5 Winter Activities to Respectfully Enjoy Nature with Your Child
Cold. Snow. Storms. Ice. Winter weather can be harsh, even for the heartiest folks. Yet, it’s a wonderful season to enjoy nature with your child – and you don’t need to be a winter sports-lover to do it! Try these 5 winter activities to respectfully enjoy nature with your child and see where the fun takes you!
1. Learn about how different local wildlife cope with the cold and snow
Head to the library, pull up your favorite search engine, or find an educational show on your favorite streaming service. Together, you and your child can learn how the wild animals in your area deal with the winter weather.
Keep it simple. Pick one or two animals to start. Perhaps ones your child has already expressed an interest in.
When you know how those wild animals handle the snow and cold, see if you can recreate it indoors. Bears hibernate in their den. Build a blanket fort and have nap time inside it! Squirrels store food and seek out high-calorie items like peanuts and black sunflower seeds. Guess what’s on the plate for snack time!
2. Go for short hike/snowshoe
They make snowshoes and vegan hiking boots for even the tiniest of walking feet. If your child isn’t ready for “big kid” shoes or tires easily, you can pull them on a sled or carry them in your favorite pack. It’s only a short hike, so don’t worry about getting tired!
The goal is to get far enough away from roads to hear the quiet. If you can do this while it’s snowing or shortly after a fresh snowfall, even better! See if you and your child can tune in to the quietness of nature.
Observe how your body, mind, and emotions feel. Ask your child to do the same.
3. Look at close up photos of snowflakes
Every snowflake is unique and different – just like people and animals! How wondrous it is that the Creator spent so much time on snowflakes. And how special you are that the Creator spent time to make you unique (even twins are different from each other)!
As you look at close up photos of snowflakes with your child, ask them to think about how amazing it is that each one is different. Encourage them to think about what that means about them.
When you’ve had enough of looking at pictures, get out the safety scissors and paper! Try to recreate some of the snowflakes you saw by folding the paper and snipping parts away.
When they’re done, you can string them or hang them individually.
4. Learn about the different types of precipitation
Winter has lots of different types of precipitation. Snow, sleet, ice. Using your favorite search engine, library, or virtual assistant, you and your child can learn about the conditions necessary to make each one fall from the sky.
This may also be a good chance to talk about the water cycle and flowing with life changes. If you think your child might be up for that, but you’re not sure how to continue the conversation, check out Carlos Makes a Discovery.
5. Set up a bird feeder and learn about the different types of birds who come to feed
Not all winter birds visit feeders, but many do! You and your child can experiment with different types of food in different feeders. Watch to see who shows up at the different feeders.
Together, you can make a list, draw pictures, and learn about why certain birds prefer one type of food over another.
For help with identifying and to keep track of your new feathered friends, check out the Merlin and eBird apps.
Whether you choose one, two, or all five of these winter activities to respectfully enjoy nature with your child, the most important thing is to have fun! Explorations like these represent both learning opportunities and the chance to help your child discover their passion and purpose.
For more information about helping your child find their passion and purpose, download my free guide!