Activities With 2 Year Olds in the Winter

Snow Angels

• A simple winter activity for toddlers is making snow angels. Make sure children are bundled up warmly with ski-type waterproof pants, coats, hats, gloves, and scarves to prevent frostbite and illness. Lead your child to a thick, clean patch of snow that you are certain has no sharp or rocky areas underneath. Have him lay flat on his back in the snow and move his arms up and down and legs inward and outward, sweeping the snow back and forth. Help the toddler stand back up to show the angel-shaped impression made in the snow.

Snow Sculpting

• Two year olds are often fascinated by zoo animals and they like playing with snow. You can keep a toddler entertained by sculpting a "snow zoo" with some of her favorite animals. A turtle is a recommended creature to start with because of its simple round shape. Help your child make a large mound of snow on the ground to form the turtle's shell and sculpt arms, legs, and a head. Your child can use her creativity to sculpt whatever zoo creatures she likes, or make up imaginary ones.

Snow Fort

• Building a snow fort is an activity that can be shared with two year olds but requires considerable adult participation and a heavy amount of snow. Find a clear, safe area with a large amount of snow. Have kids fill large buckets or containers with snow, packing it down tightly. Turn the buckets upside down to release the snow, making sure it retains the shape of the bucket, to create "bricks." Line the snow bricks up next to each other and carefully begin to stack more bricks on top of them to create the walls and roof of the snow fort. Once you have the basic foundation, toddlers can enjoy playing around and crawling in and out of the fort. For extra entertainment, build multiple snow forts and allow your children to dig tunnels in the snow from fort to fort. Never leave children unsupervised and be sure they are properly dressed for outdoor winter play.

Shaving Cream Snowmen

• When it's too cold to play outside, look for winter-themed activities you can do indoors. To create shaving cream snowmen, clear a large, flat surface like a kitchen table or counter top and let your child empty a couple of cans of shaving cream onto the area. He can build snowmen, animals, or anything he likes by gently sculpting and modeling figures with the shaving cream. This activity can get pretty messy, but is safe since shaving cream is essentially soap. Make sure your child doesn't get shaving cream in his eyes or mouth while playing.

Styrofoam Snowmen

• Another indoor winter activity simple enough for two year olds is making Styrofoam snowmen. Assist your toddler in sticking a toothpick halfway into a Styrofoam ball and then attach another ball to the exposed end of the toothpick by pressing it firmly down. Let your child stick pipe cleaners in the sides of the lower ball for arms, and use school glue or paste to add beads or buttons for eyes, nose and mouth. Toddlers often put things in their mouths, so be sure to never leave two year olds unsupervised when performing this activity.