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It’s been winter for almost a month now, but it’s only just starting to FEEL like winter here in Houston. Cold mornings and cool afternoons mean I can finally wear all my cozy sweaters and soft pants. My kids are loving a warm cup of hot cocoa when they get home from school (they are bike riders to and from school, so they are usually very chilly when they get home in winter).
There is no sign of snow this winter here in Houston (but there’s always a chance – usually February is our coldest month). When we were lucky enough to get snow the last few years we made to most of it, including a few fun and easy STEAM activities. This is a roundup of our 6 best winter activities. Most can be done indoors, but you might just have to go outside to collect some snow. 😉
1. Learn about Blubber: Can you Feel the Cold?
It’s a perfect activity for a bored toddler when you’re stuck indoors on a cold day. My daughter played with her arctic animals in the ice water for over an hour! She has asked to repeat this easy activity many times sine then.
In this activity the child will learn how blubber protects arctic animals from below freezing temperatures. There are two options for this activity: the “no mess method” requires more prep work, but the child will stay clean and dry; and the “messy method” is no-prep required, but the kids will get messy and wet.
Get all the step-by-step details with pictures and an Instagram video on my blog post here: Learn about blubber: Can you feel the cold?
2. Make Ice Outside | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Kids
This is a very minimal effort for very big reward STEM Snow Day activity. My kids loved this, and they still remember it and ask to do this activity any time the temperatures are expected to be below freezing overnight (which is rare here).
Water changes phase and freezes to ice at 32o F and below. We had perfect conditions to turn water into ice that day when the temperatures remained in the 20s all day. Also, water has less volume than ice, so we could also observe the volume expanding in our cup.
Get all the step-by-step details with pictures and an Instagram video on my blog post here: Make Ice Outside | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Kids
3. Observe Snow Melting Inside | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Kids
This is a super easy but also very interesting activity of watching snow melt! We collected a mason jar full of snow (or sleet in our case), then let it sit in our kitchen at room temperature to slowly watch it melt. We checked on it about once an hour until it was completely melted. My kids were very surprised by what was left in the jar once the snow all melted.
So grab a jar, fill it with snow, and then watch the snow melt…it’s definitely more fun and interesting than it sounds. 😉
Get all the step-by-step details with pictures and an Instagram video on my blog post here: Observe Snow Melting Inside | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Kids
4. Study Snowflakes Inside | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Kids
This is another super easy snow day STEAM activity. All you need is snow and a magnifying glass!
We collected a jar of snow outside and brought it in for observations. My kids then took turns using our magnifying glass to look at the snow. The magnifying glass helped them see the details in the snow more clearly. Our snow was actually little ice balls, so my kids were a little disappointed to not see beautiful snow flake patterns in our snow. But we still saw some unique details in the ice, and each one looked different.
Get all the step-by-step details with pictures on my blog post here: Study Snowflakes Inside | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Kids
5. Discover Snow using the Five Senses | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Babies and Toddlers
This is a an awesome snow day activity for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers! We collected a jar of snow outside and brought it inside for my toddler to explore using her five senses. Learning using the five senses is one of my favorite ways to introduce young kids to STEM.
I let my toddler touch the snow and look at it with a magnifying glass (like my big kids did to learn about snowflakes). While she explored and played with the snow, I asked her lots of questions to help her understand snow because it’s new to her. Most of my questions encouraged her to use her five senses to explore the snow.
Get all the step-by-step details with pictures and an Instagram video on my blog post here: Discover Snow using the Five Senses | Snow Day STEAM Activity for Babies and Toddlers
6. Fishing for Ice Cubes | STEAM Activity for Kids
This is one of my kids’ FAVORITE STEAM ACTIVITIES EVER! We have repeated this activity more than any other activity, and my kids regularly ask me if we can do it again. It’s so fun and entertaining, and let’s be honest: my kids love eating the salty ice cubes too.
I’m calling this a winter activity because we use ice in it and it’s a fun way to “fish” indoors when it’s too cold to fish outside. The reality is, this activity can be done year round, and I’m sure your kids will be happy to try this any time of year! Grab a bowl of ice water, string, and salt, and you’re ready to get started catching ice cubes!
Get all the step-by-step details with pictures and an Instagram video on my blog post here: Fishing for Ice Cubes | STEAM Activity for Kids.
Did you know this experiment is featured in my brand new book The Amazing Book of STEM? You can buy it on Amazon now!
We loved all these winter activities, and I know we will repeat at least the blubber and fishing for ice cubes experiments this winter. We are hoping for snow so we can repeat the snow activities too, but you never know in Houston.
Don’t forget to go buy a copy of my STEAM Activity Journal, and you can use it to record all of these activities. And if you repeat them again and again (like we do), you can look at it previous attempts in your journal to compare results. The STEAM Activity Journal is available on Amazon (linked here), with free shipping if you have Prime!
Have you tried any of these activities yet? Which is your favorite? Do you have any other fun winter STEAM activities that you recommend we try out and share?
