8 of the Most Exciting Winter Math Activities for Preschoolers
Updated on January 9, 2024
Kids love trying new things, and until you stimulate that desire, you may never discover the secret of teaching them. Teaching a child math can be easier if you learn how to make the process fun for them by guaranteeing new, delightful experiences. For instance, if a child is interested in seasonal changes, you can offer them math lessons tied to the weather and seasons. And if Christmas excites them, you can help your preschooler learn math by introducing them to winter math activities.
Winter math activities for preschoolers
There are numerous math winter activities for preschoolers you can choose from to help your child learn math. Watching the winter come with one of our favorite holidays, you can also try out fun Christmas math activities with your preschoolers. Here are eight preschool winter math activities you can get your children involved in this winter.
Writing in the snow
Snow is a clear indicator that winter is in full swing, and we know that children love to play around in it. So, get some whipped cream and a large tray. Spread the whipped cream all over the tray and tell your kids to write the numbers in the snow. Whipped cream does not stay out for long, so they have to finish writing 1 to 100 before the whipped cream melts away. Have the kids wash their hands thoroughly before Christmas math activities like this because their hands will likely end up in their mouths as the day progresses.
Counting the gingerbread men
You should start this exercise by spreading gingerbread men on a tray and making the preschoolers count them. Before they eat the gingerbread man you baked for the occasion, introduce some addition and subtraction lessons to the mix. For every one they eat, they should keep count, and at the end, they should calculate how many cookies are remaining on the tray.
Counting snowballs
Take the kids when it is snowing; they should make as many snowballs as possible. When kids finish making snowballs, guide them to count how many they have made. If you are in a safe zone and can keep an eye on the kids, let them throw a couple of snowballs at each other and have fun. They can subtract the number of snowballs they throw from the pile. This game is one of the most inclusive math Christmas activities because your preschoolers aren’t the only ones to enjoy it; the whole family can join the fun.
Singing along to number songs
The 12 Days of Christmas — we all know this song and sing it every Christmas. If you think about it, this song is an excellent tool for counting because it uses repetition. So, while singing the song with kids, you can use a pictorial example to support the items in the lyrics. Other songs like The Five Little Penguins and The Ten Little Reindeers can also do the trick. Play them in class and dance along as you help the preschoolers remember how to count.
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The glove vs. mitten graph
One of the best and most engaging preschool Christmas math activities is the glove vs. mitten graph. Encourage the kids to wear either a glove or a mitten to class, then create a graph and have the children count their hand gear themselves. Draw the number of gloves on one side of the chart and the mittens on another side.
You can also use a tally method to teach kids how to count gloves and mittens in class. Another fun way to engage the students in this activity is by putting a large graph mat on the floor and asking kids to take off their gloves and mittens. Put the items side by side and then have the children count how many pairs there are in total.
The Hot cocoa and marshmallow game
The Hot cocoa card game is a popular winter math game for preschoolers. To play the game, print marshmallow cards and cocoa cups with equations on one side and arrange them with equations to face downwards. Next, distribute the marshmallow cards bearing answers. Finally, pick a printed cocoa cup and encourage preschoolers to solve the equation and match it with its corresponding marshmallow.
Repeat the process till you run out of cocoa cup printouts. The materials for printable winter math activities for preschoolers like this can be easily found online. And such games are practical because you can drink actual hot cocoa while playing, thus countering the effects of the winter cold.
Making the gingerbread man
As a teacher, you will have to be pretty hands-on with this activity because it involves moving parts that could cause choking hazards. It is one of the Christmas math activities for preschoolers which requires making creations with dough. You and the preschoolers will use the dough to make many gingerbread men, design them with buttons, and number them. Every child should be involved in this process. Make sure you remind the children that these gingerbread men you made are not edible.
Matching Polar bears and snowballs
The Polar bears and snowballs game is among the most popular printable kindergarten winter math activities. You get eight cards of polar bears with different colored scarves tied around their necks and a small can of colored cotton balls. Your preschooler has to find the snowball of the same color as the scarf and hand it to the polar bear. Tell the children to help their polar bears find their snowballs and help those experiencing difficulties.
Conclusion
Many of the fun Christmas math activities for kindergarten children require an adult’s supervision or input. And that is great because this way, you can share your preschooler’s experience and create fun memories while teaching them math. When you let your kid learn with Brighterly tutors, exercises like these math winter activities for preschoolers will be a standard part of their experience.