19 Fun Winter Activities For Kids To Keep Them Engaged

Image: Shutterstock

Winter is coming. No, that isn’t an allusion to Game of Thrones. Just a friendly reminder that you should have a list of winter activities for kids handy to keep your little one occupied and entertained throughout the holidays.

Winter break is one of the best times to engage in fun games and spend time with the family if you are not heading out on vacation. Here are some interesting winter games for kids that you may play with your little one this season.

Fun Winter Games For Kids

For a kid, winters are about playing in the snow, inside the house, and anywhere else they can! So here is a list of winter games you can play with the kids!

1. Snowman Slam

Image: Shutterstock

Snowman slam is a fun game that the entire family can enjoy.  But this is a no-snow game, which means your kids will be playing this game indoors. And, here’s how you do it!

You will need:

• 6 large white paper cups
• Brown velvet paper
• Orange velvet paper
• Glue
• Cotton (lots of it!)

How to:

1. Cut 12 small circles from the brown paper for making the snowman’s eyes. Cut some smaller circles for the mouth.
2. Cut tiny triangles for the nose. Turn the cups upside down and stick the eyes, nose, and mouth as shown in the image.
3. Prepare baseball-sized rounds with the cotton. Make them bulky and strong.
4. Arrange the snowmen in the form of a pyramid and give the cotton balls to the kids.
5. See if they can tumble all the snowmen from five feet, eight feet, ten feet, and more!

Play for as long as your kid wants!

2. Snowman bingo

Image: IStock

Snowman bingo is a fun game for kids, but not so much for the parents! Why? Because it is the parent who has to create the snowman-themed bingo cards.

You will need:

• Plain bingo cards or chart paper
• Pencil
• Ruler
• Sketches or pens

Preparation:

You can opt for the simpler snowman-themed word bingo or the complicated image bingo. For image bingo, you will have to draw small pictures of the nose, scarf, eyes, hat, mittens, snowflakes, and anything else you can associate with a snowman. In the other version, you just write the words.

1. Cut the chart paper into squares and make a 5×5 bingo grid. The grid size can be big or small depending on the type of bingo you choose to play.
2. Draw the images or write in words.

Make as many bingo cards as there are kids to play. You could also print out snowman bingo cards from the internet.

How to:

1. Give each kid a bingo card.
2. Randomly call out a word or an object on the bingo cards.
3. The kid who strikes out all images or words on the card wins!

3. Snowball relay

Image: Shutterstock

When you have a lot of kids to engage on a snowy day, the snowball relay is a game you can rely on. You could also play this in schools and communities.

You will need:

• Snowballs
• Space to play
• Two buckets

You will need at least ten kids to play this game.

How to:

1. Divide the children into two or three teams, depending on the number of kids.
2. Ask the kids to stand in a line, with a gap of at least five feet among them.
3. Put one bucket with snowballs at one end of the line and an empty bucket on the other.
4. On ‘Go’, the kid standing at the end of the line picks a snowball and passes it to the next one. And that kid gives the snowball, without breaking it, to the next kid and so on.
5. The team that gets the most snowballs to the other end without breaking them wins!

4. Musical statues

Image: Shutterstock

Freeze is a musical game where the kids get to dance to their favorite tunes. That is until you, the ‘snow lord’, turn them into statues.

You will need:

• Music
• Space to dance

How to:

1. Clear some space in the room for the dancers.
2. Play the music and ask the kids to dance any way they want.
3. But when the music stops, they must freeze like statues, in whatever pose they were in.

Take pics of the kids as soon as they freeze and show it to them!

We guarantee that your cheeks will hurt from laughing.

5. Snowy treasure hunt

Image: IStock

Treasure hunts are passé. But add snow to the equation, and they suddenly become appealing. You may be wondering how in the world is someone supposed to find treasure buried in snow?

Well, you gotta play it to know it!

You will need:

• Small pieces of paper
• Stick
• Thread
• Objects to hide, big or small depending on how deep the snow is

How to:

1. You can play this game inside the house or out in the snow.
2. Set up a series of clues or objects that the children have to look for. Don’t hide them too well or bury them too deep in the snow.
3. Set a time limit and let the children loose, to find the objects.

The kid who finds most things wins!

6. Snowman hat-trick

Image: Shutterstock

Come winter and snowfall, and everyone wants to make a snowman. And why not? Snowman building is fun! But this game is better than that.

You will need:

• Snow (duh!)
• A top hat

How to:

1. Make a snowman as tall as your child.
2. Add the eyes, nose, hands, and even the scarf.
3. Stand a few feet away from the figure and try to throw the hat onto the head.
4. Take turns to see how many times each kid gets to hat the snowman! Keep a score.

