Snow days are fun, but they can start to feel long when you are cooped up and can’t go anywhere. Here are some snow day activities for kids ranging from cozy to active, indoors to outdoor, educational to crafty, and more!
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113 Snow Day Activities for Kids
Keep reading for 113 unique snow day activities to keep your kids entertained and learning when you are snowed in!
Cooking + Baking Snow Day Activities for Kids
Here are some snow day activities that involve baking and cooking in the kitchen!
Bake Cinnamon Rolls
I make these cinnamon rolls on snow days as a special treat, and they really are the best cinnamon rolls that you’ll ever eat!
Make a Sourdough Starter
If you’ve been wanting to learn to make sourdough, getting a starter going only takes a few minutes! It’s also a great way to talk about math and science concepts if you involve your child.
Bake Bread
There’s nothing like fresh, warm bread on a cold day! I love making loaves in my Zojirushi bread machine because it only takes about 5 minutes of effort and my kids love helping pour in the ingredients! On snow days, I also enjoy making sourdough loaves. They take longer but are a family favorite!
Make a Comfort Meal
Warm soup. Shepherd’s Pie. Roasted Veggie Bowls. There’s nothing quite like warm, comforting food on cold days.
Roast Marshmallows Indoors
Don’t want to build a fire outside? If you have a fireplace, you can roast marshmallows indoors or you can roast them over a gas stove. Here are some great, extendable sticks for roasting.
Snack board
Instead of a big meal, get creative and clear out your fridge by making a big snack board for lunch! Fresh fruit, crackers, cheese, meat, sweets. The options are endless! Here’s a beautiful tray you could use for your snack board.
Online Cooking Class
Another option is to take an online cooking class with your kids! Outschool offers some great online cooking classes for kids and teens!
Drinks
When the temperatures drop, I love surprising my family with warm drinks when they come in from the snow. Here are some ideas to try on your next snow day!
Make Hot Cocoa
I use the Hershey cocoa recipe, but I’ve also heard that bone broth hot cocoa is delicious and much more nutritious!
Tea Tasting
If you and your kids love hot tea, try having an indoor tea party and sample different types of tea! Have add-ins like honey and sugar cubes to make it extra special! Farmhouse Teas has the best loose-leaf teas!
Make Wassail
I love canning cranberry juice in the fall and using it all winter long! I use this recipe and my kids absolutely love it!
DIY Hot Cocoa Bar
Take that hot cocoa a step further with a homemade hot cocoa bar! Have toppings like marshmallows, candy canes, whipped cream, sprinkles, caramel, and more!
Snow Snacks
Young kids are sure to love these snow-inspired (and flavored!) treats!
Make Snow Ice Cream
As a kid, I loved making snow ice cream. Just make sure the snow is very clean and fresh! Mix 1 gallon of clean snow with 1 cup of sugar, 2 cups of milk, and 1 tablespoon of vanilla. Mmmmm!
Maple Syrup snow Candy
This year, my kids and I made homemade maple syrup candy using snow! Here’s the recipe we tried!
Make Snowball Cookies
So these aren’t actually made with snow, but here’s a highly-rated recipe for snowball cookies that children are sure to enjoy!
Indoor Games Snow Day Activities for Kids
Tired of the snow or just too cold? Here’s some indoor snow day activities to try!
Winter Treasure Hunt
Hide some winter items around the house for your kids to find! Ex: mittens, hats, snow globe, candy cane, arctic animal toys, ornaments, etc.
Pin the Nose on the Snowman
A winter twist on a fun classic! Here’s how to make your own.
Board Games
Board games are perfect for snowy days! Here are some great board games for younger kids!
Winter Dress Up
Young toddlers might find it hilarious if you let them play dress up in your winter clothes! Let them on a winter fashion show with some fun music.
Science Snow Day Activities for Kids
Whether you are a homeschooling family or your kids are off of school, snow days are a great time to learn about science and do some fun experiments!
Color Mixing in Snow
If you are teaching about the color wheel, instead of mixing colors indoors, go outside and mix them in the snow!
Insulation Experiment
Learn about insulation through this insulation experiment!
Icicle Estimation
Have your kids estimate the length of icicles or how much they weigh. Then break them off, measure, and compare!
Study Snow Under Microscope
If you have a microscope (this one is under $40!), catch some snowflakes and study their uniqueness under a microscope!
Salt Melting Ice
Study why salt melts ice and then try it on your own!
Frozen Bubbles
If the weather is cold enough, blow bubbles outside and watch them freeze!
Make Crystal Snowflakes
Learn about how crystals form by making these crystal snowflakes at home.
Snow in a Jar
Try this experiment by making snow in a jar and learn about how snow forms and falls!
