Winter is a time to put things to bed, simplify, and take in as much sleep and ease as we can pull from our long nights and cozy mornings. There is nothing like waking up to a picture window full of fresh white sparkly snow and a clear sky, later in the short day, watching the icicles drip and after sunset, seeing the world lit by the equalizing blanket of white.
Small celebrations of winter are a gentle way to invite children to see the beauty around them, even the dark! Bring some fresh sprigs of greenery and dried snowberries in the house, light some candles for the dinner table and tell some winter tales. Even short tales of “I remember the time I fell off of the chairlift when I was little” or “One time I didn’t have a carrot for my snowman’s nose so I used a _____.”
Here are some more tales of winter featuring the wonderful magic of hibernating animals and some stories that pull us into their world.
The Snowy Nap by Jan BrettHeggie wants so much to stay awake for just a few days into winter after all the farm animals say farewell and at the same time tell him what he will miss while Winter napping. He goes off to his burrow and doesn’t quite make it…See what happens in this cozy tale of Heggie, one of Jan Brett’s finest winter stories.
Sleep, Big Bear, Sleep! by Maureen, WrightHelp Bear who is hard of hearing get to sleep! This is the whimsical story with a twist on rhyming words, and a BIG cuddly tired Bear. Old Man Winter tries to send him to his winter bed, but Bear is distracted. Such a fun book to read aloud and repeat “Bear, Go to Sleep”…
Happy Winter Storytelling!