One who gets it most times wins!

7. Snow dodge ball

Image: Shutterstock

Snowball fights are fun, as long as they are taken in the right spirit.

You will need:

A snowy day!

How to:

1. Take a small bucket or pail if you want and head outside.
2. Tell the children not to aim at the face or any other unprotected part of the body.
3. Stand at least six feet apart, make snowballs, and throw at each other.
4. When the other person throws it, try to dodge.

Note: For all outdoor activities that involve playing in the snow, ensure that the child wears appropriate winter clothing, including jackets, gloves, and shoes to prevent frostbite.

Point to consider

For older children, you may set a target on the ground with various point values based on where their snowballs drop to make it a little more tricky.

Outdoor Winter Activities For Kids

Snow or no snow. You can’t stay holed up inside the house all through the winter. Sometimes, you can take the kids out for fun winter activities for kids. Snowball fights are the best but there are still many other ways to enjoy snow. Wondering how?

Read on!

8. Snow angels

Image: Shutterstock

Snow angels are not sculptures, but impressions that you make on the snow-filled ground. If you live in a winter wonderland, this is one of the most basic activities that you absolutely must do. Make sure that your child has put on enough warm clothing. Do not try this without proper clothing.

You will need:

• A snow-filled area, preferably a park or your backyard

How to:

1. Dress your kids in warm clothes.
2. Ask them to lie down in the snow, facing the sky.
3. Now wave the legs and the arms on the ground to make wings.
4. Once done, ask the child to get up and move away from his creation without stepping on it.

This is best done when it is not snowing.

9. Snow forts

Image: IStock

Too much snow in the yard? Well, use it to build an igloo or a fort!

You will need:

• A lightweight bucket or rectangular planter box
• Space

How to:

1. Clear out some space and mark a boundary.
2. Fill the planter box (or bucket) to the brim with snow. Level the top of the planter.
3. Invert the planter neatly and apply pressure on it.
4. Hold it for a few seconds and slowly lift the planter, leaving the snow slab on the ground.
5. Place the slabs side by side to cover the boundaries.
6. Then stack them up as seen in the image, to build walls.

This is one of the best things to do when kids are bored. You can build a small fort or a big one, depending on how much snow there is and how excited your child is about the activity.

Quick tip

Help the children decorate the fort with colored water in a spray bottle or build flags out of twigs and leaves to make it stand out.

10. Snow painting

Image: Shutterstock

One of the most beautiful things about snowy winters is the whiteness of the snow! As peaceful as it can be, lack of color can be depressing too. So, how about adding some color to your immediate surroundings?

You will need:

• Eco-friendly, washable paints
• Paint brushes
• Molds

How to:

1. Pick a patch of a snow-filled area that you want to paint. Take some snow on a plastic sheet or large tray to prevent the paint from spilling.
2. Use the molds to make shapes out of the snow.
3. Mix the colors and ask the children to paint the molds in any color they want.

You could also pick specific snow-filled patches here and there, around the house to make the area look nicer.

11. Stone cairn

Image: IStock

A cairn is a tower made of flat stones. This is an activity for no-snow regions. It is also an excellent way to spend time during winter picnics.

You will need:

Flat stones of different sizes – big and small

How to:

1. Find some firm, even ground, and place the largest stone on it.
2. Place the next biggest stone on it and complete the stack by placing the stones in descending order.
3. Place the stones on top of one another in such a way that you can make the tallest possible tower.
4. You could use equal-sized stones to make a tower.

Just make sure that the stones do not have any sharp edges, to prevent cuts and bruises.

Heather Sossoman, a pediatric physical therapist and mother of three, shares some exciting winter activities for children on her YouTube channel. She demonstrates an activity named snowball catch to her viewers, where you need some snowman cups and cotton balls. Sit across your child at a table and give them one of the cups. Grab a handful of cotton balls and start playing by rolling the cotton balls over the table and letting your child grab them with the snowman cups. This interesting activity for kids can help them beat the winter blues (i).

12. Others

Image: IStock

Who says your child cannot play when there is snow all around? Here is a list of outdoor winter sports your child can indulge in.

• Ice skating: If there is a skating rink near your house, go ice skating. If your child doesn’t know how to, this is the right time to teach him or her!

• Hockey: You could take your kid to watch or play a game of ice hockey. If there is a children’s ice hockey rink near you, you could even get the kid trained in the sport!

• Skiing: Not everyone lives near a ski resort. But if you do, do not waste any time thinking about taking your kid skiing. Instead just go and have fun.