Snow Day Crafts
If you have kids who love crafts, here are some winter-themed crafts to try!
Make a Bird Feeder
While bird sightings are not as common in the winter, you could make a homemade bird feeder with your kids to see if you can lure any to your yard! If you don’t want to make your own, this bird feeder has a camera so you can watch the birds up close from indoors!
Make a Snowman in a Jar
This website will walk you through how to make a snowman in a jar!
Make Paper Snowflakes
This classic is a great way for kids to learn about symmetry and practice their cutting skills!
Snowflake Sun Catchers
This is a step-up from paper snowflakes. Find out how to make this beautiful craft on this post.
QTip Snowflakes
If you have an excess amount of toothpicks, you could turn them into QTip Snowflakes with your kids! You’ll need hot glue, so make sure to supervise this craft.
Sock Snowmen
If you have some old tube socks that are worn out, instead of throwing them away, turn them into this cute craft!
Paper Plate Snowmen
This is a great craft for preschoolers to practice gluing and spacial awareness. Older kids might also enjoy adding embellishments to their paper plate snowmen!
Winter Collage
If you have a stack of old magazines, let your kids make an old-fashioned collage! Give them some scissors, glue, and paper. It will be fun to see what catches their attention!
Winter Dioramas
Go on a nature walk and collect twigs, evergreen branches, and berries. Get a box, paint, some cotton balls, glue, and toy animals and let your kids create their own winter dioramas!
Snow Globe DIY
This website has some ideas for how to make your own snow globes! My kids love snow globes, and I know that they would be thrilled to make their own.
Cardinal Art
My mom sent me this craft to try with my kids! Go on a nature walk and find a twig, birdwatch in your yard, and then come inside and make a cardinal, or perhaps another bird that you observed!
Winter Art Projects for Kids
If your kids love painting and drawing, here are some art projects to make the most of a snow day!
Snow Painting
Kids of all ages are sure to love the thrill of painting in the snow! Just grab some paint palettes, washable tempera paint, and paint brushes and let them paint the snow! Or try this snowstorm painting that uses glue and epsom salts.
Draw Snowflakes
Learn about snowflake symmetry and structure and then encourage your kids to draw their own. They could either draw one that they see on the window, from a photograph, or make up their own!
Salt and Watercolor Snowflake Art
This website has a great idea for making watercolor snowflake art that incorporates table salt.
Snowstorm Painting
Give your kids a black sheet of paper and some white paint. Tell them to paint a snowstorm and see what they create!
Make Ice Decorations
Go on a nature walk and collect beautiful items like twigs, berries, branches, and acorns. Freeze them in a muffin tin with a string hanging out, and then hang your homemade frozen ornaments on a tree outside! See an example here.
Nature Study Activities
I love Charlotte Mason’s philosophy of education. She encourages lots of time spent out of doors studying nature. Here are some nature study ideas for a snow day!
Nature Walk
Bundle up and take a nature walk. Explore your surroundings or a nearby forest!
Nature Journal
When you get home, write and draw some of what you observed on your nature walk!
Study Hibernation
Read some books or watch a documentary about animals that hibernate!
Bird Watch
Observe inside (or outside) different birds. Learn about what they eat and how they stay warm. A bird book like this might be helpful!
Make a Foraged Winter Wreath
Collect pine and cedar boughs. Find beautiful twigs, grasses, and berries and make a DIY foraged winter wreath!
Winter Nature Photography
Take your kids on a nature walk and have them photograph nature in the snow!
Animal Tracking
On a nature walk, see if you can find different animal tracks in the snow. Ponder what they were doing and where they were going. A field guide like this can be helpful for identification!
Sensory Snow Day Activities for Kids
If you are looking for some sensory play ideas for kids, look no further!
Snow Sensory Bins
Get a big bowl of snow, put a towel under it, and get out some of your kid’s waterproof toys. Mine love to use their plastic animals and dinosaurs in their snow sensory bins.
Snow Dough
Here is a recipe to make your very own snow dough!
Salt Dough Ornaments
We make salt dough ornaments each Christmas. Even if the holidays have already passed, baking and decorating salt dough ornaments is a fun project!
Make Homemade Playdough
Homemade playdough is warm and smells delicious if you add in spices or herbs! Here is a recipe to try.
Ice Sculptures
You could use molds like this to make ice sculptures. Once their done, set them up outside around the garden or house!
Ice Excavation
Freeze some toys in ice and then gently pour warm water on them or use kid-safe tools to try to break the ice!
Indoor Cozy Snow Day Activities for Kids
If the temperatures drop below freezing, you won’t be able to be outside all day. Here are some cozy, indoor activities to try with your kids.
