Snow Day Activities

 5 Snow Day Activities to Keep Your Kids Entertained

Snow days are basically the best thing ever for kids. What’s not to love about a random day off from school? For parents, though, seeing their child’s school scroll by on the list of closures during the morning news isn’t always such an exciting experience. Having the kids home on short notice can be stressful for lots of reasons. For some parents, arranging childcare is a huge challenge. Even for stay-at-home parents, having the little ones home unexpectedly isn’t always easy. Don’t let the next snow day get you down. Prepare yourself by checking out these snow day activities to keep your kids entertained.

After a heavy snow, your kids will likely want to spend their morning sled riding or building snowmen. Once the chill sets in and they get tired of being outside, though, you can expect to listen to a chorus of “I’m bored” all afternoon. That is, unless you plan ahead and come up with some indoor activities in advance.

Activities for Snow Days

Bake Up Some Tasty Treats

Baking is always a fun way to warm up and pass the time when you are stuck indoors. Most kids love helping in the kitchen, and with proper supervision, baking is an activity that is fun (and rewarding) for kids of all ages.

There are all sorts of kid-friendly recipes for things like cookies, breads, cupcakes, etc. Pick out a few options and stock up on the supplies necessary to make them. Keep everything on hand and you’ll be prepared for the next snow day.

Baking with your kids is a great way to work on your holiday gift list, too. If a snow day falls prior to the holidays, spend the day making cookies and other goodies to share with your loved ones. The kids will have fun and you’ll get to check something off your holiday to-do list. Talk about a win-win!

Customize Clothing

Arts and crafts projects are the standard go-to when it comes to keeping kids entertained when they are stuck indoors. If you want to try something a bit different from the usual drawing, painting or stringing beads activities, though, consider stocking up on wholesale clothing. There are many ways to customize blank t-shirts and other apparel, and kids of all ages enjoy making their own wearable art.

Wholesale kids’ t-shirts are the perfect foundation for tie-dyeing, drawing, painting and much, much more. You can dye cotton t-shirts with food, use readily available dye kits, customize them with iron-on decals… The options are virtually endless.

Older tweens and teens can also use blank t-shirts and sweatshirts to make entirely new garments and accessories. They can transform t-shirts into purses, skirts, headbands and all sorts of other fun things. There are plenty of ways to give sweatshirts a makeover, too.

Build a Fort

Sometimes, the best activities are the tried and true classics. Chances are, you have your own happy memories of building a fort in your living room or bedroom when you were a kid. Why not help create those memories for your little ones, too?

You can keep things old school by building a fort by draping blankets over chairs and tables or making one out of a large cardboard box for a nostalgic feel. Or, if you want to be a bit more modern, there are now fort building kits that make things much easier. Whichever option you prefer, you and your kids will have a great time building and playing in a fort. You’ll also have a blast getting to see your little one’s imagination at work as they design their creation.

Read a Book Together

When the weather is cold and snowy and you are trapped indoors, you can escape to a place where the weather is a lot more pleasant (or simply doesn’t matter) by getting lost in a book. Consider picking up a few adventure books and tucking them away for the next snow day. Any genre works, but adventure books are great when you want to help your kids mentally escape for a little while.

Cuddle up on the couch with a soft, cozy blanket and read together. Put on your best performance to help your child feel like they are really in the story rather than just listening to it. You may find yourself getting lost in the book, too!

Have a Treasure Hunt

Keep a special toy or treat on hand to surprise your child with when they are home on a snow day. Hide it and then create clues that they need to follow in order to solve it. Riddles are great for older kids. For younger kids, each clue can be something simple, like a picture of where they need to go next.

Putting together this type of scavenger hunt does take a bit of time and planning. If you are running short on time, you can make it a simple game of “hot” and “cold” instead. Tell your child that you have hidden a surprise, and when they are getting closer to it, tell them that they’re getting “warmer.” Tell them they’re getting “colder” if they move farther away from it.

If you have older and younger kids, ask your older child to hide the prize and draw a map that their sibling will then use to find it. As you can tell, there are all sorts of ways to have an indoor treasure hunt. Get creative with it!

