Snowball Targets! SNOOOOOW FUN!

We don't get snow in Southern California, and so if we want to have the experience of throwing snowballs, we have to make it ourself. We were a little concerned with letting the children go all out with an unbridled snowball fight, so with a bit of prep, we created the most exciting dramatic play thus far - SNOWBALL TARGET PRACTICE!

With the help of some coworkers, we strung several lines of string from the school wall to our patio overhang. I then hung targets from the strings. I varied the heights and the depths of the string for added challenge. We draped a sheet at the back to catch the flying snowballs and prevent them from smashing into the Art and Language table. A flat wall would work, too, but I was pretty sure that my director would not have appreciated the thump, thump, thump of careening "snowballs" hitting her office window!

To create a defined space, we laid tires along the edge of the space. We put chairs behind the chairs to create a viewing and waiting area. Of course, we provided winter wear such as scarves, mittens and fluffy hats to get into the winter mood!

We provided a large crate filled with "snowballs" (see below) and allowed 2 children at a time to stand on the bales of hay and launch their snowballs at the targets. We allowed each set to empty the crate. The children all cheered for each other when someone hit a target and all of the children helped in the cleanup each time the crate was emptied.

The enthusiasm for this activity was so high and all of the children (and many of the parents!) wanted a turn. I even saw a few teachers practicing their aim with the targets. We did have one teacher stationed at the center to keep everyone in a "festive" mood and to regulate the queue.

The snowballs are Ziplock bags filled with packing peanuts. I used strong clear packing tape to seal each bag into the shape of a ball. The targets are simply laminated construction paper. We had a snowman die-cut, so I added the snowmen for extra appeal and told the children that the goal was to hit the snowman.

This is by far one of the most exciting events we have set up on the yard (there are many exciting things that arise on the yard, but this one was intentional). It was a hit with the children, parents and teachers! The snowballs could also be used for a controlled snowball toss, or even a {monitored} snowball fight.

And so, WINTER has officially arrived in SoCal! Yippee!

Happy Holidays everyone!

Puffy Snow Paint

Prior to the major storm this week, our sensory/art project on the patio was Puffy Snow Paint (see recipe below). I mixed up a batch (it looked a LOT like Cool Whip), provided spoons for scooping, and offered the children the opportunity to make a snowy picture. I also added small jars of glitter to add some glitz to the project. This group is fairly active, and so I imagined a full sensory experience of using hands and fingers to spread the soft "paint" around. Funny enough, there was only one little girl who dove into the gooey mix with full gusto!

The boys diligently scooped and patted the paint with their spoons, ever so careful not to get any on their hands! One boy did give it a little taste, but discovered quite quickly that it doesn't taste nearly as good as it looks! 

The glitter was a HUGE hit with the boys and they did shake those little bottles with enthusiasm!

I don't think they started with an idea in mind, but they all decided that their pictures looked very much like mountains and volcanoes. And they did!

I hung their pictures up on our display line on Wednesday. That night, a massive storm (click to read that post) hit our city and cluttered our yard with over 30 garbage bags of debris! Our 3 sided easel was ruined, the patio was a MESS, trees were toppled outside the gates, and our "loose parts" were found everywhere around the yard. Lamp posts and traffic lights were snapped in half, but those little pictures were still hanging on the line the next day! Sparkly volcanoes and mountains survived! ;-)

RECIPE:

Mix 1 part school glue to 4 parts shaving cream. 

*Dries exactly as it is put on the paper! Looks fluffy, feels soft and dry.