you put it? Should you wrap it up in a blanket or will that make it melt faster?
- Snowball firing range â set up some toys on a wall. Who can knock the most over?
Lastly and most importantly, have fun and make memories â who knows when it will snow again?!
How cool is this school!!
I love the firing range idea, so long as there’s a nice warm radiator waiting to dry off those brave teddies!
More Snow Day Activities
I’d add to this list having a snow fire in the dark, and night sledging too, if it carries on snowing this evening. Read more from our snowy visit to the Cotswolds last year.
And of course don’t forget to check on the neighbours and feed birds and wildlife, lots more ideas and info in things to do in the snow.
- Freeze black paper & collect snowflakes to quickly view with a magnifier
- Snowball fights
- Build an igloo/snow hole
- âSkeleton bobbingâ
- Snowboard on your sledge
- Freeze water balloons containing food colouring
- Jump in a snowdrift
Happy Snow Day everyone!
Let me know what you got up to, I’d love to see photos on the Kids of the Wild Facebook page.
I love these ideas, especially carrying out experiments with the snow. We used the snow to make bleeding tissue paper art
Thanks for reading, your tissue paper art and craft boxes look fab
Lovely snow day ideas, it just goes to show there is a learning opportunity where ever you look, you just need to create the mindset. We did plenty of physics in working out the angle our igloo could support. #CountryKids
Your igloo is amazing, I can’t believe the amount of snow you had, especially for Cornwall! We had barely a centimetre which didn’t last a day, though there’s lots in the Cheviots
How fabulous for the school to send out “Snow Day” activities! And I love your snow fires – something I would never have thought of doing! #CountryKids
Our snow fire was really fantastic, good old brother-in-law!!
Great ideas! Yeah usually the sunny south doesn’t get any snow, but we were hit unexpectedly! Took us by surprise as we usually have a light dusting! We couldn’t believe our eyes! #CountryKids
I bet it was fantastic for you all!
Love that homework. One of the year six teachers here posted on our FB page for her kids to build a snowman and send photos in so they could all compare their creations on the Monday #Countrykids
If they have to give homework, snowman building couldn’t be better! Some cool teachers out there obviously!
Oh now we need another snow day to try out some of these ideas. My girls made snow horses they could sit on – we did have plenty of snow! #countrykids
Snow horses sound brilliant! We made our whole family including the dog back in 2011, and Caroline also made a whole herd of miniature reindeer with stick antlers. Love it when the snow is perfect for building
What a brilliant list of learning activities for a snow day. We’ve frozen water balloons with food colouring before – the girls loved finding them in the garden in the snow. I like the idea of a snowball firing range – Sophie would enjoy that one. I hadn’t thought of freezing black paper so we could look at snowflakes under a magnifier – that’s a brilliant idea to try next time we have a snow day. Your post has also reminded me that I haven’t yet tried out your singing hinnies recipe – must do that at some point! đ #CountryKids
I’m constantly surprised that there’s always something new to try outdoors, even for those who get outdoors lots already. We’ve had singing hinnies a few times recently. Too moorish. Think I need to reduce the sugar content!!
If you’re not on it, there’s been some stunning photos of snowflakes on the 30 Days Wild Facebook page recently.
Lots of lovely ideas for learning listed here. I may just have linked to you from my host post too #CountryKids
How cool is this school?! I would love for my kids to get such a homework assignment! Thanks for steling it and sharing it!
#CountryKids