While crafts for young children are plentiful it can be harder to find middle school winter craft ideas. Also, look at my page How to Successfully Homeschool Middle School and more ideas for winter fun on my page Winter Season Unit Study.
So, I have found 12 fantastic winter-themed crafts and activities that your middleschooler will love.
From snowmen to winter trees and snowflakes I covered the gamut of winter themes.
Whether you want to use them as a fun activity to go along with a unit study or just as a fun craft, I have ideas.
Even if you do not live in a snow-filled icy region they are still fun.
Too, they can be educational when part of a full winter study.
Your child can learn about the weather in different parts of the country, or world.
In addition, crafts can be used to teach its effect on the environment and people and vice versa.
I also have a tutorial for a beautiful icicle swag craft that will be a gorgeous winter decoration in your home that counts as art and builds fine motor skills, which are still important in middle school.
Use it in conjunction with facts about icicles and you have incorporated science as well.
Next, look at some facts about icicles.
5 Facts About Icicles
- Icicles are formed when the outdoor air temperature is below freezing and heat from sunlight melts the snow or ice on anything sloped, like roofs.
- The droplets of water falling freeze as they lose their heat to the cold air, as the water continues to drip down the outside of the icicle, the tip freezes faster than its base, which gives icicles the carrot shape that we know.
- There is debate over the length of the longest recorded icicle, but claims range from 28-45 feet.
- Icicles got their name from the Old English word for icicle-gicel. The Latin term stiria was translated to “ises gicel”, or “icicle made of ice”. “Ises gicel” was gradually formed to the word icicle.
- Icicles in nature are not smooth, impurities like salt and minerals dissolved in the water drop and create bumps. Icicles made with purified water are smooth like an ice cube.
Next, add some winter books and resources to your day.
I always lean toward living books and then add in reference books.
13 Snow, Snowman, Animals, and Winter Books
Add one or more of these books to your learning day if you're learning about snow, snowflakes, winter or just for fun.
Immerse Yourself in This Story of Love and Companionship Amidst Deprivation
It is the fall of 1930, and America has plunged into the Great Depression. On a remote dirt road deep in the snowy woods of northern Wisconsin, misfortune forces the impoverished Sparkes family to take desperate measures.
A wayfaring quartet consisting of thirteen-year-old Araminta (nicknamed Minty), her recently unemployed father-a poetry-quoting widower called Pops-and her younger sister, Eglantine (known as Eggs-a dreamer like Pops), and their dog, Buster, are on their way to Minneapolis to live with the curmudgeonly Aunt Amy. When their car breaks down and they are unable to fix it, the homeless four stumble upon a vacant summer cottage by a lake. In desperate straits, they decide to settle in.
How do snow crystals form? What shapes can they take? Are no two snow crystals alike? These questions and more are answered inside this exploration of the science of snow, featuring photos of real snow crystals in all their beautiful diversity. Perfect for reading on winter days, this book by a nature photographer and a snow scientist will inspire wonder and curiosity about the marvels of snow.
B-R-R-R-R! AH-CHOO! Sneezy the Snowman is cold, cold, cold. To warm up, he drinks cocoa, sits in a hot tub, stands near a warm fire–and melts! But the children know just what to do to build him up again–and make him feel “just right”.
Have you ever built a snowman and discovered the next day that his grin has gotten a little crooked, or his tree-branch arms have moved? And you've wondered . . . what do snowmen do at night? This delightful wintertime tale reveals all!
When the mayor of Mouseville announces the town snowman contest, Clayton and Desmond claim that they will each make the biggest snowman ever. But building a huge snowman alone is hard! They work and work, but their snowmen just aren't big enough. Soon they have an idea. As the day of the contest approaches, Clayton and Desmond join forces to build the biggest snowman ever.
Over the snow, the world is hushed and white. But under the snow lies a secret world of squirrels and snow hares, bears and bullfrogs, and many other animals making their winter home under the snow. This beloved nonfiction picture book exploring the subnivean zone reveals the tunnels and caves formed beneath the snow but over the ground, where many kinds of animals live through the winter, safe and warm, awake and busy, but hidden beneath the snow.
"Stoeke's second book about that intrepid screwball, Minerva Louise, is a rare find."—The Horn Book, starred review. The other chickens hate snowy mornings. But not Minerva Louise! To her a snowy day—like everything else—is an adventure. But this chilly, chipper hen needs something to keep her warm. What she finds—and how she finds it—will keep young readers cackling.
