Are you looking for fun and easy ways to teach preschool hibernation science activities and resources that really nurture learning? Also, look at my page How to Homeschool Preschool for more ideas.
Keep on reading for a host of wonderful ideas.
You know that hands-on activities are always my go-to for teaching.
But especially with younger children they need play learning.
Play learning incorporates sensory experiences, builds problem solving, and creates positive learning experiences.
When many animals disappear in winter, where do they go?
This is a great nature topic for preschoolers, to learn about hibernation.
Also, add some fun books.
HIBERNATION AND MIGRATION BOOKS FOR KIDS
We love living books so I add them to our reading list when I can find them.
Then some of my kids love reference books too.
6 Hibernation and Migration Books for Kids Who Love to Read and Be Read To
Add these fun books to your home library about animals that hibernate or migrate.
Bird migration.
Story of a goose family.
Everybody at the station! It’s time for winter hibernation! The sweet rhyming text of this book will calm even the most rambunctious kids and have them dreaming about what it’s like to hibernate. Young readers will be soothed and delighted as this story introduces them to different types of hibernating animals. The creatures on the train are preparing to snuggle into sleep, although with a passenger list that includes chipmunks, bears, snakes, hedgehogs, groundhogs, frogs, turtles, mice, bats, and more, there’s a lot of noise! Will the hibernating critters ever get to sleep? Take a trip to Hibernation Station to find out!
A chill is in the air and Bear knows it is time for her winter nap. But first, she must tell Snail. And Snail must tell Skunk. And Skunk must tell Turtle. Each animal who tries to put off going to sleep just a little longer sees, smells, hears, or tastes the signs of the impending season. Finally, Ladybug rushes off to tell Bear--already asleep in her cave--the exciting news.
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.
Have you ever seen a butterfly in the snow? Probably not. Butterflies can't survive cold weather, so when winter comes, many butterflies fly to warmer places. They migrate. Woodchucks don't like cold weather either, but they don't migrate; they hibernate. Woodchucks sleep in their dens all winter long. How do these and other animals handle the cold and snow of winter?
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 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.
WHAT IS HIBERNATION
Hibernation is a special kind of deep sleep that certain animals do to survive the cold winter months.
When animals hibernate, their body temperature drops way down, their breathing slows way down, and they go into a deep sleep.
This helps them save energy and make it through the winter without having to find food.
These creatures usually start preparing for hibernation in the fall by eating tons of food to build up their fat stores.
They also find a safe and cozy place to sleep, like a cave or a burrow.
Once they’re all settled in, they will sleep for most of the winter.
They might wake up every once in a while, for a quick snack or drink, but they’ll mostly just be snoozing until spring arrives.
When spring finally comes around, hibernating animals will wake up and start eating and moving around again.
They’ll be hungry after their long sleep, so they’ll often start looking for food right away.
Hibernation is an incredible way for animals to survive the winter.
It’s like they have their own built-in sleeping bags and fat stores that act as fully stocked refrigerators to live off.
Animals that Hibernate
- Snakes
- Bats
- Deer Mice
- Groundhogs
- Hedgehogs
- Box Turtles
- Bumblebees
- Fat Tailed Dwarf Lemur
- Chipmunks
- Ground Squirrels
- Ladybugs
- Marmots
- Skunks
- Raccoons
- Woodchucks
Next, look at more preschool hibernation science activities.
MORE PRESCHOOL HIBERNATION SCIENCE ACTIVITIES
- Make A Paper Bag Bear Den for Small World Play and you not only have an art project but also a really cute cave to add to blocks or sensory bins.
- Young preschoolers will love this Animals In Winter Hibernation Sensory Activity.
- Paper plate crafts are very inexpensive and can be so cute like the Hibernating Bear Paper Plate Craft And Free Template.
- Hibernation Habitat Process Art.
- Some bats migrate and some hibernate, make this cute Fun Bat Anatomy Toilet Paper Roll Craft | 8 Bat Science Activities Preschool.
- Check out this Over and Under The Snow Activities for a Free Literature Unit Study while they are also learning basic nature science concepts.
An invitation to play is a wonderful activity that encourages a child to expand their thinking and creativity.
Children play in a new way, allowing for open-ended play with little to no direction.
HIBERNATION SCIENCE INVITATION TO PLAY
After reading a book on hibernation, watching a video, or completing another activity your child will love diving into creating hibernation habitats for their little animals.
Or they might build a bridge for them to cross, sort the materials, or create a maze- all wonderful exploration ideas!
Grab a divided tray and let’s get started.
If you don’t have one on hand you can find several sizes and styles at Dollar Tree.
If you want something a little more organic and durable these wooden options are beautiful.
You will need:
- A divided tray
- Fiber fill
- Toilet paper roll
- Small plastic animals that hibernate
- Clay or playdough
- Natural items-moss, twigs, bark, small rocks
First, gather as many natural materials as you can from the yard.
For example, sticks, twigs, rocks, large chunks of bark, leaves, and moss all make lovely natural habitat pieces.
I like to also include some small rocks or pebbles to use for building caves.
You will probably want to also include a few toys and household items like small plastic animals, cotton batting makes a wonderful layer of snow.
Also, an empty toilet paper tube can be colored like this to create a hollowed out log (you are not likely to find a miniature version in your yard).
I like to also include some clay whenever it is any kind of building invitation to play because it helps adhere things together in a non-permanent way.
PRESCHOOL INVITATION TO PLAY
You can use Play-Doh but I find that this Crayola air-dry clay is much stickier.
Lay out your items separated into your divided tray and don’t forget to include an on-theme book for them to reference IF they wish.
Start building the base of your cave and use clay as mortar to hold the rocks together.
Continue building up and around until you have it completed.
Don’t forget to make sure it is large enough for your animal to fit inside.
We used our colored toilet paper roll as a hollow log for our squirrel to curl up in for the winter and covered it in a layer of “snow”.
While platypuses do not hibernate for the winter they do go into a state called ‘torpor’ ( which has only been witnessed in captivity)for up to 6 days.
This is a great opportunity to discuss animals that do and do not hibernate and those that partially hibernate.
We tucked ours among some logs.
Let your child play as long as they like exploring, creating, and enjoying.
You may find that if you put it away a few days later and bring it back out with a few new pieces added into it it’ll be like a fresh activity all over again.
Can you spot our hibernating snake?
