A New Coat for Winter Lesson Plan

What We Are Learning

animal adaptations for winter

snowshoe hare, coat, fur, blend, camouflage

group discussion, critical thinking, vocabulary, science knowledge

Winter Dance by Marion Dane Bauer follows a fox as it learns to prepare for winter. It’s a sweet introduction to the many ways that animals get ready for the cold winter season.

Measure With a Snowshoe Hare’s Foot

Materials: Snowshoe Hare Footprint skill sheet, childsafe scissors

To prepare, make enough copies of the skill sheet so each child can get a foot. Cut each page in half.
Ask children why they think snowshoe hares are called snowshoe hares. It’s for their huge hind (or back) feet, which can be 6 inches long. A snowshoe hare’s hind feet help it stay on top of the soft snow like a snowshoe. Snowshoe hares also have fur on the bottoms of their feet to keep warm.
Guide children as they cut out the hare’s hind footprint. Have them compare the size of the footprint with different things in the classroom. Begin with their own hands and feet—is a snowshoe hare’s hind foot larger or smaller than each child’s foot? Then compare it with classroom items.
Finally, use the footprint to measure the height of a chair or the length of a desk. What else could you measure? Elicit ideas and try! fine-motor skills measurement

Materials: Snowshoe Hare skill sheet, paintbrushes, brown tempera paint, plates for paint, liquid glue, cotton balls

Here’s a fun way to reinforce the concept of changing coats with the seasons!
Give each child a copy of the Snowshoe Hare printable skill sheet, a paintbrush, and a small amount of brown tempera paint.
Ask children what a snowshoe hare looks like in the summer. It is brown! Instruct them to paint their snowshoe hare. As the paintings dry, talk about why snowshoe hares are brown during the summer.
Next distribute glue and cotton balls. Say that now it is autumn, turning to winter. The days are getting colder and shorter. (If you’d like, have children pretend to shiver.) It’s time for the snowshoe hare to change its coat! Remind students that the hare must be camouflaged against its snowy surroundings to protect itself from predators!
Have children use a paintbrush to brush glue over their snowshoe hare’s body. Then guide them as they cover it with cotton balls, pulling and stretching the cotton balls to make them look like fur. Now their snowshoe hares are ready for winter! fine-motor skills