• Saucer swirls are the best alternative to skiing for the younger lot. If your child is aged less than five, try saucer swirls in a snow park.

• Snowboarding best suits teenagers and pre-teens. Similar to skiing, snowboarding does not have skis to support. So we recommend that the child try skiing first and then get to snowboarding when he or she has learned how to balance when moving on the snow.

• • Sled rides are for the entire family. If there are slopes near your home, you can create a makeshift sled using old wooden tables or planks and go sledding!
  • Winter hiking is for families who love walking in the cold air. A bit of snow can change the entire landscape and make it look more serene and beautiful. Plus, there is always the lure of hot cocoa waiting back home!
  • If you love the cold weather and have protective gear, why not go winter camping? This is a great idea for no-snow regions. The cool weather makes camping more refreshing and encourages your children to explore.

Care must be taken to ensure the child’s safety when trying these sporting activities. See to it that the child has the necessary safety gear in place before they play. Also, keep in mind the child’s age and capabilities before picking a sport.

Indoor Winter Activities For Children

When it is too cold, or when there is a snowstorm preventing you from stepping out, you can trust these indoor activities to keep you company.

13. Holiday movie nights

Image: Shutterstock

When it is too cold, what better way to keep your child warm and happy than having a cozy family movie night? Just collect a bunch of your child’s favorite DVDs, make a hot cup of cocoa, and snuggle up on the couch to watch the movie. Here are our top 12 winter movie picks!

• Frozen
• The Polar Express
• Ice Age
• Happy Feet
• Home Alone
• The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe
• How The Grinch Stole Christmas
• It’s A Wonderful Life
• Miracle
• Rise of the Guardians
• Jack Frost
• March Of The Penguins

14. Have an indoor picnic

Image: IStock

Is your child fretting over canceled winter vacation plans? If the weather is not letting you go out, have an indoor picnic or vacation for fun.

• Clear out some space in the attic or one of the rooms that you do not often use. Or clear out some space in your living room.
• Prepare picnic food.
• Spread the picnic blanket and put the food in a basket (you gotta go all the way!).
• Pick a few games (indoor, of course) that you’d play when you go out for a picnic.
• Time to indulge in winter cooking and baking and prepare some tasty sandwiches and hot cocoa!

Enjoy!

Point to consider

Include wholesome snacks such as simple stews or vegetable soups, cucumber and carrot sticks with hummus, and hot cocoa for beverages. These are ideal for both adults and children.

15. Holiday greeting cards

Image: IStock

If your child is a busy little bee and likes to keep himself or herself occupied with little projects, think about making some winter crafts. Holiday greeting cards are a great idea and they get done just in time for Christmas. Don’t worry if you don’t have material for fancy greeting cards. You can make the prettiest cards with just craft paper and coloring pens. Use green and red colors generously for Christmas themed cards. Or just use a bit of black, orange, and red for snowman themed cards.

Whatever you do, get creative and encourage originality.

16. House decorations

Image: IStock

If it is almost time for Christmas and you have the decorations ready, why not start decorating the house. If you don’t have decorations, you could begin cleaning the house and preparing it for when you can get the decorations from the store. An interesting idea would be to get the children to create X-mas tree decorations at home, using cotton, ping-pong balls, color pens, glitters, and other materials.

17. Snow ice cream

Image: IStock

What can be a more delightful winter activity than playing in the snow and enjoying the deliciousness of a frozen treat? Here’s a simple tutorial to help you make a snow ice cream.

You will need:

• 10 cups of fresh, clean snow
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup condensed milk

How to:

1. Use a clean bowl to gather the snow and sprinkle sugar on top of it.
2. Add half a cup of condensed milk and a teaspoon of vanilla extract over the snow and gently fold and mix the ingredients. Use a spoon or spatula to combine until you achieve a creamy consistency. Be careful not to overmix, as the snow will begin to melt.
3. Taste the snow ice cream mixture and adjust the sweetness or flavor by adding more sweetened condensed milk or vanilla extract if needed.
4. Scoop the snow ice cream into individual serving containers or bowls and enjoy with your favorite topping.

18. Marshmallow slime

Image: Shutterstock

How do you make slime without mud? Well, just use marshmallows. Read on to know how you and your kids can make marshmallow slime!

You will need:

• 250g marshmallows
• 300g cornflour
• 1 ½ cup water

How to:

1. Put the marshmallows in a microwave-safe dish and microwave for ten seconds.
2. Stir them and cook again for ten seconds and continue the process until the marshmallows melt completely.
3. Mix the cornflour and water in a mixing bowl.
4. Add the melted marshmallows and mix thoroughly.