The Bottom Line

Keeping your kids entertained when they are stuck at home doesn’t have to be difficult. With a little bit of creativity, you can come up with all sorts of snow day activities that will pass the time and keep you from having to listen to whining, arguing, etc. Look at a snow day as an opportunity for making family memories instead of as a burden. Changing your perspective will make it way easier to have fun with these unexpected days off rather than dreading them.

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Healthy Family Advice

Can't We All Just Get Along?

The last few articles have been on the subject of mental health and the breakup of the family unit. As the family situation changes, so do the matters of family concern. Of course, how you deal with these changes affect the future mental health of your children, but don’t forget to take care of yourself. As mentioned in a previous article, “If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.” My advice is this, self-care is a key element to a happy, healthy family, but be careful, don't over do it.

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If you’ve come off a long-term, unhealthy relationship, chances are you’ve been neglecting self-care. Self-care is key to your happiness. Newly separated or divorced individuals might choose to jump out into the dating scene. At first, it's exciting and new. If you've been in a bad situation, going out on dates and having fun can feel like self-care, but you need to be careful that all that good time fun having doesn’t lead to an even more unhealthy rebound relationship. Just like our children, we need to make healthy choices.

Practice being alone. I can’t emphasize this enough. Spend time alone. As much time as it takes for you to get over the pain. And as much time as you need to grow as a person. Learn from your mistakes and take care of yourself.  As I age, I see intelligent women jumping into relationships. Perhaps, they’ve been a stay-at-home mom. Maybe they’ve never held a full-time job. Some never had the chance to go to college. They’ve never managed their own finances. Often, they feel like they just can’t handle the responsibilities of taking care of themselves and their children. So, they go out on a man hunt. The goal is to find a better man than the last one. Some are looking for a man to meet their financial expectations, others are looking for companionship, and some are looking for a father figure for their children. Whatever the reason, they jump into a relationship too soon. Been there done that. 

Healthy Family

I got married while still in college. It was okay. Just okay. I wanted to be happy, but we were young and a lot was missing in the relationship. At that point in my life, the idea of a wedding was more important than the idea of a marriage. We were friends and companions struggling to find common ground, but something was always missing. Both of us had placed our focus on gaining knowledge and prepping for a career and little attention was given to intimacy. As starving college students, there was no money for fun things and then we jumped into buying a house, and then another house, and then it all just got way too overwhelming. There was simply no fun to be had.

Eventually, we talked to friends, family, and clergy. We attended counseling. It all pointed to the same thing, we just didn’t have the same goals or the same outlook on life. We ended the relationship in an amicable fashion. And that’s when my real troubles started. I briefly dated, but playing the field has never been my thing. Dating in your late 20’s is an experience that I wouldn’t wish on anyone. Ugh. It’s a brave new world. With my thirtieth birthday looming over my head, I really wanted to settle down and start a family before it was too late. I had some great men to choose from, two were truly amazing with interesting careers. One was neither amazing, nor did he have a great career. He was lucky to hold down a job. But he had what I wanted. A little girl. My family doctor and the counselor both advised against any serious relationship or even dating after the first year of a breakup, but my biological clock was ticking. Tick tock. Having been told I likely could never have children, I jumped at the chance. 

However, that wasn’t the only thing. He was fun. Oh so fun! He loved to dance, hike, bike, play sports, cook, and clean. One day, he called me one of the “cools.” I had been feeling lost. I was never cool. I wanted to do all those things I felt I’d missed out on in high school and college. Except I didn’t. I was still that goody two shoes inside. His risky lifestyle stressed me out. We fought. Among other things, he drank. He was verbally, emotionally, and physically abusive. It was like a dark movie from one of those cable tv channels for women. That was my first rebound.

After that, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to pick myself up again. I had a lot of counseling. I saw a psychiatrist. I took various medications. Was I suicidal? Not really, but it seemed like life had gotten the best of me. I felt like a failure in every way imaginable. No kids, no career to speak of, and no real chance to recover from all the despair because, in my head, I was old. Oh, so old. I turned to online dating. It was uplifting to have so many men interested in dating me. It was also terrifying. That was the start of rebound number two. Not only did I not wait a year to date, in only a few short months I had moved in with a man and was pregnant. At the time, it seemed like he had everything I wanted. A good job, two kids, pets, a nice home. He was a widower and that (like the alcoholism before him) fulfilled my need for codependency. I had something to do, people to take care of, and dreams to fulfill. Except, we were less compatible than the previous rebound relationship. Shortly after my son was born, I became pregnant again.

