“Winter in the Woods” Toddler Activities
I love wintertime in the woods. The fresh snow that crunches underfoot. The quiet, still, forest air. The crisp days. I love it. My preschooler loves winter hikes, too so I made a “Winter in the Woods” preschool unit theme for her that she loved. But naturally, her little sister wanted to join in, too, so I created some “Winter in the Woods” toddler activities for her. They’re Montessori inspired, hands-on, and low-prep.
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Language Activity
Forest Animal Language Card Matching
At this age toddlers are becoming hyperaware that everything has a name and as they’re going through their sensitive period for language acquisition, this is something they’re going to focus on.
To help foster this, I created forest animal language cards with an image and name of the animal on each card.
Then I gave my toddler the set of cards along with a set of Safari LTD Toob In the Woods figurines and encouraged her to match. Toddlers will instinctually lay the figurines on top of the images in the picture. As she did so, I named the animal for her. As her language skills grew, I started asking her if she could show me a specific animal. And finally, she started naming the animals herself.
If you don’t have the Safari LTD Toob, you could also print off two sets of the cards and have them match the cards. (I went ahead and laminated my language cards because I also use them with my preschooler when working on phonological awareness and I wanted them to hold up for multiple uses.)
Those cards are available here.
Family Activity
Go on a Winter Hike in the Woods
Winter is quite possibly my favorite time to hike. The lack of bugs and crowds can make the forest so peaceful, and there’s no better way to learn than real world experience.
Bundle up and get your toddler out there!
And if you’re a bit unsure about how to take on family hiking, check out my post here for some tips to get started.
Science Activity
Sorting Parts of a Pine Tree
Toddlers love sorting. If you live near pine trees, go out and gather up some needles, branches, and pinecones. (And if you don’t live near any pine trees, you can find these at any craft store.)
Give your child a tray with dividers or a handful of different bowls and have them sort the pieces into distinct piles.
Practical Life Activities
Dressing for a Winter in the Woods Hike
If you’re actually going on a winter hike, just include your toddler in the process of picking out what they need to wear to stay warm.
But if you’re not going on a winter hike, I made this little worksheet for my toddler to circle what a winter hiker would need. Then we cut out those items and glued them to an image of a hiker in the winter woods.
That activity is available here.
Creating a Pinecone Bird Feeder
Simple and classic. Roll some pinecones in peanut butter and birdseed, tie a ribbon to it, and tie it to a tree. Then encourage your toddler to observe which birds are still hanging around in the winter.
Math Activity
Counting Cards with Pinecones
I love using seasonal items to keep counting cards fresh. I created a set of counting cards and then had my daughter place pinecones on each card as she counted. Simple, hands-on, and repeatable. A toddler activity win.
Those cards are available for free here.
Sensory/Fine Motor Activity
“Winter in the Woods” Sensory Bin for Toddlers
I love sensory bins for toddlers and this one might be my favorite. I tossed together some pinecones, small pine trees, white felt, and the Safari LTD Nature Toob figurines and turned her loose. She made different winter scenes and even started to pretend play with the animals some.
“Winter in the Woods Sticky Wall”
After a winter walk or after sorting different nature items, tape some contact paper (sticky side out) onto a wall and have your toddler place the nature items on the contact paper to make a sticky wall,
And if you’re really cooped up and need to burn off more toddler energy- place the items a distance away from the sticky wall and make a game of running back and forth to add more items.
Winter in the Woods Books
Winter in the Forest
A pop-up book about different forest animals in the winter, this is a part of a four-part series and we love every one of them. The pop-ups are sturdy and durable against little hands.
It’s available on Amazon here.
Cub’s First Winter
This one is adorable. A little fox cub is asking his mom all of these questions about winter coming on. They get caught up in a snow storm and end up safe, cozy, and warm in their den.
And if you’re looking for more winter in the woods books, check out my post here:
