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Snow Globes


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With a shake of the hand, here's how your students can create their own winter-wonderland snow globes. Note: This activity does require the help of a grown-up.

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED

  • baby food jars, cleaned, with the label removed
  • waterproof adhesive (marine glue or a similar product)
  • small plastic animals and trees
  • glitter
  • water
  • vegetable oil or glycerin
  • white craft glue

HERE'S WHAT TO DO

Nancy F. Castaldo is the author of many books packed with inspiring ideas for childhood discovery and learning. In addition to the three titles above, Nancy has written activity guides for teaching children ages 6 to 9 about the ocean, rainforests, deserts, and rivers. All of these titles are published by Chicago Review Press.

Click here to learn about these books and others by Nancy Castaldo.

With the help of parent volunteers or other grown-ups, students will use the waterproof adhesive to attach the plastic animals or trees to the inside lid of the baby food jar to create a snow globe scene.

Add some glitter to the jar and fill it about 2/3 full with water.

Add vegetable oil or glycerin to the water.

Grown-ups might help students again as they place a little white craft glue on the outside rim of the jar lid, making sure no glue touches the inside of the jar.

Carefully screw on the lid of the jar to make sure the glue does not enter the jar. Place the jar in a safe place until the glue dries completely, usually about one hour.

After the glue is completely dry, turn the snow globe over and watch it sparkle!

MORE FUN!

Snow globes are one of the easiest souvenirs to collect. Some kids collect snow globes on vacation. They're a great way to remember the places they visit. Other collectors like the ones that advertise products or the ones that include favorite cartoon characters. Snow globe collections can be created out of just about any subject you can dream up. Need inspiration for a snow globe collection? Check out Snowdomes by Nancy McMichael or Snow Globes by Connie Moore and Harry Rinker.

ANOTHER RESOURCE

Education World's special Winter Lessons Archive

ACTIVITY SOURCE

This activity is excerpted from Nancy Castaldo's Winter Day Play, which is published by Chicago Review Press. This lesson idea is one of more than 70 activities, crafts, and games from Winter Day Play that are sure to engage children as they discover and learn.

About the Author

A native of New York's Hudson Valley, Nancy Castaldo earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Marymount College and a Master of Arts from the State University of New York. As an environmental educator, author, and Girl Scout volunteer and board member, Castaldo has led numerous children's workshops. Her school programs include workshops on ocean creatures and other nature topics, creative writing, and pizza making/Italy. She has conducted programs at the Boston Children's Museum, Atlanta Zoo, and Tennessee Aquarium. Castaldo's books include River Wild: An Activity Guide to North American Rivers; Oceans: An Activity Guide for Ages 6-9; Deserts: An Activity Guide for Ages 6-9; and Rainforests: An Activity Guide for Ages 6-9. She is also author of a historical-fiction picture book, Pizza for the Queen. To learn more about Nancy and her books, check out her Web site, www.nancycastaldo.com.


Article by Nancy Castaldo
Education World®
Copyright © 2006 Education World

08/07/2006