Saturday, February 19, 2011

Indoor Winter Fun

If the weather isn’t great, there a lot you can do indoors! I don’t own any video/computer games so here are some of my favorites:

Snow experiments—
• The Great Melting Race—make two snowballs, one tightly packed, and the other loosely packed. Put them in waterproof bowls. Predict which one will melt faster. Predict how long it will take each one to melt, and time them!

• The Snow/Rain Ratio—do you know how many inches of rain versus snow fall during the winter?

1. Use yard/meter stick and measure the depth of the snow outside.
2. Scoop some loose snow into a cylindrical see-through container, like a canning or mayonnaise jar.
3. Measure how many inches of snow you scooped.
4. Predict how many inches of water the snow will melt down to.
5. Now figure out how much rain would’ve fallen this winter.

While the snow is melting you can enjoy:
• Jigsaw puzzles
• Board games—have you played chess lately?
• Twister
• Crafts of all kinds—I especially love Origami!

Of course, on a nice stormy day, I always love to read a book! What do you like to do on a snow day? Leave me a comment below!

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Outdoor Winter Fun

The key to enjoying outdoor activities in the winter is to dress appropriately. If you don’t wear enough, you’ll be cold. If you wear too much and you get sweaty, you’ll also be cold. Layers are the way to go. That way if you start to overheat, you can peel one off. You also need to think about your activity—how strenuous is it going to be? Snowshoeing, for example, is very active so you don’t want to dress too warmly. Ice fishing is just the opposite—lots of sitting around so you need to layer up!
Winter outdoor fun ideas:

• Snow angels—lay on your back in the snow and move like you’re doing jumping jacks. When get up carefully and turn around; it will look like an angel in the snow!

• Snow people and other sculptures—the sky’s the limit what you can sculpt with snow! There was a green Loch Ness-like monster in a local pond recently!
--It’s also fun to put food coloring and water in a spray bottle to color your creation.
--Don’t forget to dress up your snow person!

• Snow forts—I don’t recommend tunneling in the snow—just build walls. You’ll be surprised how quiet it is in your fort!

• Snowball fights—make sure the teams are even and the snowballs aren’t too tightly packed. You don’t want anyone getting hurt.

• Ice skating—ask your grownup to make sure the ice is thick enough on lakes and ponds.

• Snow shoeing, downhill, or cross-country skiing are all very fun and great exercise!

• Snowmobiling—don’t forget your helmet!

What is your favorite outdoor winter activity? Leave me a comment below.