Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? by Bill Martin Jr. 

Activity 1 – Feed The Snowman

Materials: Baby bottles, cotton balls, tongs

How to Play: Create a “hungry snowman” by removing a baby bottle’s lid. Explain to the child that the snowman is hungry and needs to be fed. Using tongs (or fingers for younger toddlers), the child will pick up cotton balls (representing snowballs) and carefully place them inside the bottle.

Skills Practiced:

•  Fine Motor Skills – Strengthens finger muscles needed for writing and self-care tasks (like buttoning a coat).
•  Hand-Eye Coordination – Helps children develop precision in grasping and releasing objects.
•  Problem-Solving – Encourages children to figure out how to fit the cotton balls into the bottle.
•  Early Math Concepts – Introduces counting as they drop each “snowball” inside.

Activity 2 – Fake Snow Sensory Activity

Materials: Baking soda, white hair conditioner, tub or tray, small animal figurines

How to Play: Mix baking soda with a small amount of white hair conditioner to create a cool, fluffy “snow.” Let children explore the texture with their hands, scoop and mold it into little snow piles, or play with small toy animals in the snow.

Skills Practiced:

• Sensory Exploration – Engages the sense of touch, promoting cognitive and emotional growth.
• Language Development – Encourages new vocabulary words like “cold,” “soft,” “squishy,” and “smooth.”
• Imaginative Play – Encourages storytelling and creative thinking as children play with the animals.
• Science Concepts – Introduces early STEM learning by mixing materials and observing changes.

Activity 3 – Snowball Toss

Materials: Soft fake snowballs, bucket or basket

How to Play: Set up a bucket or basket a few feet away. Encourage children to throw the fake snowballs into the bucket, trying to make as many in as possible. Older toddlers can take turns tossing the snowballs back and forth with a partner.

Skills Practiced:

• Gross Motor Skills – Develops arm strength, coordination, and balance.
• Hand-Eye Coordination – Improves aiming and accuracy.
• Social Skills – Encourages turn-taking, teamwork, and friendly competition.
• Counting & Math – Helps children practice counting how many snowballs they get into the bucket.

Activity 4 – Winter Wonderland Painting

Materials: Q-tips, white paint, Elmer’s glue, blue construction paper

How to Play: Mix white paint with the glue. Give your child a piece of blue construction paper and paint. Using Q-tips, they will create dots to mimic falling snow. The paint and glue mixture will dry slightly raised, creating texture.

Skills Practiced:

• Fine Motor Skills – Strengthens pincer grasp and hand control, helping with future writing skills.
• Creativity & Self-Expression – Encourages children to create their own winter scene.
• Sensory Exploration – Engages touch and sight as children explore textures of glue and paint.
• Pre-Writing Skills – Encourages the use of small hand movements that will help with writing and drawing in the future.