My Snowy Day

1. Introduce students to the lesson by reading The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. Discuss as a class the events of the story. What did Peter do on his snowy day? What does he see around his neighborhood? What type of media did Keats use for his illustrations? As a class compare what Peter does to what they enjoy doing on a snowy day.
2. (OPTIONAL) On computers with Internet access, allow students to experiment in making virtual snowflakes on http://snowflakes.barkleyus.com/
3. Give students squares of white paper. Have students fold papers one fold at a time demonstrating for them. This process works best for primary students in their first attempt at making original snowflakes. Once they have 3 or 4 folded papers, allow students to start cutting up their snowflakes.
4. Hand out one sheet of 12”x18” blue construction paper per student, this will become their backgrounds. Hand out half a 12”x18” sheet of white paper for every two students. One student of the pair can cut the white paper in a wave along the horizontal axis. This will be their snow.
5. Have each student glue the white snow along the bottom of their blue paper and one or two of their best snowflakes in the sky.
6. Using oil pastels, have students draw themselves on their papers doing their favorite thing to do on a snowy day. Remind students that they should be dressed in their winter gear. Have them think about what their hats, snowsuits, mitts, etc. look like.
7. As a finishing touch to the art, add glitter glue and/or extra snowflakes with white paint or white Crayola® GelFX Markers to the background.
8. Ask students to present their art to classmates and describe their favorite winter activity orally.

LA: Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story using key details.

LA: Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting or events.

LA: Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.

SS: Examine the interaction of human beings and their physical environment.

VA: Constructively explore uses of materials in creating a work of art or design.

VA: Develop an idea for an artwork based on a personal or family story.

VA: Select works of art that illustrate daily life experiences of self and others.

Have each student write a story to accompany their piece of art.

Students interview an older family member to see what they liked to do on snowy days as a child to compare common winter activities then and now.

Tie this activity in to math by having students graph what the classes’ favorite winter activities are using their art as the information provided.