Snowzilla is behind us. Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow. Though spring may actually be around the corner, what happens if Mother Nature dumps that one last load of snow?

Luckily, the families and teachers at SSDS are here to bail you out with things to do at home on a snow day. Below are some ideas for when the Netflix queues are empty, when the snowplows still have not managed to find your street, and the snow person in the yard has been given every spare article of clothing and accessory available in the house.

A cold snowy day is the perfect time to take to the kitchen. A number of families I asked told me about how much fun they had baking cookies or cakes. Kids get to measure, mix, pour, and stir; in the end, they are rewarded with a sweet treat for their efforts. For extra fun, break out the food coloring (more on this later) and make rainbow sugar cookies! Ms. Michelle from the young 3s even suggested that kids can use this as a way to be a “super friend” in the neighborhood and bring cookies to neighbors complete with a handmade card—another good indoor activity. There’s nothing like storms to bring neighbors together.

Have a spice tasting with your kids.

Other families took kitchen time a step further and had a spice tasting!  For example, oregano—flaky, green, and slightly bitter—might be contrasted with sugar—crunchy, white, and sweet.  With some careful parental guidance, a spice tasting can be a colorful, flavorful, texture-ful way to learn.

Ms. Michelle also reminded us that there are plenty of neighbors in our community who need our help and our appreciation. At this age, many kids love helping; why not have them grab either a small shovel or even their sand shovels to help the adults clear driveways and sidewalks of neighbors who could use the assistance?
Snow provides the perfect blank canvas for kids to express the artist inside. One way to do this is to grab an unused storage bin and fill it with snow. Bring the snow inside (and away from carpets), and “paint” the snow with some food coloring mixed with water. This has been a go-to activity for Addison (Ms. Beth’s 3’s) and Isabelle, and they love it.

Addison (Ms. Beth’s 3’s) and Isabelle, 1, paint snow indoors.

Or, you can take the paint to the snow. Find a clean spray bottle, fill it with water and food coloring. The world is now a canvas for your burgeoning graffiti artist.

Rahm (Ms. Beth’s 3’s) uses pink and yellow “spray paint” to express his take on trains.

Finally, who can forget about forts? I heard from parents about pillow forts, blanket forts and even forts made from egg cartons (for bricks) collected over months for just such a purpose. I heard about big forts, small forts and in-between forts. Moxie and her family (Ms. Michelle’s 3’s), though, took the opposite approach: Moxie trained to be a super-spy, breaking into said forts. Yarn, stretched across the hallway and taped to the walls, made a “laser-grid” that required concentration and some tricky motor skills to successfully navigate.

Though we have the sled ready and the Netflix queue standing by, thanks to the ingenuity of the SSDS community, I’m happy to have some parent and teacher-tested ideas for the next, inevitable snow day.

By Siben Isaacman, Dad to Rahm (Ms. Beth’s 3’s) and Satya (2 months)