Holiday Outdoor Games
Candy Cane Races: Divide children into teams of two or three, and give each child a candy cane. For this race, the children must stay linked together by their candy canes as they run to the finish line. If their candy canes break from too much pulling, they should start over. The first team to complete the task wins. You can add to this game by using larger teams and having children hold 2 canes, one in each hand. Start with two children and add to their chain until they have all their team members together and cross the finish line!
Animal Tracks: Bring the children outside in the snow to look for the tracks of dogs, cats, birds or other wildlife. You may want to get a book on animal tracks from the local library, and use that to help identify the tracks they find. Another option is to make copies of the animal tracks in the book, hand one to each child and send them out into the snow to try and make that track themselves. After everyone has created their tracks, the children can examine each others' tracks and try to guess the animal.
Snow Mural: Give each child a spray bottle containing colored water (use food coloring to color the water). Send the guests outside to spray the snow, mix colors, and create snow art!