Facetime Family or Friends
If you have grandparents or cousins that live far away (or even in town), call them and catch up!
Indoor Spa Day
Get out nail polish, lotion, facemasks, a foot spa etc. Entertaining kids on snow days can be exhausting, so pamper yourself and let your little ones join in!
Make Jewelry
Stringing beads is great fine-motor skill practice for young children, and it is a skill that older kids enjoy too! Here is a jewelry making kit for younger kids and one that older kids might enjoy, too!
Use Candles
Even if your power isn’t out, light some candles at dinner and make a cozy atmosphere! I love the book Holy Hygge because it shares about ways to cultivate coziness in the winter months.
Do a Puzzle
If you have older kids, you could work on a big puzzle as a family! If your children are younger, pull out some puzzles for them.
Watch a Movie
While lots of screen time is not our norm, we do allow for some extra screen time when we are snowed in! Cozy up with some hot cocoa and homemade popcorn for a fun winter treat!
Build a Fire
If you have a fireplace, put it to use! I love our cozy farmhouse, but I so wish that we had a wood burning fireplace for cold days.
Sew
If you like to sew, snow days are the perfect day to get your machine out. You could begin teaching your children or get them started with cross-stitching or embroidery.
Write
Turn on some classical music, light a candle, and sit down and write with your children. It’s a great creative opportunity for them but also for you as an adult!
Knit or Crochet
If you don’t have a sewing machine, knitting or crocheting are great options! Older children are capable of learning this skill, too.
Indoor Picnic
Instead of sitting at the table, set up an indoor picnic for lunch in the living room! You could even invite some neighbor kids over to make it extra special.
Indoor Educational Snow Day Ideas for Kids
If you homeschool, snow days don’t necessarily disrupt your learning. But, it can be fun to switch things up and try some different indoor, winter-themed educational activities.
Read Books
Make a pile of all of your favorite winter books! The Mitten and Snowmen at Night are some of our favorites!
put on a Play
Have your kids act out a book or make up their own play! I used to do this as a child with my siblings, and I have such fond memories of those times!
Listen to Winter Audiobooks
If you are a work-from-home parent, audiobooks can be a great screen-free option for your kids! We love checking out audiobooks from the library, or you could even get a Yoto player like this!
Act Out a Story
This is similar to the play mentioned above, but get involved yourself! Instead of just reading a book, act it out with your kids!
Winter Writing Prompts
If you have older kids, you could give them some winter-themed writing prompts. Encourage them to write poetry or a narrative about the snow.
Arctic Animal Studies
Watch a documentary or read some books about arctic animals. Learn what they eat, if they hibernate, and how they survive the frigid cold.
Virtual Explore the Arctic
You can find virtual field trip to the arctic on Youtube. You might not be able to visit the arctic, but you can learn so much through virtual resources.
Snowflake Lab Video
There are snowflake lab videos on Youtube that will teach you about snowflakes, how they are formed, how they are unique etc.
Outdoor Cozy Snow Day Activities for Kids
Just because it’s freezing doesn’t mean you can’t get cozy outside! Here are a few outdoor cozy snow day activities for kids.
Outdoor Campfire
If you have a firepit, try a snow-surrounded campfire! It will keep you warm and the fire’s glow will make it feel magical!
Snow Story time
Instead of doing a read-aloud inside, bundle up for a snow storytime outside!
At- Home Drive In Movie
We have a projector similar to this. Sometimes, we set up the projector and do at-home drive ins casted onto our garage doors. Bundle up with some warm coats and blankets and enjoy an at-home, winter drive in!
Star Gazing
Lay some waterproof blankets like these on the ground and star gaze with your family! You could also try to find some constellations.
Indoor STEAM Snow Day Ideas for Kids
STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, art, and math. Here are some indoor STEAM projects to challenge your child’s imagination!
build a Fort
On snow days, we use our couch and Nugget (similar) to build cozy blanket forts! You could also let your kids build a fort out of cardboard boxes.
Indoor Igloo with fort building kit
My parents got my kids this fort building toy for Christmas. Use it to build an indoor igloo and top it off with some blankets for a cozy fort!
Build Marshmallow Igloos for Toys
Your kids can use marshmallows and toothpicks to build igloos for their toys.
Snow Math
This blog has lots of ideas for snow day math projects to try!
Make Fake Snow and Compare to Real Snow
You can use this recipe to make fake snow and compare and contrast it to the real snow outside!
Outdoor STEAM Snow Day Activities for Kids
Take STEAM outdoors with these outdoor projects for kids!
Build a Snowman
Encourage your kids to build their own snowman! Provide a few accessories or have them search nature for their own!
Tallest Tower
See who can build the tallest tower!