Things weren’t ideal, but I always questioned myself. Why not? Maybe I was the problem. I should’ve been content. I was determined to make it work. I mean, after all, he wasn’t abusing me. He yelled a lot. It triggered old feelings from the previous relationship. I cried a lot. It made him mad. I cried more. It was an endless cycle. We barely knew each other. We met online. We were both lonely. As it came to be that he was my only friend for many years, we were really never friends. We both tried. The harder I tried, the more difficult it got. And now, there were kids involved. I didn’t want to break up the family unit. I didn’t want my kids to come from a broken home. Ugh, the damage I did to all of us by trying to stick this one out. We were the absolute opposite of compatible. I will spare you the gory details.

I had so many health issues. I spent months in bed, with nothing more to do than reflect on my past. I knew it had to end. But I was scared. Could I do it alone? Was I strong enough? I started stepping up my game, working harder from home, seeing various specialists and improving my health, and building credit. Once I knew what had to be done, I still wasn’t ready to do it. Things finally worked out in a way that made ending the relationship the most logical decision. It was difficult, but I didn’t need to seek counseling. I threw myself into my work, my writing, and the remodeling of my new house.

After years of thinking about it, deep down, I knew if I were ever to have another relationship again, I’d have to be strong. I’d have to take care of myself first, I’d need a break. I wrote down the pros and cons of dating. Months passed. I thought about what I wanted. What I needed, who I wanted and why. I realized I didn’t need a man to be happy. But I wanted that companionship that had eluded me for most of my life.

Why it's okay to Need a Man

It was always the same set of traits that had always led me to the same conclusion. But, I didn’t want to make the wrong choice with the right choice. So, naively, I  attempted to play the field again, but I didn’t date. I just talked. I talked to several old friends and acquaintances. This time no online dating, no strangers. I weaned them all out. I settled on one for an attempt at dating. We talked for weeks before meeting in person. I knew him from high school. He seemed to fit the criteria. But low and behold, it was a mistake. A big mistake, but one I wanted to cling to because I was sad and lonely. I had basically given up. I was about to turn fifty. There was no more time for mistakes. If I thought dating in my late twenties was hard - whoa. In your fifties, it’s a whole new frontier. Casual dating wasn’t an option for me. 

I took a few weeks to get myself together. I pulled out my list again, and this time, I realized what I always needed had always been there. Sometimes, you just need a friend.

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What are the Pros and Cons of Using iPads in the Classroom Today?

It's not always easy to motivate and engage children in a large classroom setting. Large spatial environments can distract some students and overwhelm others. Children can lose focus staring at other kids or at random objects in the classroom. All students learn curriculum at a different pace and academic level. Keeping instruction at the same level for every student can cause lower-performing students to get lost in the shuffle. On the other hand, the more academically advanced students can get held back by the rest of the class and become bored with the lessons, decreasing their motivation. Today, technology serves as one of the best ways to engage children at their personal skill level. A new trend in classrooms is teaching academic subjects using iPads. So, what are the Pros and Cons of Using iPads in the Classroom Today?

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iPads can make learning more simple than working on a laptop or desktop, but not everyone agrees that using iPads provide the best education for kids--and fulfill the needs of learning the curriculum and the content standards. We're sharing some pros and cons of using iPads in the classroom so you can decide for yourself.

Pros of Using iPads

Students Love Working on iPads

It's no secret that kids love technology. iPads in the classroom can engage even the most bored and distracted students.

Students Possess the Ability to Interact With Many Apps

The iPad interacts with a variety of apps. Software developers seem to have an app for everything from learning math to learning the weather.

Apps give students more choices for learning. New apps are readily available and improving with technology.

Tablets Can Work as a Second Computer Monitor

Today, students use their iPads as a second computer monitor through the functions of programs like Sidecar. Learn how to use Sidecar in this informative article.

