Snow happens every winter whether we like it or not. There are two types of people in this world; people who hate snow and people who embrace it. Children love snow. (I think I would love it a little more if I didn't have to shovel, brush my car off all the time, drive on unplowed roads, etc)
We decided to bring in a bunch of snow into our classroom for the children to explore. Sure, they're outside everyday, but they are bundled up and it's hard to move! Bringing in snow gives the children the opportunity to touch the snow without mittens, which is a totally different experience entirely.
I thought the children might be a little skeptical due to the cold, but they dug right in and began to play. Some of the two year olds began scooping the fluffy snow into bowls and telling me to eat the ice cream. At that moment I knew what we had to do the next day; homemade snow ice cream.
1 Cup Milk
3/4 Cup Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Pinch of Salt
8 Cups Snow
We had ice cream cones, sprinkles, and ice cream scoops out on the table. As soon as the recipe was complete the children knew just what to do. The children took full control of this activity and absolutely loved it. (I know this because they told me "Leslie, I love this!")
The ice cream melts pretty fast, and our table looked like a giant ice cream painting.
So what do you think we decided to do the next day to extend our ice cream play? You guessed it, ice cream paintings! We knew painting with ice cream wouldn't work too well so we made good ole puffy paint (half glue and half shaving cream) and put out sprinkles and red pom poms that resembled a cherry!
The end result looked just like a melted ice cream sundae and had a great texture when dried!
As I write this the munchkins are playing with chocolate playdough, ice cream cones, scoops, and other "toppings" with Christie and Kayla. I can't wait to see where else we can take our love for ice cream next! The children are all about making ice cream with all this snowy weather, we even witnessed some ice cream parties outside amongst the children!
- Leslie Dionne
