The switch from fall to winter can be very unclear, especially living in the Midwest. I know that when I was a student, I considered the season to be winter as soon as the first snowfall began. However, that is not always true! In fact, some of our schools here in Springfield have already had snow days this year, and it’s still technically fall until December 21st.
It’s truly felt like winter for several weeks. The season will soon be in full swing, and we need to be ready for it!
So how do we teach the seasonal changes to our little ones? One of my favorite songs to prepare children for winter is “Winter’s On the Way”.
In fact, I love this song so much that I’ve also talked about it in a previous blog post! “Winter’s on the Way” identifies all of the things that happen as the world around us starts to look like winter, but it’s still fall. Winter doesn’t start until the end of December.
By the time you are reading this blog, it may already be winter! I am so looking forward to using the song “Winter’s Here” with my students throughout the next several weeks.
It seems like the biggest change that comes with winter is how cold it gets! “Winter’s Here” helps children determine what to wear when going outside and how to stay warm. I will be pairing it with visuals to further assist my students. A sound effect and action when singing “brr” will also go a long way in keeping them engaged. It’s so cold, maybe it’s best to stay inside!
Another one of my favorite winter songs is “Must Be Winter”.
We have been using this song in our Listen & Learn early childhood classes, and it has been a hit! Similarly to “Winter’s Here”, this song identifies things that we should be ready for in the winter season.
Another great thing about this song is that the repetition in the chorus provides multiple opportunities for engagement by pausing at “must be ____” and letting the students fill in the blank. This song is very catchy and definitely gets stuck in my head!
How do you educate your little ones about the seasonal changes of winter? Let us know your favorite winter songs in the comments!
