Feed Me Books Friday: Getting Creative in the Snow

Friday, January 28, 2011


Just Enough to Enjoy













Snow is a rarity in these parts – we usually see just a dusting or two each winter on our lawn. So, when it arrives we make the most of it. During our recent snow-play we made a snow family in the yard. It included snow-mom, snow-dad, snow-b, snow-t, snow-grandma, and snow-papa. We even added a snow-dog (not ours, grandma’s). By the time we completed all the snow-bodies, there was a lot of grass peeking through in the yard. Thanks to the scarcity of snow, there was still an abundance of natural plant material with which to create faces and features for our family. Eyes were made from leaves, rocks, and seed pods. Noses were apple slices. Smiles were various shaped sticks. We even found a couple larger leaves for the dog’s ears.


Inspiration and Cool Collages
SnowballsWe were inspired by – but didn’t come close to the coolness of – Snowballs, by Lois Ehlert. We’ve had this book out from the library since December and we’ve enjoyed it in a variety of ways. The illustrations are the beautiful part of the book, collage style layering of flat and three-dimensional materials. The simple story is the creation and subsequent melting of a snow family, but the enjoyment and cognitive challenges come from closely examining each snow-person. The accessories are a combination of natural objects, household items, and multicultural tidbits. A photo spread at the end identifies each of them and also allows for seek-and-find style reading. Ehlert also includes a few facts about snow in final pages, as well as some photos of real snowmen. Enjoy the attractive illustrations, challenges little ones to find certain objects or identify where they might come from, or let Ehlert be your muse and make a snowman in your backyard or as a collage. The inspiration is endless!


Appropriate for toddlers, preschoolers, primary grades.


What’s your favorite creative item for decorating snowmen (real or on paper)?

 
My apologies to those who were looking to link up last night – this house is still pretty germy and routines are disrupted. It can’t linger too much longer, can it?


7 comments:

Natalie PlanetSmarty January 28, 2011 at 10:12 PM  

How cool that you could use natural materials for your snowmen. We don't get snow here, so our snowmen are all playdoh, with buttons and pipe cleaners.

Laura at Library of Clean Reads January 29, 2011 at 5:30 AM  

Snow is not a rarity where we live here in Montreal. My kids use anything they can get their hands on to decorate their snowman but they prefer toboganning and building snowhouses (digging a hole into a large mound of compact snow)rather than snowmen.

Tracey M. January 29, 2011 at 2:28 PM  

I love playing in the snow with my son! The snow-doggie by Grandma was really cute. We keep finding good winter/snow books too. This week it was Snow Wonder.

Love and Lollipops January 30, 2011 at 4:49 AM  
This comment has been removed by the author.
Love and Lollipops January 30, 2011 at 4:52 AM  

Hi Anne

We don't get snow here in Cape Town, but usually mid July, snow falls in the town of Ceres, about an hour-and-a-half away. I have only been twice to see it and all I can say is that I got really really cold and didn't last being outside the car for very long :)!

This book looks really nice...I'm definitely going to try and find it at my library!

Take care and hope the germs pack there bags and leave soon!!

Georgia

January 30, 2011 4:49 AM

Tammy @ she wears flowers February 1, 2011 at 7:44 AM  

I LOVE this Lois Ehlert book so much! It is perfect for snowy day project ideas!

jeannine: waddlee-ah-chaa February 8, 2011 at 7:30 PM  

Wow, you enjoyed much more snow than us! We could only make a miniature snowman. But he was very cute. :)

We are big Lois Ehlert fans in this house. We also give a big thumbs-up for snowballs.

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