If you are lucky enough to live somewhere with winter weather – you can bring the outdoor in for a little snow day fun! Painting with (and ON) snow is a fun way to let children explore concepts of color mixing and the scientific properties of snow.
First, we scooped up a small bucket of clean snow and brought it inside (if you scoop your snow before you are ready to use it, then you'll need to keep it in the freezer until you are ready). We put snow into small bowls for children to use while watercolor painting.
Instead of using cups of water -- children wet their paint brushes with the snow. We discussed what snow is made from (water) - and how as the snow gets warmer inside it will start to melt (properties of matter). Using the snow instead of water keeps the brushes from getting TOO wet, and makes the watercolor pictures more vibrant, as well.
Inevitably, as the children cleaned and wet their brushes on the snow, the snow started to turn colorful. So we explored some color mixing in the process. In the end, many children enjoyed painting the snow more than their pictures! So we brought out some bowls and scooped some snow for children to paint on individually.
First, we scooped up a small bucket of clean snow and brought it inside (if you scoop your snow before you are ready to use it, then you'll need to keep it in the freezer until you are ready). We put snow into small bowls for children to use while watercolor painting.
Instead of using cups of water -- children wet their paint brushes with the snow. We discussed what snow is made from (water) - and how as the snow gets warmer inside it will start to melt (properties of matter). Using the snow instead of water keeps the brushes from getting TOO wet, and makes the watercolor pictures more vibrant, as well.
Inevitably, as the children cleaned and wet their brushes on the snow, the snow started to turn colorful. So we explored some color mixing in the process. In the end, many children enjoyed painting the snow more than their pictures! So we brought out some bowls and scooped some snow for children to paint on individually.
Other SNOWY activities and art projects
If you search on “snow” in our website (using our Idea Search Tool) … you’ll find a lot of additional fun snowy activities (many requiring materials OTHER THAN snow!).
Such as "Tactile table pretend snow" -- using salt, sugar and glitter!
Or "Snow Paint" -- using water, salt, flour, paintbrush and imagination!
And "Snow Dough" -- salt, flour, vegetable oil, water and clear glitter!
PreK + K sharing SNOWY DAY roundup!
Want more snow-filled, fun and educational ideas? Here are a couple of other wintery posts from our preK + K sharing blog:
- More snowy activities in preschool
- Montessori-Inspired Winter Math Activities
- Winter Activities
- Wintertime Fun!
And more ideas can be found on PINTEREST!
Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.
We do a lot of "faux" snow activities, but it sure would be fun to explore the real thing! If ever we do have snow, we are out of school and it never lasts very long, so after one snow day, it's melted completely. Looks like y'all are really enjoying exploring and painting with it! Thanks for sharing so I can live vicariously through you! :)
ReplyDeleteYou are too funny, Ayn! If I could be in my flip-flops year-round, I'd do it!! (That was pretty much the footwear that I packed for NAEYC in Atlanta!).
DeleteBUT ... since I can't do that, might as well make the best use of the snow since we have it. :-) The kids also love when we put it in the tactile table .. and some other teachers scoop some up and put it in a cooler so it lasts longer inside.
What fun ideas!! Thank you for sharing...
ReplyDeleteThanks Elizabeth!
ReplyDelete