Winter Themed Learning Centers
Penguins to Polar Bears
Measuring and geography have never been so much fun as when you get penguins and polar bears in on the act. Have students measure their way from one pole to the other by stopping off at various points. Use a passport with a polar bear or penguin stamp to mark their progress. Questions could include: “How many miles is it from the North Pole to Juneau, Alaska?” or “Calculate the distance Poppy the Penguin will travel if she goes from London, England to Paris, France and then to Madeira, Portugal.” For additional learning, have students pick a country that their polar bear or penguin has visited and write a report about it.
Snowman Parts of Speech
Have students practice their parts of speech using a snowman theme. You can have ready-made snowman cut-outs, or let students cut out their own snowmen. On the “head” and “bottom” have students write adjectives that describe their snowman. Words like: chilly, frosty, round and gigantic are great examples. On the “body” or middle snowball, direct children to write conjunctions to combine the two adjectives. They can then write three to five sentences in a “Snowman Journal” using the combinations of adjectives and conjunctions. For example: My snowman is round (1st adjective) and (conjunction) white (2nd adjective).
All About Snow
Even students in the sunny, Sonoran desert dream about snow! Create a learning center based on the water cycle and snow. Use a weather tracker on your computer or iPad to watch for winter storms across the country and have students record winter snowfall totals on a giant map of the United States. Include some cross-curricular activities in with the science and encourage creative writing about snow in the form of stories and poems.
Whether you teach Kindergarten or 6th Grade, there is something special about having learning centers in the classroom. They break the monotony of daily seat work and encourage creative thinking and independent work. Give students the chance to re-charge and re-energize with a learning center that embraces the winter season.
Jill says
Keep half sheets of black construction paper and magnifying glasses at the ready. Next time it snows, take the class out to capture and examine snowflakes on the paper.
Kelly says
One of my coworkers started the Great Snowball Blitz with us. Instead of a standard reading log for the month of January, students are broken into two teams and fill out snowballs. Then all the snowball stack up and the team with the most minutes read win a fun prize! It’s a nice way to get students excited about reading again after having the Winter vacation.
Kim Smythe says
Here in Texas, we don’t get snow. So, as a former yankee, I try to teach them about northern winters. I take winter clothes in to try on, such as snow boots and snow pants. I take my ice skates and try them on so they can see me walk in them. Then we go to the gym and wear socks and stand on wax paper squares to “ice skate”. We use wads of paper for a “snowball fight” and celebrate with hot chocolate.
Emily clary says
Thanks Jill for that idea! Now if we could just get some snow this winter!