Ebooks Serve the Same Value as Textbooks

Some people believe ebooks can replace textbooks You can always download ebooks if it's easier for your style of learning.

Students don't have to worry about bringing their textbooks from their lockers to class because all their ebooks can be stored in one place. This also solves the issue of kids forgetting to bring their textbooks. It also saves trees.

Great Learning Tool For Students With Disabilities 

The iPad has several handicap accessible applications to help struggling learners and disabled students, including apps created for students with cognitive and learning disabilities. 

iPads are Easier to Read Than Textbooks

Textbooks used year after year can become difficult to read. Students put marks in texts, underline, and highlight chapter sections. They often write notes in the margins that cover important text. This often makes the text unreadable. eBooks keep their original format.

Another advantage of using iPads is that students with visual problems can use accessibility tools such as bolding and enlarging the text.

iPads are Lightweight

In middle school and high school, students often need to carry heavy textbooks from class to class. The iPad is portabie and weighs much less than a textbook.

Other than textbooks, students need to carry binders, notebooks, calculators, and other educational tools in their backpacks. There's no need for students to cram all those educational materials into their book bags and break their backs when they could just carry an iPad.

Students are able to have all their learning materials on their iPads. This helps them stay organized and makes life easier on parents and guardians, too.

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Cons of Using iPads

Typing on iPads Can Be Frustrating for Kids

Typing on a computer keyboard is much easier and faster than typing on an iPad. It can be especially frustrating when kids need to create large documents. Even though some iPads have keyboards on them, using a computer keyboard is easier and faster.

One exception is that you can sync your iPad to an Apple wireless keyboard. This is a good idea if you plan to do much typing. However, not all schools have access to Apple wireless keyboards. The student may need to provide their own.

iPads Don't Support Adobe Flash and Javascript

The top criticism of Apple products, including the iPad, is its inability to be compatible with Adobe Flash Player and Javascript.

Many educational websites use Flash. This can limit students to access these tools. However, some people believe some of the newer apps provide ways around Adobe Flash files and Javascript.

iPads Need to Be Charged

Just like a cellphone, iPads need to be charged. A desktop computer in a classroom can be plugged into an outlet. It doesn't require charging.

When power isn't up, learning goes down. Kids can forget to charge their iPads and busy teachers may not have time to check that every single iPad has a full charge to last the entire class period.

Needs Wi-Fi to Operate

Using iPads in the classroom relies solely on maintaining a good Wi-Fi connection. When Wi-Fi has a poor connection or the internet is down, learning stagnates.

All of those devices on the school network can slow it down and eat up all the bandwidth. This can also slow down learning in the classroom or even compromise the lesson.

It's much easier to store educational materials that can be accessed later on a computer than it is on an iPad.

Students Can Get Distracted by Social Media

Tablets are a great learning tool, but they're also a distraction for students who would rather play on social media. It's easy for them to get off task and quickly log into a game, instant messenger, or Snapchat when they should be working.

The Final Word on Using iPads in Today's Classrooms

Compare these pros and cons to decide for yourself if you believe iPads are effective in today's school classrooms and homeschooling environments.

Looking for more educational tips? Explore the blog.

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10 Top-Notch Ways to Motivate Students to Study and Learn

10 Ways to Motivate Students to Study and Learn

Students who are inattentive or put little effort into their school work are unlikely to benefit from better instruction or school curriculum. So, how can teachers help students become motivated? From putting students in control to offering rewards, motivation can be both encouraged and provided. Here’s an in-depth look at ten ways to motivate students to study and learn more effectively.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

An in-depth look at ten ways to motivate you students  

1. Put Students in Control of Their Learning Experience  

Education makes some kids feel like they’re being controlled. When a student feels that lack of control, they generally withdrawal from learning. It’s important that students are given control over their learning experience. 

A good way to do this is to give students options. For example, when assigning math questions, allow students to complete either the evens or the odds. That way, they can choose which one they want to complete. 

Students that are given more control and can have direct input in respect to their learning experiences, activities, and environment, become more engaged and even want to learn.  

2. Develop an Atmosphere for Reading  

It’s known that students who develop a love for reading also love learning. The two are interconnected. Reading, not only helps students develop a wide vocabulary, but it allows their brains to learn how to process formal communication. 


