At My English Sister, we’re all about making English learning a blast! While summer brings endless chances for outdoor fun, winter doesn’t have to leave us out in the cold when it comes to creative lessons. In fact, chilly days are the perfect excuse to cosy up and get inventive with indoor activities that keep kids excited and engaged!

In this article, we’ll walk you through 10 winter-themed English activities that are guaranteed to warm hearts and bring lots of laughter. Whether you’re teaching beginners or advanced learners, these games and exercises will keep kids moving, talking, and learning—all while celebrating the magic of the season. So, bundle up, dive in, and let’s make this winter your best teaching season yet!

1. Winter Vocabulary Bingo

• Create bingo cards with winter-themed words like snowman, scarf, sledge, hot chocolate, etc.

• Say the words aloud or use pictures as clues.

• Kids mark off the words as they hear them. The first one to complete a row wins.

For younger children/beginners:

• Use some French vocabulary as clues if they do not recognise the English word, or even better, try to mime the piece of vocabulary. Once they figure out the word, ask them to repeat it aloud to ensure the connection is made in their head. 

• At the end of the game, you could even award bonus points for any words that they can remember the English word for! 

For older children/more advanced students:

• Create a bingo card with the English words on it, rather than pictures. 

• Rather than calling out the word, you could hold up a picture and see if they can remember the word in English before you say it.

2.  Snowball Toss (with Paper)

• Write English words, phrases, or questions on crumpled paper "snowballs."

• Kids toss the snowballs into a bucket or at a target. After each toss, they open the snowball and say the word or answer the question.

  
  

For younger children/beginners:

• Have images on the pieces of paper, and teach them the relevant vocabulary.

• If they do not remember the word, return the ball to the ‘throw pile’.

For older children/more advanced students:

• Focus on writing questions for the children to answer, for example ‘what month is Christmas in?’, adapting the complexity of the questions to their level of English.

3. Winter Storytime and Roleplay

• Read a short winter-themed story (e.g., The Snowman by Raymond Briggs or Frosty the Snowman). This can also work with any book (not just winter themed!) if the children have a particular favourite. 

• Afterward, assign roles and let kids act out the story, practising dialogue in English.

  
  

For younger children/beginners:

• After reading the book, let the children tell you what they think happened in the story.

• Give them a few pieces of dialogue in English, but allow them to act out the story freely.

  
  

For older children/more advanced students:

• Allow the children to read some of the book, if they are able to.

• Let the children form their own dialogue, helping and gently correcting where necessary. 

4. Hot Chocolate Café Roleplay

• Set up a pretend café where kids practise ordering drinks and snacks in English.

• Use phrases like "I would like," "may I have," and "how much does it cost?"

For younger children/beginners:

• Teach the phrase “I would like”, but allow them to ask for pieces of vocabulary in French to complete the sentences. 

• You could even create a menu with pictures and allow them to point to what they would like, slowly building up the vocabulary in English.

  
  

For older children/more advanced students:

• Allow them to both play the customer and the waiter to practise asking questions such as “what would you like?”, as well as potentially writing down the order to practise their writing skills. 

• Create a written menu to practise reading skills.

  
  

5. Winter Crafts with Instructions in English

• Teach the children to make paper snowflakes, decorate mittens, or create a snowman collage.

• Give all instructions in English to practise listening comprehension.

  
  

For younger children/beginners:

• Say the instructions aloud whilst also demonstrating the actions.

  
  

For older children/more advanced students:

• Try only giving the instructions verbally, without demonstration, and guide where needed.

6. Frozen Scavenger Hunt

• Hide winter-themed flashcards or small items (like gloves, toy snowflakes) around the room.

• Provide clues in English to find them, e.g., "Look under the chair."

  
  

For younger children/beginners:

• Use more gestures to guide the children towards the objects, and ask them to repeat the vocabulary when they find them.

  
  

For older children/more advanced students:

• Ask the children to hide the objects, and to guide you towards them by thinking of their own instructions/clues in English. 

  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  
  

7. Winter Charades

• Write winter-related actions (e.g., building a snowman, skiing, shivering) on cards.

• Kids act out the actions while others guess the word or phrase in English.

  
  

For younger children/beginners: 

• Stick to acting out nouns rather than actions/verbs, slowly introducing simple verbs which can go with the vocabulary.

• Use images to prompt the children on the cards, rather than words.

  
  

For older children/more advanced students:

• Introduce more complex verbs such as “shiver” or “snuggle.”

• Use writing on the charades cards to practise reading skills, helping where necessary. 

  
  

8. Sing Winter/Christmas Songs

• Teach simple English winter songs like Jingle Bells or Frosty the Snowman.

• Incorporate actions to make it more engaging - you could even make up a dance routine! 

  
  

For younger children/beginners:

• Focus more on actions/making up a routine, gradually allowing them to become more familiar with the song.

For older children/more advanced students:

• Write down/print out the lyrics, and ask them if they recognise any of the English - you could even ask them to highlight nouns/verbs if they are very confident.

• Encourage singing along to the song, so that they can then recognise how the written words sound within the context of the song - recognising words within songs can be challenging, so this is a great option if you really want to stretch them! 

  
  
  
  

  

  
  

9. Weather Forecast Game

• Teach weather vocabulary (e.g., snowy, windy, cold).

• Kids pretend to be weather reporters, describing the "forecast" for different winter scenes.

For younger children/beginners: 

• Use basic sentences and vocabulary such as “it is sunny” or “it is rainy”.

For older children/more advanced students:

• Use more complex structures, such as the future tense e.g. “today it is going to be sunny” or “today it is going to rain”.

  
  

10. Board Games

• Board games are the perfect pass time for when it's cold outside! See what games are available, or even create your own with the children including winter themed vocabulary.

• Include English phrases like "go forward one space” or “it’s my turn” for extra language practice.

  
  

For younger children/beginners:

• Encourage counting spaces on the board in English.

• Repeat your English phrases the same way each time you say it - even if they say it in French they will then understand that you are saying the same thing in English. 

For older children/more advanced students:

• Explain the rules of the game in English, or if the children already understand, see if they can explain any of the rules to you in English! 

We hope that these ideas will help you to keep warm and keep learning this winter. To keep up to date with what we’re up to here at My English Sister, follow us on social media!