How to Teach Your Toddler About Winter in the Snow

Break out the mittens and hats. Dust off the sleds and ice skates. Winter is here, and there is a world of knowledge waiting for your toddler.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Infant/children's Mittens/gloves
• Infant/children's Warm Hats
• Infant/toddler's Fleeces/jackets
• Infant/toddler's Warm Socks/booties
• Ice Cube Trays

1. Walk outside. Let your toddler experience firsthand the feelings and sights of winter. Explain how it is cold outside. Emphasize the need for coats, hats, mittens and boots when outside. If there is snow on the ground, touch it and walk in it. Let your toddler feel how snow is different from the ground. Don't be surprised if your toddler doesn't like it and wants to go inside.

2. Look for ice outside. Touch the ice and feel how it is cold. Hold some in your hand so your toddler can see it melt. Talk about how the cold turns water into ice.

3. Do ice projects. Place an ice cube in a glass and watch as it turns to water. You may have to come back and make comments like, "Where did the ice go? Did it turn into water?" Make ice ornaments by filling ice cube trays with water and decorative items like seeds, string or tinsel. Place a loop of yarn sticking out of each section. Place the tray outside overnight so it will freeze. Check it in the morning and hang the ornaments on a tree close to your house, and preferably close to a window.

4. Play in the snow if your toddler likes it. Make snowballs and see how far you can throw them. Make a snowman and dress him. Make snow angels.

5. Grow a fir tree. Check the Internet for sites where you can order trees, or pick one up from your local nursery. Digging might be hard if the ground is frozen, but you can always keep the tree in a pot until the ground is softer. Decorate your tree for Christmas if you celebrate.

6. Read books about the Arctic North. Look for books that have good pictures and examples of animals that live in the cold. Talk about people who live in the Arctic North and their clothes. Find books that discuss hibernation in simple terms. Discuss any animals you and your toddler have seen together near your home that are hibernating now.

Tips & Warnings

• Spread your activities and events over several days and weeks. Toddlers learn best in small amounts and through repetition.

• Toddlers learn through play. Don't expect your child to sit and listen to a lesson. Interaction is a toddler's best lesson.

• Build an igloo. You can buy the supplies for ice block building in the sporting goods section of most stores.

• Get a group of neighbors together to go caroling during the holidays.

• Keep your child well protected from the cold, and stay outside for short periods of time.

• Signs of frostbite are a whitening and waxy look to exposed skin. Go indoors immediately, cover your child's exposed skin with a warm blanket, and call your doctor immediately.