Enrich your classroom by providing students with a variety of quality outside information. You can find reading materials from sources like the New York Times, Forbes, or Science stage.

You can also assign students a book report related to one of your key objectives. That way, students can learn more about an essential topic from an expert in a field. 

3. Focus on Student Interests 

To engage students, focus on topics that they find interesting. Not every objective is interesting to every student, however, you can relate lessons to current trends to reach more students. For example, when coming up with a math question, you can ask students about the latest internet challenge. For the ice bucket challenge, you might pose a question regarding the volume of the bucket.

4. Make Learning Entertaining Through Game-Based Learning  

Game-based learning has been around for a long time. In fact, game-based learning has many beneficial qualities. It not only provides opportunities for extensive learning and development of non-cognitive abilities, but it helps students want to play the game which, in turn, teaches them a new skill or some other aspect of your lesson plans.

When a child is actively playing a game, their mind experiences the joy of learning something new. This is true whether the game is considered entertainment, like a video game or it has a more serious tone like a military simulator. Games that are entertaining have an added benefit of being engaging, thus motivating students to learn more. 

Game-based learning is a successful motivation tool for team-based learning. Since students generally become more competitive in order to win, they may perform better in the learning portions of the game to earn more points. 

Game-based learning is a perfect way for teachers to introduce new concepts or ideas into the classroom. Start with a fun game like classroom jeopardy, or allow students to visit an interactive website and compete online with other students at their grade level.

5. Encourage Communication  

Students should feel encouraged to express their opinions about what’s going on with their education. They should feel comfortable to express their likes or dislikes. Often, when students feel like they can’t speak up, they withdrawal from the learning process.  

It’s best to create an open atmosphere where all students know that their opinion matters. Students should know they won’t be judged, ignored, put down, or discouraged. Instead, students should know you're paying attention and listening to their concerns. That way, students will communicate better if any issue arises. 

 6. Allow Students to Learn Outside of the Classroom  

While book work is important, students sometimes become frustrated at the amount of book work that is required. It’s essential to provide students with fun activities that they can do outside of the classroom. 

Provide students with a list of educational activities they can complete outside of the classroom with friends or family. Activities like baking and shopping allow students to relate what they've learned in school to the real world. Homeschoolers can include these activities in their daily instruction. Measuring and finance are great future skills. Kids find these real world ways of learning math more enjoyable. Math makes more sense when we see the applications as useful.

7. Set Attainable Goals   

It’s important that you set attainable goals for all students. Most students like to feel challenged. Stimulating students helps them to want to set and achieve goals. When they find the expectations attainable, they're more likely to strive to reach the goal.

8. Use Positive Competition 

Competition isn’t always a bad thing, sometimes it motivates students to work harder to achieve a 100% score. One of the best ways to use positive competition is to allow students to take part in a friendly math competition. That way, students get to work together to show off their knowledge and help others that might not understand higher math concepts. Teachers can add math concepts that are relevant to their lesson plans. 

9. Track Students Progress  

It's sometimes difficult for students to understand just how far they’ve come in a particular subject, especially when they find the subject hard to comprehend. Tracking a student’s progress, motivates students, allowing them to visualize how much they've achieved as the year progresses. This is especially important for homeschool learners. Keep track of their progress with programs like, MobyMax, which tracks progression by finding and fixing gaps in learning through relevant grade level, online lessons.

10. Offer Rewards   

Rewards are an excellent source of motivation. Everyone likes to earn rewards. Students will study hard and aim for success in hopes of winning the top prize. Rewards can be large or small, depending on the grade level of the class or age of the students. Older students may not find a lollipop reward very motivating.

For example, choose rewards like a pizza party, ice cream party, or even a donut party or extra credit points for older students. With younger students, simple rewards like a piece of candy, a sticker, or a small toy will provide motivation.

Have you tried any of these ways to motivate students to study and learn more efficiently? 

Student motivation is essential in every stage of education. Focus on student interests, encourage communication, track a student’s progress and offer rewards at every stage. Since every student is motivated differently, make sure to customize your motivation strategies for individual students. 

Check out the recommended reading below for additional ways to motivate students to learn and study. 



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