40 Screen-Free Wintertime Activities For Kids

Homeschool life during wintertime can often feel slow, unorganized, and downright lazy! For our family, we usually take a break from Christmas week until early January. Some days I am not even sure what day of the week it is!

We are out of routine, with numerous events happening around Christmas, and our house isn’t quite the same. 

This often leads to extra TV time. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good Christmas movie marathon and bible-focused shows during the sweet Christmas season, but sometimes one show turns into 5, and then the TV ends up staying on all day. 

My kids can easily get sucked into hours of TV time, and so we have to be intentional about turning it off and finding other ways to spend our time. 

Going outdoors is always my go-to, but it’s not always feasible during winter, especially with littles. 

If you live in a colder climate, I know there are challenges due to the weather, so there are plenty of indoor activities on this list, too!

Below are 40 screen-free activities for your kids this winter!

Outdoor Winter Adventures:

• Snow play – snow angels, snowman making, snowball fights
• Hiking
• Winter scavenger hunt – Check out this nature journal to add extra learning opportunities
• Spotting animal tracks
• Identify native winter plants – use a portable microscope to enhance your findings (we love the clarity of this one)
• Learn how to use a compass
• Ice Experiments- Observe ice formations, create freezing bubbles

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Indoor Crafts and Creativity:

• Make homemade Christmas cards or Valentines
• Learn to knit or sew
• Learn to use clay to make pottery items
• Watercolor paintings
• Build bird feeders
• DIY beeswax candle making
• Make homemade bars of soap

These make for great learning opportunities for fabric and yarn measurements, patterns, and using various crafting and building supplies.

In the kitchen:

• Bake sourdough bread from scratch – my favorite is a jalapeno cheddar loaf!
• Bake treats for neighbors and friends
• Learn how to decorate cookies with icing
• Winter etiquette tea party with themed snacks

These are great opportunities for learning measurements, weights, and etiquette!

Winter STEM activities:

• Learn how to make ice lanterns
• Discover how salt affects ice
• Start a rock collection and do rock tumbling
• Build a marble run – this glow-in-the-dark set is so fun!
• Build a winter LEGO city

Cozy at home:

• Create a cozy reading nook
• Fort building
• Make a seasonal reading list with rewards for finishing books
• Family slumber party with snacks

Aim for a cozy environment that lends to bonding time, family conversations, and memory building!

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Physical activities:

• Take up ice skating
• Find indoor courts for basketball and pickleball
• Join a gym with childhood classes
• Indoor swimming
• Find an open mat day at a local gymnastics gym

Family games and fun:

• Learn new card games
• Make up your own game show
• Play the floor is lava throughout the house
• Set up an obstacle course
• Indoor scavenger hunt
• Make a family photo album or scrapbook
• Puzzles, this wooden shapes set is perfect for littles
• Discover creative storytelling, including puppets

These were my 40 screen-free activity ideas for kids this winter!

I’d love to hear your family’s favorite screen-free activity in the comments. Bonus points if they involve an educational element 😉

In the journey with you,