January is the perfect month to ignite preschoolers’ imaginations with wintry magic, creative crafts, and engaging activities.
Whether it’s exploring Arctic animals, celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day, or experimenting with snow and ice, there’s something to captivate every young mind.
This comprehensive guide is brimming with hands-on fun, sensory delights, and learning opportunities tailored to the winter season.
From storytime adventures to winter-themed yoga, these activities will inspire curiosity and bring warmth to chilly days. Dive into these exciting themes and watch your preschool classroom light up with joy and creativity!
January Preschool Themes, Crafts, and Activities
Winter Wonderland Theme
Snowy Day Storytime
Read “The Snowy Day” by Ezra Jack Keats. Discuss the story with children and encourage them to share what they love about snowy days.
Cotton Ball Snowman Craft
Provide construction paper, glue, and cotton balls for kids to create their own fluffy snowmen. Add buttons, ribbons, and other materials for decoration.
Winter Sensory Play
Create a sensory bin filled with fake snow, plastic snowflakes, and small winter animal toys. Let children explore textures and pretend-play scenarios.
Snowflake Symmetry Art
Fold white paper and let children cut out their own unique snowflake designs. Discuss how snowflakes are symmetrical but each one is unique.
Arctic Animals Theme
Learning About Polar Bears
Share fun facts about polar bears, such as how they stay warm and hunt for food. Use simple language and visuals to engage preschoolers.
Penguin Waddle Race (Physical Activity)
Set up a simple obstacle course where kids hold a soft ball between their knees and waddle like penguins. It’s a delightful way to get them moving!
Iceberg Jump Game: Gross Motor Activity
Cut out “icebergs” from foam mats or paper and scatter them across the floor. Let kids jump from one to the next without “falling into the icy water.”
Arctic Animal Yoga for Kids
Guide children through yoga poses inspired by Arctic animals, like “Polar Bear Pose” (child’s pose) and “Seal Stretch” (cobra pose).
Exploring the Northern Lights: Chalk and Black Paper Art
Provide black construction paper and colorful chalk for kids to draw swirling patterns representing the Northern Lights. Discuss this natural phenomenon.
Snow and Ice Experiments
Experiment: Salt and Ice
Demonstrate how salt affects the melting of ice by sprinkling it on ice cubes. Let children observe the changes and discuss the science behind it.
Ice Cube Building Challenge
Let kids stack and build with ice cubes to see what they can create before the cubes melt.
Snowy Slime Making Session
Mix white glue, shaving cream, and contact solution to create fluffy snow slime. Add glitter or small foam balls for extra texture.
Indoor Winter Fun
Indoor Snowball Fight: Soft Ball Play
Use soft balls or rolled-up socks to have a safe indoor snowball fight. Set rules to keep it fun and organized.
Building “Warm Homes”: Blocks and Blankets
Encourage kids to build cozy homes using blocks, pillows, and blankets. They can imagine themselves as animals staying warm in winter.
Winter Sports Day: Fun Olympic-Themed Activities
Organize mini-games like “bobsledding” (cardboard boxes) or “curling” (bottle caps and targets).
Winter-Themed Puzzle Day
Bring out puzzles featuring winter scenes or animals for a quiet, focused activity.
January’s Special Days
Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day with Preschoolers
Share age-appropriate stories about Martin Luther King Jr. and discuss concepts like kindness and fairness.
“Dream Hands” Craft: What’s Your Dream?
Trace children’s hands on paper and have them decorate with their dreams and goals. Display the hands as a “dream tree.”
Peaceful Problem Solving: Role-Play Scenarios
Set up simple scenarios where children practice resolving conflicts kindly, reinforcing the values Martin Luther King Jr. stood for.
Making “Unity Wreaths” with Handprints
Use handprint cutouts in various colors to create wreaths symbolizing unity and togetherness.
Creative Free Play Ideas
Winter Wonderland Sensory Bin
Fill a bin with fake snow, cotton balls, and winter animal toys for imaginative play.
“Snowstorm Yoga” Guided Movement
Lead children through a yoga flow imagining a snowstorm, with movements like “swirling winds” and “falling snow.”
Painting with Winter Colors: Blues, Whites, and Silvers
Provide paint in cool, wintry shades for open-ended art projects.
Interactive “Arctic Freeze” Dance Game
Play music and let children dance, but when you shout “freeze,” they must stop like frozen ice statues.
DIY Winter Puppets for Storytelling
Help children craft puppets from socks or paper bags to retell winter-themed stories.
Winter Wonderland Nature Walk
- Materials: None (optional: a nature journal or camera for documenting observations)
- Instructions: Take the children on a winter walk outside to explore the winter landscape. If there’s snow, they can make footprints, examine snowflakes, or collect pinecones and twigs. Ask them to look for signs of winter, such as animal tracks, icicles, or trees with bare branches.
- Discussion: Ask open-ended questions like, “What do you notice about the trees in winter?” or “What do you think animals do in the snow?” Let children share their discoveries and make observations in a nature journal or take photos.
- Learning: This activity promotes outdoor exploration, sensory awareness, and an understanding of the winter season.
Igloo Building Challenge
- Materials: Mini marshmallows, toothpicks, or clay (for older kids), construction paper, and markers.
- Instructions: Challenge the children to build their own mini igloos using marshmallows and toothpicks. Alternatively, they can create a paper igloo by drawing and cutting out shapes of ice blocks and assembling them to form an igloo.
- Discussion: As they build, talk about how real igloos are made and why they are great for staying warm in snowy conditions. Ask them, “What shapes do you need to make an igloo stable?” or “How can we make our igloo stronger?”
- Learning: This activity promotes creativity, teamwork, and basic understanding of structure and engineering concepts.
Wrapping Up the Month
Reflecting on Favorite Activities
Ask children to share their favorite January activities and what they learned. Document their responses for parents.
Creating a January Memory Book
Compile photos, drawings, and crafts into a keepsake book to remember the month.
Preparing for February Fun
Introduce themes for the upcoming month to build excitement and anticipation.
With these fun and creative January preschool themes, crafts, and activities, your classroom will be buzzing with joy, learning, and winter magic all month long!
