How to Host a Learning in a Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night
Hosting a family night is already a special event. A family literacy night with a winter wonderland theme? Oh. My. Goodness.
Get ready to bring out your twinkle lights, snowflakes, and marshmallows!
This event combines the joy of a winter wonderland with the power of literacy. Families move through themed stations, enjoying hands-on winter themed literacy activities and ideas that spark learning and laughter. Best of all, it’s simple to set up when you have everything planned out for you!
That’s exactly what the Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night gives you—editable flyers, punch cards, posters, and 11 engaging literacy night activity stations.
Grab the Family Literacy Night here and have everything you need, ready to go!
Why Host a Family Literacy Night?
Events like these give families a chance to:
- Engage with literacy in a fun, low-pressure setting.
- Work side-by-side with their children on meaningful reading and writing activities.
- Strengthen the home-school connection by building a sense of community.
- Learn about literacy they can implement at home
- Read, write, talk, and listen!
How Learning in a Winter Wonderland Literacy Night Works ❄️☃️
When families arrive, they receive a punch card and a reading pledge card. Then they make their way through literacy stations at their own pace, choosing activities that spark their interest.
The resource includes everything you need to make it run smoothly:
- Editable flyers to advertise the event
- Station posters for clear directions
- Punch cards & tickets to track participation
- Family Reading Pledge cards and bookmarks to take home
- Volunteer sign-in sheets so everything stays organized
Some of my favorite books for Learning in a Winter Wonderland 📚🌲
these are some of my favorite books to add a cozy, wintery feel to your event. You can use one at each station as a read aloud, or base the entire event around one book! They also make a great book list to have available at the Reading in a Winter Wonderland station. You can grab the whole list in my resource here!
Winter Books I love:
- https://amzn.to/3KsngXOThe Story of Snow by Mark Cassino (an awesome nonfiction text)
- The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats (a classic)
- Snow Globe Wishes by Erin Dealey (a more recent book kids will love)
- Snow by Cynthia Rylant (my go-to author for writer’s craft)
- The Snow Thief by Alice Hemming (such a fun read)
- *These are affiliate links. I am paid a small percentage of any purchase, but it doesn’t cost you anything extra! Thank you 🙂
Winter Wonderland Literacy Night Activities
Here are just a few of the winter themed literacy activities included in the resource:
❄️ SNOWFLAKE Art & Poem
Students create a watercolor crayon resist snowflake using a white crayon and watercolor paints. Then they write an acrostic using the word SNOWFLAKE. It’s a fun way to brainstorm wintery words and create a piece of art!
☃️ Do You Want to Build a Snowman?
Use this activity for different levels of writers! Primary students can sequence the procedural about how to build a snowman. Students who can write can create their own graphic organizer about how to build a snowman. Then they build a snowman craft.
🌲 Reading in a Winter Wonderland
Decorate a space with fake trees, snowflakes, and provide scarves and blankets. Let your families read together from a selection of winter themed books! A book list and bookmarks are included in the resource.
🌨️ Snowball Toss
Put letters on plastic cups and stack them up in a triangle shape. Toss a white ball and see which letters you knock over. Use them to build words! It’s an engaging, hands-on way to practice word building!
🏆 Design an Ugly Sweater
This is a fun activity whether you make it into a contest or not! Provide artsy materials or crayons, colored pencils, and markers. Let students design their Ugly Sweater! In the Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night resource, I included certificates for “Most Creative” “Most Colorful” and other fun awards so you can turn this into a contest!
🏂 Winter Weather Words
Help our little figures dress for weather! Each figure has a word on it. Place the clothing cards around a space. They’re covered in synonyms! Match the word clothing to the word on the figure to dress them for the winter weather.
🐧 Penguin Word Waddle
Families make a fun board game to practice reading word family words. It’s a great activity to take home and play again and again!
🍫 MARSHMALLOW
This game is so much fun and so easy to prepare for! Just have families write the word MARSHMALLOW across a sentence strip or index cards. Cut between each letter to make a set of letter cards. Use the letters to build as many words as you can and record them on the recording sheet. This also makes a fun contest!
☕ Hot Chocolate Tasting
Make hot chocolate in a few crock pots and serve it up! In this activity, families taste the hot chocolate and describe it using their five senses. A handy graphic organizer makes it easy to record their sensory details!
❄️ Stuck in a Snow Globe
Families decorate their own snow globe template and put themselves in it. Then they write about what happened when they were stuck in a snow globe! It’s a fun opportunity to be creative together!
🧤 Retelling Mitten
This five-finger retelling is a fun way to practice retelling a story. Read one of the mitten themed stories included in the list, such as The Mitten by Jan Brett or Three Little Mittens by Linda Bailey. Have students retell the most important elements by recording them on the mitten template *several versions are included.
There are 11 stations total, each with materials, directions, and optional read-aloud connections. Kids don’t even realize how much reading, writing, and word work they’re doing because they’re too busy having fun!
Tips & Ideas for Hosting a Family Literacy Night at School
- Keep it flexible: Let families choose stations at their own pace.
- Plan ahead: Use the included prep checklists and ticket system for stations with limited supplies (like hot chocolate tasting).
- Get help: Assign staff or volunteers to each station so you can float and troubleshoot.
- Send them home smiling: Hand out Family Night Bags with bookmarks, pledge cards, and their creations.
Resources to Make Your Learning in a Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night Shine ✨
One of the best parts about a Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night is how cozy and warm it feels. A little décor goes a long way in setting the mood for families and making stations extra inviting. To save you time, I’ve rounded up some of my favorite winter wonderland materials that pair perfectly with the activities.
👉 Browse my full Amazon Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night Storefront for all the supplies in one place, or grab individual items below:
- ❄️ Hanging Snowflakes – Great for decorating your entire space.
- 🌻 Snowy Photo Booth – Set up a fun family photo space with these affordable materials.
- 🔥 Cardboard Fireplace – A cozy addition to Reading in a Winter Wonderland.
- 🏠 Fireplace Backdrop – Add to any space to immediately cozy-fy it.
- 🌲 Small fake trees – Festive decorations to place around the space, especially for Reading in a Winter Wonderland.
- 🌨️ Winter Tablecloths – Adds instant winter vibes to any station table.
With these easy touches and creative activity ideas, your literacy night will feel like a true winter wonderland that families will remember long after the event.
Ready to Host Your Own Literacy Night?
Planning a Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night doesn’t have to be stressful. With everything prepped and ready to print, you can focus on enjoying the night right alongside your students and their families.
👉 Grab the Winter Wonderland Family Literacy Night Resource here, packed with activities, ideas, and printables, and bring the joy of reading and winter festivities to your school community!
