Winter Eurythmics and Playing with “Snow” to Learn about Polymers and Osmosis

We’ve continued having fun and learning with our winter theme through more great poems, stories, songs, and musical movement. . . and playing with magical fake snow—indoors! During one circle time the kids explored multiple and divided beats with songs about winter animals. We also read a poem about hungry birds in winter and a beautifully illustrated rendition of Robert Frost’s poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.” (I highly recommend this picture book version illustrated by Susan Jeffers.) We made bird feeders with bagels, peanut butter, and bird seed. Another day we played with anapest (short-short-long rhythmical pattern) with a song to spell January and another song about January weather, and then we “ice skated” the anapest pattern in our socks on the wooden floor.

A side-note about Eurythmics: this is a method of teaching music with the body as the instrument. Eurythmics activities use movement as a vehicle for experiencing music in a way that engages the “whole person”—rather than learning music by rote or mechanical repetition, a musical concept is explored first through the child’s basic vocabulary of movement which leads to a deeper understanding of the elements of music. When children eventually approach written music, they will have internalized the elements of music and the notation will make more sense to them. This resembles the way children naturally learn to read and write words, after they have explored language through song, rhymes, and listening and have developed an internal drive to use the language independently.

This winter has been very dry in our area, so we haven’t even enjoyed the usual winter view of snow-capped mountains. But that hasn’t kept us from playing with snow. The kids enjoyed a science lesson on polymers and osmosis by playing with artificial snow in a big tub. They watched a few tablespoons of powder turn into a fluffy, cold, white substance the consistency of snow when they added water. As we filled the tub and the kids played with the “snow” we talked about the definition of polymers (“many molecules,” or repeated linked units, each a relatively light and simple molecule) and discussed how this substance seemed to match that definition. We also observed osmosis as the water moved from outside the dry powder to cause the “flakes” to swell.

To cap off our winter theme, we’ve been reading the chapter book Blizzard of the New Moon by Mary Pope Osborn. While I wouldn’t call the Magic Tree House series high quality literature, I value series like these when they engage kids in reading and learning. This adventure took place in depression-era New York City, so the book offered a bit of historical and cultural insight.

Up next: Owl Moon, a classic by Jane Yolen, and Snowflake Bentley followed by sun prints and further exploration of hexagons. . . and who knows what else the kids will lead us to explore and learn together!