Books and Giggles
Winter kids activities & crafts
Inside: This free printable Valentine’s Day sight word spinner activity helps children to learn any sight words in an engaging and enjoyable way. Valentine season is upon us again and in our house, that means candy and baking! My children love to share their love with their friends with a little something sweet. I designed…
Inside: This polar bear sight word activity uses an editable free printable so that you can use your own word list, or even work on just the alphabet. With the winter weather keeping a lot of us indoors, now is a great time to explore some winter-themed activities. This cute polar bear “fishing” game is…
Inside: This free printable winter vs summer sorting activity helps children understand the differences between these seasons, exploring the weather, clothing, and activities for each season. Most of the kids in my life love Summer! Who wouldn’t? The weather is warm, the sun is shining and drinking ice-cold lemonade every day is a must. But…
Inside: this hot chocolate letter sounds activity will warm up your winter literacy centers and small groups! Nothing beats a warm mug of hot cocoa on a cold wintry day… except maybe a mug of cocoa with marshmallows! We’ve been all about hot chocolate here lately. My kids each have a special cocoa mug that…
Inside: a free printable winter letter tracing activity for preschoolers, with three ways to play. If you’ve been teaching your kids about polar bears, they’ll quickly recognize how silly these scarf-wrapped ice skating polar bears are. In fact, these friendly polar bears inspired me to make this winter letter tracing activity to share with you…
Inside: These arctic animal alphabet worksheets for dot markers include fun facts about each animal for grownups to read aloud to little learners. Whether you’re teaching about lots of different arctic animals, or just one in particular, these free arctic animal alphabet worksheets will keep children engaged. What Animals Are Included? This free set of…
Inside: this printable penguin craft for kids features a dad hiding a baby chick in his brood pouch. Kids can cut out and color this fun interactive winter craft. There’s a scene I love in every penguin documentary and movie I’ve ever watched. It’s where a father penguin stands up to reveal a baby chick…
Inside: This preschool snowman craft is made with a surprising ingredient that gives it a fun texture and helps it look extra snowy! We almost never get snow here, but when we do, practically the first thing my kids want to do is build a snowman. It might be my fault. A few years ago,…
Inside: this free printable Christmas name tracing activity motivates children to practice writing their name and letters. What little Santa believer doesn’t want to pretend to help Old St. Nick write out gift tags? Today I’m sharing a quick free printable to help YOU fit in some holiday name tracing practice with your littles. Christmas…
Inside: how to make popsicle stick arctic animal crafts. Make a cute arctic fox, polar bear, or snowy owl using the free printable template. We’ve finally been having some winter weather here, and it makes me want to break out the wintertime crafts! Arctic Animal Crafts Today I have a brand new set of arctic…
Inside: These free printable gingerbread playdough mats provide a playful experience with sequencing, a valuable early literacy skill. Every year at the holidays we make gingerbread playdough here – it’s turned into a tradition here. I made up the batch shown here to try out the two new gingerbread playdough mats I made for you….
Inside: This penguin mitten craft is simple enough for preschoolers and includes a template to make prep super easy for you too. We painted a mitten and turned it into a penguin for this cute paper craft. The thumb makes it look like he’s waving his flipper! This mitten craft would be a sweet choice…
Inside: This list of Gingerbread Man books is organized by grade and listed in pairs or groups of stories that are great to teach side by side. We’re a little gingerbread crazy here. Every year we like to make gingerbread playdough in December. I also love that there are so many Gingerbread Man stories out…
This Stone Soup activity is a fun and delicious science experiment to pair with the classic folktale. You can do this with any age kids, but my focus here is on how you’d do it with preschoolers or kindergartners. I have a weakness for soup. Vegetable soup, chicken noodle, cream of tomato, and my favorite, tortilla soup –…
Inside: The Mitten activities to go with the picture book by Jan Brett. Includes crafts, printable resources, games and more for preschool, kindergarten, and elementary students. Raise your hand if you love Jan Brett! Her now-classic version of The Mitten is a favorite classroom read aloud every winter. This cozy picture book is perfect for…
Inside: A free printable sight word activity that goes with the book The Mitten by Jan Brett. (Disclosure: Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.) If your students…
Inside: 10 winter books for preschoolers that they’ll love and you’ll adore reading aloud There are so many lovely children’s books about winter. As I put together this list, I included some of my all-time favorite picture books. I also found you a great selection of newer titles that I think you’ll love. Pair your…
Inside: Ways to incorporate wintertime fun into CVC activities for PreK and kindergarten. This time of year means snow, sleds, and hot cocoa — so why not use those ideas to add some winter fun into your CVC activities! When it comes to teaching CVC words, engagement is key. 6 CVC Activities to Try This…
This free printable preschool Valentine activity is lots of fun! Your little letter learners can help the bee find hearts, flowers, and honey while practicing uppercase-lowercase matching. It’s an easy, engaging addition your Valentine’s Day literacy activities. Preschool Valentine Activity These adorable Valentine’s Day bees are as sweet as honey! I was excited to use…
Inside: how to make a popsicle stick unicorn craft with kids (Disclosure: Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.) I’m super excited about this cute unicorn craft I…
Inside: a paper Christmas tree craft inspired by the story North Pole Ninjas. (Disclosure: Books and Giggles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.) I lay half awake Saturday morning, listening…
I’m SO excited to share this adorable mini eraser Christmas tree with you! I think it would look super cute in a school office or on a teacher’s desk. Mini Eraser Christmas Tree Mini-erasers. ::swoon:: When I bought this little $3 tree at Target recently, I couldn’t resist also picking up a couple new bags of…
Inside: 30 holiday books for preschoolers, annotated and sorted into categories for you. Whether you’re looking for a new title to read aloud to your class or to your own children at bedtime, I hope this list will help you find exactly what you’re looking for. Update Fall 2023 – I moved the “new” books…
Today I’m sharing another fun Christmas tree craft with you. Just like the cupcake liner Christmas tree craft for kids that I shared recently, this craft is simple enough for preschoolers, but older kids can enjoy it too by adding more detailed decorations. Bump Up the Learning You can also make this Christmas tree craft educational:…