The slime, which is solid one minute and liquid-ey the next, is ready!

Experimenting With Snow And Ice

No list of winter activities is ever complete without interesting winter science experiments. Here are some ideas you shouldn’t miss.

19. Indoor ice art

Image: Shutterstock

When we say ice art, we mean ice sculptures, but the kind that kids make. Confused? Keep reading, and you will understand!

You will need

• A lot of water
• Molds of different sizes
• Eco-friendly or food colors
• Liquid droppers

How to:

This is a pretty simple experiment that can be conducted indoors or outdoors. Here is how.

1. Take water in different bowls and add food coloring to it. Use as many colors as possible, one in each bowl.
2. Pour the colored waters in as many bowls as you can find – molds, Jell-O cups, conical vases, yogurt containers, tin cans, and so on.
3. Freeze them overnight in the refrigerator. Or you can also put the molds outdoors, in case of subzero temperatures.
4. Take out the colorful ice blocks the next morning and arrange them artistically, or in any way you want.

You could also try mixing different colored semi-frozen sculptures in a bowl and freeze them to get a multi-colored ice art.

Note: You can also try making Popsicles with water, milk, fruit juices, and so on to teach children that liquids freeze at subzero temperatures.

20. Ice experiment

Image: IStock

Ice melts at room temperature. You know that. But does your child know that? Use this experiment to teach the child how quickly or slowly ice melts in different conditions.

You will need:

• Water
• Medium-sized bowl
• Liquid watercolors
• Droppers
• Ice cubes
• News paper
• aluminum foil
• Soil
• Tray or cups

How to:

• Here, we will try two different experiments.

Melting ice colors

1. Freeze water in the medium-size bowl.
2. Take the ice out of the bowl and into a leak-proof tray.
3. Sprinkle a little salt over it and voila! The ice starts melting faster when you add salt to it.
4. Mix the colors in different cups and use the dropper to color the melting ice.
5. Add as many colors as you want to the melting ice to create beautiful ice art.

How quickly does ice melt now?

1. Take three ice cubes of the same size.
2. Put one ice cube as it is in the tray.
3. Wrap one ice cube in a piece of newspaper and put it next to the first ice cube.
4. Wrap the last ice cube in an aluminum foil and place it next to the second one.
5. Observe the ice cubes as they melt, and keep track of how long each takes to melt.

The ice cube without any insulation starts melting at room temperature. However, the ice cube wrapped in the aluminum foil melts faster as aluminum quickly transfers heat to the ice cube. The ice cube wrapped in newspaper melts slower than the others because paper insulates the ice.

You can also try the same experiment by wrapping the ice cube with a plastic sheet and a cotton towel and see the results.

Infographic: Indoor And Outdoor Winter Activities For Children

With the festivities ongoing, and cold weather, it is important to keep the children engaged during winter. Check out the infographic below for some interesting indoor and outdoor winter activities to engage your children on winter days. These games are a perfect mix of fun, creativity, and imagination to indulge your children in.

Illustration: Momjunction Design Team

Illustration: Fun Winter Activities For Kids To Keep Them Engaged

Image: Stable Diffusion/MomJunction Design Team

Was this article helpful?

Community Experiences

Join the conversation and become a part of our nurturing community! Share your stories, experiences, and insights to connect with fellow parents.

Reviewer Author Editor Fact Checker

Elisa YiEarly childhood educator

Elisa has 17 years of experience in early childhood education as a teacher and a director. With a passion to work with young kids, she did her post graduation in Education and received her online teaching certificate from California State University, East Bay.

Read full bio of Elisa Yi

Harshita MakvanaB.Com, PG Dip

Harshita is a graduate in commerce and holds a PG Diploma in Patent and Copyrights Law from NALSAR University. She has also pursued CA and has more than three years of internship experience in auditing. Her love for travelling has taken her to various parts of the world, and writing the travelogues was what brought out her love for content writing.

Read full bio of Harshita Makvana

Deepa ThomasMA (English)

Deepa Rachel Thomas holds a master’s degree in English from the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad. She has done a certification course in Child Development and worked as a mentor for young children at an NGO that focuses on helping children develop their language and soft skills.

Read full bio of Deepa Thomas

Nisha BharatanB.Tech

Nisha Bharatan is a writer with six years of experience. After completing her engineering from Savitribai Phule Pune University, she did content marketing courses to complement her interest in writing. Nisha discovered her passion for writing in 2016 when she started documenting her journey into motherhood.

Read full bio of Nisha Bharatan