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20 Fun and Simple Winter Activities for Families

One of our family goals has always been to make the most of the family time we have available. It’s not about how much time we have but instead what we do with that time. As winter sets in it’s really tempting to not do much but over the last few years we’ve tried to change that and make sure that even when we really don’t feel like it, we are getting out or spend the time with the kids doing something together. Here’s our list of 20 Fun and Simple Winter Activities for Families that we have been enjoying and I hope you will too.

girl sledging one of the 20 fun indoor and outdoor winter activities on our Family Bucket List

So go ahead and check out these fun winter activities for kids that families will love too.

Winter Snow Activities for Families

Get outside and enjoy a Winter Wonderland with these fun family winter activities will love in the snow and ice. Just because it’s cold weather and what seems like a long winter it shouldn’t stop you having fun as a family.

1. Build a Snowman

Fun snowman-themed crafts, learning activities and recipes ideal for toddlers and preschoolers to do this winter or Christmas time.

Even with the tiniest amount of snow, my kids want to build a snowman. We’ve built them inside in a tub and out in the garden. They’ve joined with friends to build them and we’ve had our dog steal the carrot noses as well.

2. Make Snow Angels

Laying down in the snow is always fun and making snow angles has been a highlight for the kids anytime we have had snow.

3. Have a Snowball Fight

family having fun together in the winter with a simple winter activity snowball fights

After the snow last winter we discovered that our youngest has a great aim and after teaching the kids how to make good “soft” snowballs without the ice it was great fun to mount an attack. Parents vs Kids and then our favourite, girls vs boys.

4. Make Snow Ice-Cream

Find some clean snow and use it to create some snow ice-cream. Add some vanilla flavouring and it will taste fantastic.

5. Paint the Snow

Get out the squirty bottles – add in some water and food colouring and get drawing. We added spray bottles as well and have great fun turning the snow into a rainbow.

6. Go Sledging

Picture of a young girl sledging in the snow

Whether you have a sledge of your own or use a bin liner finding a hill however big or small and going down it is one of the best family activities to enjoy in the snow.

7. Build a Snow Fort

One of the memories that sticks in my mind from my childhood is the year we had enough snow to build a snow fort – it was more igloo than fort but the kids from the neighbourhood and our parents all got together and built it together. A community effort that 3 of us could sit in at once. I look forward to the day when we have enough snow that I can do this with my kids as well.

8. Head out on a Winter Walk

Wrap up warm and brave the snow, wind and rain and head out in the fresh air. Seeing the seasons change in front of your eyes as you walk the same route regularly is a lot of fun. Why not pick up some nature finds whilst you are there and use them for one of the activities for you and the kids to do together later on.

Winter Sports for Families

It’s a great time of the year to give some winter sports a try and you don’t even really need the snow to do it. If you have then it’s a real bonus so either try one of these fun winter activities if it’s new or pick it up again now that it’s winter time.

9. Give Skiing a Go

Why should you and your kids enroll in ski school on your next family ski trip the hidden benefits of tutoring for all the family

Having skied most of my life I can tell you that there isn’t anything better than heading down a slope. My husband disagrees and says that you need to have a snowboard. But, you don’t need to head to the mountains to give skiing a go this winter find an indoor snow centre or dry ski slope and have fun getting your ski legs or snowboard pose right.

10. Go Ice-Skating

try ice-skating this winter with the kids a fun family activity to do

Just like skiing why not find an ice-skating rink near you and give it a go. It’s a little easier and if you’ve had a go on roller skates then you are almost there already. Wrap up warm though because even indoors skating rinks are cold and make sure you have good gloves on to protect your fingers from the ice.

family activity winter bucket list 20 simple ideas to spend time together as a family

Indoor Activities for Families this Winter

After you’ve braved the cold there’s still lots of fun to be had indoors this winter as a family as you check off these family activities on our Winter Bucket List.

11. Play Board Games

spend time as a family playing board games in the winter indoors

We buy a new board game for the kids as a join Christmas Present every year so winter evenings once it’s dark we sit down and sometimes play these games. From Scrabble to Monopoly or an easier connect four it’s a great way to spend time together as a family and yes it gets a little competitive but it’s all good fun.

12. Cook Together

Whether you make cookies or try a new recipe for a family meal. Get everyone in the kitchen and cooking together.

A simple recipe for making pizza dough - so easy that kids can make it themselves. Use your bread machine to get delicious pizza dough perfect for pizza night that the family can enjoy.

You could join our family this year trying one new recipe or meal idea a week that the kids, my husband and I make together and sit down to eat as a family.

13. Feed the Birds

Step by step guide to making suet balls with kids, a fun and essential winter wildlife activity for nature study and kindness challenges.

Wherever you live it’s possible to feed the birds. You can either make your own bird feed or buy it and put it out. Then why not join in with one of the Big Bird Counts organised in the winter months in the UK and USA.

14. Do a Jigsaw Puzzle

Buy a puzzle and a puzzle roll mat and use the dinner table for more than just dinner. You can get puzzles that are 3D if you want more of a challenge or why not buy a huge puzzle and do it together.

15. Make and Drink Real Hot Chocolate

5 Hot Cocoa Recipes - winter warmers for Moms and Kids including a Frozen Themed Hot Chocolate

Spend some time to make some real hot cocoa and enjoy it together. Check out our recipes for Hot Cocoa that the kids and you will love to make this winter.

16. Make Soup

As well as the hot chocolate another winter favourite is soup. There are so many different types that you can make it’s one of our favourites to enjoy especially if we’ve come in from a winter walk or playing in the snow.

Check out these Rainy Day Soup Recipes which are perfect for warming you up from the inside this season.

17. Make Winter Decorations

Full step-by-step instructions on how to dry your own whole oranges to create natural Christmas decorations for the home.

The house can look really bare now that the Christmas Decorations have been removed. So why not decorate for winter.

Make some paper snowflakes or even dry some orange slices, or whole oranges and use these around the home.

18. Plant Bulbs Inside

You don’t have to wait for spring for Spring Flowers you can plant some bulbs inside and nurture them and then they will appear much earlier than the ones in the ground.

If you start in September next year and stagger the plantings you could end up with fresh spring flowers all the way through the winter.

19. Create a Winter Nature Table

We have always had a small nature table at home with the kids. It gets added to from our walks and things we find.

It doesn’t have to be big. Ours is a tray and we have the bulbs that we grow indoors over the winter with it too.

20. Have a Movie Night or Afternoon

Pick of the best Netflix movies to watch on a Rainy Day with Kids that you will all enjoy. From classics to more recent these will brighten your day.

If the wind is howling grab some popcorn and snuggle up on the sofa.

Check out our favourite Rainy Day Movies perfect for Winter and Snow days as well.

Don’t Forget to Pin This to Come and Find Easily Again

20 simple winter activities indoors and out for families to do together this year

Author
Cerys Parker

Cerys is a marine biologist, environmental educator, teacher, mum, and home educator from the UK. She loves getting creative, whether it is with simple and easy crafts and ideas, activities to make learning fun, or delicious recipes that you and your kids can cook together you'll find them all shared here on Rainy Day Mum.

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