Winter means that it is hibernation season. While bears and animals prepare for the colder weather, those of us in cold climates prepare to do the same. Warm clothes, blankets and days spent inside are ahead of us. Today we celebrate the hibernation season with some fun learning activities!

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Bear Has a Story to Tell was written by Philip C. Stead and illustrated by Erin. E. Stead. This book tells the story of a sweet and lovable bear who wants to tell his friends a story, but they are all preparing for winter. It is a sweet story about patience and friendship and it is a good way to teach kids about the preparations that animals make for hibernation and wintertime.

Prepare for winter with hibernation activities and snacks!

Create a Cave – Before you read the book, build a cave with your kids and fill it with pillows blankets and snacks. Climb into the cave, snuggle up and read the story. Talk to them about things that they would want in the cave with them if they were hibernating for the winter.

Hibernation Cupcakes – Baking gives you an opportunity to teach kids about measurements, following directions in order, and more. To create hibernation cupcakes, you can prepare cupcake batter using a box mix or favorite recipe. Fill cupcake liners halfway and insert a small teddy bear shaped graham cracker into the batter. Fill the liner the rest of the way and bake according to the directions. Frost with your favorite frosting and have fun searching for the hibernating bears while you eat them!

Hibernation Science – Use the opportunity to try a fun science experiment with kids to show them how animals use fat to keep warm during the winter. Fill a bowl with ice water and have kids put their hands in it to see how cold it is. Have the child put a plastic glove on, cover the glove in shortening and wrap the whole thing plastic wrap. Have them put their hand back in the water and see if they can feel the cold anymore.

There are lots of fun ways to teach kids about animals preparing for winter. Talk to them about how you prepare for winter as well.