Our heroes' entry for the snowman contest has magically come to life―and ran away! Can YOU help catch it? Get ready for snow much fun as you travel through a winter wonderland with running, skating, and bouncing through trap after trap to catch the snowman and claim the winning prize. Will the snowman teach our heroes a lesson they'll never forget?
When the geese begin to fly south, the leaves flutter down from the trees and the cold winds begin to blow from the north, the animals of the woods and meadows, big and small, prepare for the long, cold winter ahead when the countryside is hidden under a deep blanket of snow. They gather food and look for warm, snug places in the ground, trees, caves or thickets, where they can find protection against the icy winds.It might have been hard for the birds and animals of the hillside to survive when the Big Snow came if their good friends, who lived in the little stone house, had not remembered to put food out for them.Here, in many beautiful pictures, the Haders show how winter comes to the woodland as the busy animals make their preparations.
The Smithsonian does things right and this Curious About Snow book is a
great introduction for curious kiddos with real images and simple explanations.
This is a clear and appealing book for early elementary age kids, both at home and in the classroom. Introduce kids to basic science ideas as part of discussions about the seasons and animals.
SET OF 10 FUN AND FRIGID FIGURES – It’s hard to stay warm at the North Pole, but you can discover its wonders in your home with these frigid friends. This TOOB includes a Harp Seal, Husky, Caribou, Arctic Rabbit, Killer Whale, Walrus, Arctic Fox, Beluga Whale, Igloo, and Polar Bear.
See the world in a whole new way! Acclaimed illustrator Julia Rothman combines art and science in this exciting and educational guide to the structure, function, and personality of the natural world. Explore the anatomy of a jellyfish, the inside of a volcano, monarch butterfly migration, how sunsets work, and much more. Rothman’s whimsical illustrations are paired with interactive activities that encourage curiosity and inspire you to look more closely at the world all around you.
Next, here are some middle school winter crafts.
12 Middle School Winter Crafts
- Easy DIY Fun Salt Winter Watercolor Art Project for Kids.
- While this activity is often directed at younger children I think that middle schooled kids will still love to learn How to Make Borax Crystals – Icicle Ornament for Kids.
- These Winter Luminaries: Snowy Pinecone Candle Jars make a beautiful addition to walkways, porches, and kitchen tables.
- Perfect for winter sniffles and the flu, these Winter Shower Melts are a work of art.
- Cardinal Birds in Winter and Birch Trees Easy Watercolor Kids Activity.
- Make an Easy DIY Snowman Wreath to deck your doors with winter whimsy.
- Simple Rustic Snowflakes Ornaments DIY.
- I am always up for a trip to Dollar Tree because they have amazing items for crafts, use pizza pans, hats, and mittens to create a Pizza Pan Snowman.
- Winter Craft Ideas How to Make Fun Pinecone Flowers.
- Maybe it’s not a craft but these Edible Chocolate Pinecones are a beautiful art piece as well as a delicious snack.
- Learn How to Make a DIY Winter Checkers Game that is not only beautiful but creates a great way to pass long winter days.
- Friendship bracelets have made a huge comeback in the middle school set, learn How To Make Winter Friendship Bracelet Craft For Tweens.
Finally, look how to make this beautiful icicle winter swag.
Beautiful Icicle Swag Craft
You will need:
- White buttons, various sizes
- ⅛” white or cream ribbon
- Hot glue
- White or cream yarn
First, cut a piece of yarn the length you would like your swag to be.
You might first determine where you want to hang it- on the mantle or across a window to decide on its length.
Cut ribbon into various 6”- 10” lengths, cut as many as you would like to have for your swag.
If you lay them out on the yarn you can determine how far apart you would like them.
And how many you need.
Lay out your ribbons, leaving enough room for each to place your buttons between them.
Set buttons out in the order you would like, large to small until you are satisfied. Leave about ¾” at the top without buttons.
If you are using very small buttons, you may want to taper your ribbons at the end so they are hidden behind the buttons.
Once you like your layout, run hot glue along half of the ribbon and transfer buttons from beside it directly to the glue on the ribbons.
Allow the glue to harden completely.
Flip each button icicle over and fold back the piece at the top to hot glue into a place where you would like it on the yarn length.
You want the folded-over piece to be shorter than the top button so trim it if needed so that it doesn’t show.
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