This kids had a wonderful time learning more about snowflakes with Mother Goose Time.
We learned that each snowflake is unique. We also learned how they form in clouds and fall from the sky.
We also learned that no matter how different, each snowflake will always have six sides.
To reinforce these basic principles and give busy little hands something to do while we chatted more about snowy weather, we created these simple tie-dye snowflakes.
Tie-Dye Snowflakes
Supplies
- coffee filter*
- eyedropper*
- markers
- water
- scissors
*These items were provided to us by Mother Goose Time.
Discuss
- What do you think will happen when the coffee filter gets wet?
- A snowflake has six sides. How will you cut the coffee filter to look like a snowflake?
Our Experience
The kids were pretty sure the coffee filters would be fine when they got wet, which of course is true. They knew this because making coffee is one of the ways they help with breakfast in the morning. They always leave the lid open so they can watch the water percolate through the filter into the coffee pot. They were pretty excited that the coffee filters we use everyday could be used to make a snowflake.
The kids thought they should just cut the coffee filter into the shape of a snowflake. They were pretty excited to learn that we were going to fold and cut them to make each side look the same. They adore cutting out hearts, where you fold the paper in half, cut half a heart, and then unfold the paper to reveal the heart shape. The snowflakes were even better.
Make
Step 1: Invite children to decorate their snowflakes with markers.
Step 2: Fold the snowflake in half three times, creating a narrow triangle.
Step 3: Dip the snowflake in water, or drip water on it with the eyedropper. Observe how the marker colors blend.
Step 4: Dry the snowflake with paper towels, then cut shapes around the edges.
Our Experience
We had better success cutting shapes and cutting the edges of our snowflakes while they were still dry, rather than after putting the water on them. So, we cut the edges and then used the pipette with water to blend the colors. We laid them out to dry and then displayed them in our dining room window. The kids were excited to be able to display their finished product. The inner pattern on my daughter’s snowflake was created by folding the thrice folded coffee filter in half and cutting an additional heart shape on that edge.
Play
Drop the snowflakes from different heights. Observe how they float and where they land.
Drop them again from the same place.
Do they float somewhere different?
Our Experience
We did our “play” with the snowflakes before using the pipette to wet and mix the colors we created with our markers. The kids loved dropping the snowflakes from various heights, especially from on top of the slide on the jungle gym. They had races to see whose snowflake made it to the ground first and marked different places that the snowflakes landed on the ground using rocks in the yard. They tried hard to get the snowflakes to land in the same place twice with very little success. It was very entertaining to watch them have so much fun with a simple coffee filter. Children at free play are the best!
I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about our experience with making snowflakes from coffee filters and that you get a chance to make some with your own family. These snowflakes can get really creative and I think we will be repeating this craft as the kids get older and can get more intricate with their designs. My five year old loved this craft as much as my 22 month old.
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Happy Learning,