Snow Mosaics
Find sticks, branches, berries, etc. in nature and use them to build beautiful mosaics in the snow!
Build a Snow Fort
When I was in high school, we were visiting family during a huge snowstorm! My cousins and I build a huge fort that we could crawl inside of. It’s one of my favorite memories to this day.
Indoor Active Snow Day Ideas for Kids
If your kids are bouncing off of the walls but it’s too cold to go outside, try some of these active indoor snow day ideas!
Yarn Maze
We tried this one as a family, and my kids LOVED it. Get a ball of yarn, string it back and forth around a room. Have your kids try to get from point A to point B without touching the yarn. Make it more fun by adding a spray bottle into the mix and spraying someone every time they touch the yarn!
Dance Party
If your kids love to dance, turn up the tunes and have a dance party! You could even turn off the overhead lights and use some fun lights like these!
Indoor Snowball Fight
You could purchase soft snowballs like these or ball up socks for an indoor snowball fight that the kids are sure to love!
Snowman Bowling
Here’s how to make and set up your own snowman bowling for kids!
Winter Exercises
Lead your kids in some winter-themed exercises. Use some classics or make up your own. Ex: bear walk, penguin walk, snowball fight, angel jumping jacks, snowflake pose, etc.
Indoor Ice Skating
If you can’t make it to an ice rink, clear some space in the living room, put on some socks, play some music, and have an indoor ice skating party!
Outdoor Active Snow Day Activities
If you are looking for some guided activities, try some of these outdoor snow day activities with your kids!
Make Snow Angels
Teach your kids how to lay in the snow and move their arms and legs back and forth to make snow angels.
Have a Snowball Fight
Kids of all ages are sure to enjoy this classic game!
Sledding
If you have some gentle hills close to where you live, get a sled like this and make use of the snow! If you don’t have a hill, you could also pull your kids around the yard in a sled with a rope.
Snow Scavenger Hunt
Make a list of items to find outside: bird, evergreen tree, icicle, etc. and have your kids find the items or take pictures of them!
Snow Obstacle Course
Help set up a snow obstacle course or encourage your kids to make their own!
Practice Shoveling
Teach your older children how to shovel snow. This is a skill that they might find enjoyable in their youth, and it is one that they will need to have when they live on their own someday!
Snowball Target Practice
Set up a target or just use a tree and encourage your older kids to practice their snowball aim! Then, have a snowball fight with the whole family!
Snow Melting Race
If the snow is starting to melt, give your kids each an equal pile of snow on the driveway. Encourage them to stomp around on it and see who can melt their pile first!
Frozen Treasure Hunt
Set up a frozen treasure hunt in the yard! Hide toys or objects in the snow and see who can find them! If you can’t, you’ll find them again once the snow melts!
Snowman Building Contest
Set up a snowman building contest and have different categories such as most creative, tallest, best dressed, etc.
Snowshoe Adventures
If you have snowshoes like these, have your kids practice snowshoeing around your yard or take a nature walk! This is a great and fun form of exercise.
Snow Angel Contest
Host a snow angel contest with your kids and their friends! You could even have the kids decorate their angel with materials they find in nature.
Snow Kickball
If you have some space in your yard or neighborhood, set up a game of snow kickball for your kids and the neighbors! Just make sure the ground isn’t too icy.
Catch Snowflakes
See who can catch the most snowflakes on their tongue!
Ways to Show Kindness on a Snowy Day
During heavy storms, you might have more neighbors home throughout the day or elderly neighbors who need assistance. Here are some ideas for blessing your neighbors or friends on snowy days!
Make a Meal for a Neighbor
Involve your kids in the kitchen and double your dinner recipe to take to a neighbor.
Shovel an Elderly Neighbor’s Driveway
If you have older children, you could help shovel a neighbor’s driveway together!
Write Letters
Being cooped up is a great opportunity to write letters to family or friends who live far away!
Random Acts of Kindness for Neighbors
Encourage your kids to think for themselves and come up with some random acts of kindness!
Productive Snow Day Activities
If you are trapped inside and can’t get to a lot of the items on your to-do list, being snowed in is the perfect time to work on some projects that you’ve been putting off!
Organize
You can organize your closets, laundry room, garage, etc. Let your kids help organize toys to donate and save! If you need tips for organizing a small house, check out this post.
Plan Your Garden
Just because it isn’t spring doesn’t mean that it’s too early to start planning! Order your seeds, consider companion plants, and map out your garden! This printable garden planner will walk you through the steps. If you want to involve your kids, let them plan their own children’s garden.
Snow Day Hair Cuts
Now, I only recommend trying this if you actually cut your kid’s hair. My husband cuts my son’s hair, and snow days are the perfect day to catch up on a haircut that you’ve been putting off!
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