Four Winds: Winter World

The day before vacation, we had our Four Winds volunteers come into the classroom to present a workshop that focused on how snow benefits animals during the winter months. We learned about the subnivean layer (the layer beneath the snow) and how snow can be an insulator for the animals during the cold winter months. We also learned some animals use the snow as a way to hunt for food and/or to store food.

After the puppet show, the children completed two different activities. In the first activity, the children had to choose a type of material that they thought would keep their critter warm (a film canister which had hot water in it) during the cold months. Ask your child what material he or she chose. Then, the materials were wrapped around the canisters and placed outside. After about 20 minutes had passed, the canisters were brought in for the children to see if their material they picked insulated their critter enough using their sense of touch and using thermometers to measure the temperature of the water.

In the last activity, each child made a mouse house. The children really enjoyed this activity and they were so creative with using the materials they had to create a house for their mouse.

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