Give the gift of fun and laughter this winter season. With a little forethought and planning, you can help keep the kids busy, while encouraging them to learn while they play.

Candy Relay

Divide the kids into teams and have them form lines. Give the first player in each line a pair of mittens. Give everyone a piece of wrapped candy. At a signal, the first player in each team puts on the mittens, unwraps the candy, and pops it into their mouth. The second player does the same, and so on, down the line. The team that finishes first wins.

Smell Game

Ask children to close their eyes while you pass jars under their noses to see if they can identify the smells: evergreen, ginger, candy canes, eggnog, candles, etc.

Family Game Night

Take the phone off the hook, turn off the TV and bring out a favorite board game. Involve the kids in the planning. Let them pick the game(s), select the snack(s), choose teams, and invite guests. Family Game Night can be as simple or as detailed as you and your children would like it to be. Games teach kids important life skills such as patience, concentration, teamwork, and perseverance. Everybody wins when the family plays a game together!

Snow Painting

Gather a few water bottles with a squirt top, some water, food coloring and head outside for the snow. Fill each bottle with water and food coloring and, with some imagination and creativity, your family members will be creating delightful works of snow art!

Build a snow fort.

Create a big mound and pack it down by stepping, jumping and even rolling on it. Once a solid, round pile has been created, make a doorway and begin tunneling into the mound. Continue to shovel snow out of the center and pack it on top. Once inside, use a smaller shovel to make a space inside. You can cover the floor with a straw mat and poke holes through the ceiling and sides to make skylights and windows. Snow fort walls should be at least one foot thick.

Group Juggling

You’ll need least five players and three or four soft, midsize balls. Begin by having players stand in a close circle. Take one ball and toss it across the circle, from player to player, until each person has caught and thrown the ball once. After your pattern of tossing and catching is established, repeat it several times, until each player knows who to toss the ball to, and who will be tossing it back. To help everyone remember the pattern, you might have players call out names as they throw. Once everyone is comfortable with the sequence, add another ball to the circle, following the same pattern. Then, try adding a third and a fourth ball. You will find that the visual effect is striking: Because the four balls are being tossed and caught almost constantly, it will look like your group has achieved a huge, complicated juggling maneuver.