This isn’t just any list of winter activities for kids. All of the ideas here are designed to boost developmental skills in all areas! So kids will be learning and growing while they play!
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Not a fan of the cold weather? We hear you! Here in Ohio, we’re inundated by freezing temps for at least a few months every year. Those long winter days can be tough – especially when you have kids who have been cooped up inside!
Many kids don’t last more than a few minutes outside in cold weather. They might get bored quickly and that means that they move less and have more time to think about their cold little toes!
Wondering what activities you can do in the winter when kids are bored and screen time is at an all-time high? Trying to figure out how to make winter more fun for your family?
Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered. These 30 development-boosting winter activities will get kids up and moving and keep them entertained in the snow! They’ll be having so much fun, they won’t even notice those cold toes – or how hard their bodies and minds are working!
Once you come inside, you can continue the winter fun with our 7 Days of Free Winter Activities email series!
Gross Motor Activities
balance, endurance, strength, coordination, motor control, visual motor integration, proprioception, core strength, vestibular processing
1 || With the help of everyone in the group, make a giant snowball. Then try to fit everyone on top of it!
2 || Play hopscotch by jumping and creating footprints in fresh snow. Have someone follow in your footsteps, trying not to fall out of them!
3 || Run in deep snow with boots on.
4 || Shovel!
5 || Play a game of freeze tag.
6 || Play Simon Says!
7 || Make a conga line and dance in the snow! Or, try this fun Snow Dance activity!
8 || Take turns pulling each other on a sled.
9 || Make a big pile of snow, run, and…JUMP!
10 || Pack snow onto the stairs of your porch to make a mini sledding ramp.
11 || Play hot potato with a snowball!
12 || Bury a treasure box to find when the snow melts…dig deep!
13 || Go to the playground…swing, slide, and climb in those snow boots for some great heavy work!
14 || Fill some trash bags with snow and let your little one pretend they are the garbage man filling up and pulling their “garbage truck” (sled) as they go!
15 || Snowball target practice at mom or dad!
16 || Bust out that slip and slide, no water required!
17 || Leave a carrot trail in the snow for deer and other animals – lead them right up to your back door!
Fine Motor Activities
bilateral coordination, coordination, grasp, motor control, prewriting skills, visual motor integration
18 || Instead of making a snowman, try sculpting another object: a snow castle, a snow banana, a snow bed – use your imagination!
19 || Build a snow house using boxes or old cartons/containers for molds or try this awesome Snow Castle Kit from Paricon
20 || Mix water and food coloring in squeeze bottles and paint messages and pictures in the snow in the yard or check out
the Poof Slinky Sno-Art Kit!
21 || Pack snow onto a tray or dish and paint it with water colors.
22 || Make a stash of snowballs with the Flexible Flyer Snowball Maker!
23 || Pack cookie cutters with snow and place the shapes on a cookie tray (pretend they’re cookies!)
24 || Get out your beach toys – dig with the shovels, build castles with buckets, etc.
25 || Practice writing letters, drawing shapes, or making designs in the snow with a stick (or make it a gross motor activity by shuffling feet through the snow to make large letters, shapes, and designs).
Sensory Activities
visual perceptual skills, tactile exploration, proprioception
26 || Make a snow angel.
27 || Make a snow cone, add flavoring, and eat – yum!
28 || Fill a bucket with snow and hide a few small toys inside. How long does it take to find them?
29 || Bury your friend in the snow so only their face is showing!
30 || Freeze some of your kiddo’s favorite mini toys in ice trays, hide them around the yard, and have a scavenger hunt! Come inside and put them in a bowl of hot water to watch them melt for more fun!
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Some lovely ideas here, I hope you get to work through the whole list
Thank you for visiting and taking the time to comment! If we could get the snow to stay long enough, we would be playing outdoors a lot more!
Oh man! I want some snow now!! I wonder how many of those will work with mud? We have lots of that at the moment!
Thanks so much for sharing at the Outdoor Play Party. These ideas are brilliant :-)
Thank you, Leila! I think a lot of them would be so much fun in mud!!!!!!:)
I love these ideas! Pinning to our Winter board and sharing on our FB page later tonight :) Enjoy the snow!
xoxo~Colleen
Thanks Colleen!! We appreciate you stopping by to comment – and thanks for sharing this post! We got even more snow in Ohio today! Lots of sledding going on here! :)
Target practice in the snow is our fav one!
Thanks for the article.
when you live in country like denmark you need this activities
thanks