If it gets cold enough in your area. Use a bubble wand to create a large bubble. Then catch it on the wand. Finally let your children watch as it freezes. Freeze small toy dinosaurs (or other toys) into Ice cubes and then let your children use a small mallet to break them out. Talk about how Igloos are made and how they protect Eskimos. Then have your children try to make one using either sugar cubes and frosting or ice cubes and salt (helps stick cubes together) Ask your children to predict if snow/ice will melt faster in your bare hand or in a mitten. Graph the results. Put a piece of ice in a bowl of water (should float on the top) give your children a string and have them try to pick up the ice. They will not be able to do this. Then have them lay the string gently across the ice and put salt over the ice cube. Slowly count to 10 and presto the ice will stick to the string. Fill several containers with water and freeze them. Take them outside and put winter salt on some and not on the others. Ask your children which one they think will melt first. For added fun add food coloring on the top of each. The one with winter salt will melt away into a neat pattern. Mix 1 cup Epsom Salt and 1 cup boiling water. Let cool and then pour into a dish. Let the dish sit overnight. The dish will grow crystals. Your children can look at these with a magnifying glass or microscope. Put a black piece of paper in the freezer. When it snows get your children bundled up and take them out. Have them catch the snow on the paper and then examine the snowflakes with a magnifying glass. Have your children predict what will make ice melt the fastest (salt, cold water, hot water, salt water, nothing) Use each method on similar size chunks of ice and graph the result For added fun during winter put snow in your water table. Add eyedroppers full of colored water. The water runs off and through the snow to form really neat patterns. Fill two buckets with ice water. Have your children put one hand in a bucket. Have them put the other hand in a glove and then in a baggie of vegetable oil. Put this bag (with their hand in it) in the water. The oil will serve to keep their hand warm just like blubber does for bears. If it snows in your area collect a bucket of snow. Heap it up so that your children are convinced that it is full. Let them watch it through the day as it slowly shrinks away. They will be amazed at how little water a bucket of snow is. Use a snow cone maker or blender to make snow. Your children will love it (especially if you live in an area that does not get a lot of snow) Completely amerce any item into water and freeze it. Then sit it our and let your children watch as the item reappears. For a non messy way for your children to experience ice. Freeze water in a ziploc bag or plastic glove. Let your children play with snow with one mitten hand and one bare hand, have them talk about the difference of the two (don't let them play bare handed very long!)
Everything Preschool >> Themes  >> Winter >> Science