turquoise and ocean and bright summer day
captured on the snow piled like icing on the trees,
but on the horizon
a wall of charcoal grey
hints at a blizzard on its way.
I watch through the window and hope
I’m home before it hits.
"Winter in the School Yard"
by Sandra Liatsos
The yard is like a freezer.
We huddle in a bunch
And wish that we were all inside
Eating steamy lunch.
We huddle in a bunch
And wish that we were all inside
Eating steamy lunch.
We're standing still as statues.
We move to stir our bones.
But when we walk we feel as if
We're stiff as saxophones.
We move to stir our bones.
But when we walk we feel as if
We're stiff as saxophones.
We'd rather be in music
Singing loud as lions,
Or painting at the easels,
Spring things like dandelions.
Singing loud as lions,
Or painting at the easels,
Spring things like dandelions.
"Winter Inside"
by Douglas Florian
Winter is cold.
Winter is ice.
But winter inside
Is cozy and nice.
Winter is snow.
Winter is sleet.
But winter inside
Is fireplace feet.
Winter is bitter.
Winter is biting.
But winter inside
Is very inviting.
"Winter Sun"
by Douglas Florian
The winter sun's a grumpy guy.
He scarcely gets to see the sky.
He doesn't speak. His rays are weak.
His disposition's grim and bleak.
He hovers near the naked trees,
His blanket from the sky's big freeze,
And barely dares to lift his head
Before he's ordered back to bed.
"I Do Not Mind You, Winter Wind"
by Jack Prelutsky
I do not mind you, Winter Wind
when you come whirling by,
to tickle me with snowflakes
drifting softly from the sky.
I so not even mind you
when you nibble at my skin,
scrambling over all of me
attempting to get in.
But when you bowl me over
and I land on my behind,
then I must tell you, Winter Wind,
I mind . . . I really mind!
"December Leaves"
by Kaye Starbird
The fallen leaves are cornflakes
That fill the lawn's wide dish.
And night and noon
The wind's a spoon
That stirs them with a swish,
The sky's a silver sifter
A-sifting white and slow,
That gently shakes
On crisp brown flakes
The sugar known as snow.
"First Day of Winter"
by Patricia Hubbell
Fall has fallen
Winter rises.
Now's the time
For cold surprises.
Icicles' long pointed noses,
Flakes like daisies, diamonds, roses.
Snow up to the windowsill
And everything so very still.
"December Days are Short"
by Jack Prelutsky
December days are short, and so
there's not much time to play,
the fun has hardly started
when the sun has gone away.
Today, right after breakfast,
while the sky was growing light,
I ran to meet my friends outside
and have a snowball fight.
We began to build a fortress
then raced our wooden sleds,
we belly-whopped and spun like tops
and tumbled on our heads.
We stopped for lunch, then once again
threw snowballs for a while,
we made a giant snowman
with a really silly smile.
We fed some hungry pigeons
and went sliding on the ice,
my mother brought some cake for us,
a dog ate half my slice.
We made another snowman
and we finished off our fort,
when suddenly, the sun went down . . .
December days are short.
"What I Love about Winter"
by Douglas Florian
Frozen lakes
Hot pancakes
Lots of snow
How cocoa
Skates and skis
Evergreen trees
Funny hats
Thermostats
Sunsets blaze
Holidays
Snowball fights
Fireplace nights
Chimneys steaming
Winter dreaming.
"What I Hate about Winter"
by Douglas Florian
Frozen toes
Runny nose
Sloppy slush
Holiday crush
15 below
Shoveling snow
Leafless trees
Cough and sneeze
Shorter day
Less time to play
Salt-spreading tractors
Windchill factors
No place to go -
Winter is slow.
"My Mother Took Me Skating"
by Jack Prelutsky
My mother took me skating
and we glided on the ice,
I wasn't very good at it
and stumbled more than twice.
My mother made a figure eight,
and since it seemed like fun,
I tried a little trick myself
and made a figure one.
"Winter Worries"
by Jane W. Krows
Oh, lucky, lucky, lucky me!
I'm lucky as a child can be.
When winter winds my ears would harm,
My fuzzy earmuffs keep them warm.
When ice and snow take little nips,
Warm mittens cover finger tips.
My cozy coat keep out the breeze,
My corduroys protect my knees.
But, up to now, no clothes are sold
To keep my nose from getting cold!
"The Mitten Song"
by Mary Louise Allen
"Thumb in the thumb-place,
Fingers all together!"
This is the song
We sing in mitten weather.
When it is cold,
It doesn't matter whether
Mittens are wool,
Or made of finest leather.
This is the song
We sing in mitten weather:
"Thumbs in the thumb-place,
Fingers all together!"
"Crumbs on the Snow"
by Lucretia Penny
When it's winter and the snow
Like a tablecloth is spread,
I remember hungry birds
And see that they are fed.
On their snowy tablecloth
They find my gift of bread.
"I am Freezing!"
by Jack Prelutsky
I am freezing! I am freezing!
I am absolutely cold,
I am shivering and shaking
like a pudding in a mold.
There are glaciers in my stomach,
there is sleet inside my bones,
I am colder than the contents
of a million ice cream cones.
I am freezing! I am freezing!
From my bottom to my top,
all my teeth are clacking madly
and I cannot make them stop.
Oh I cannot feel my fingers,
and I cannot feel my toes,
now my cheeks are frozen solid,
and I think I've lost my nose.
I am freezing! I am freezing!
Inside out and outside in,
every bit of me is chilly,
every single inch of skin,
I have icicles inside me
and my lips are turning blue,
and I'm sneezing as I'm freezing,
for I've caught a cold . . .
AHCHOOOOOOOOOO!
"A Winter Inn"
by Arthur Wallace Peach
I know an inn that is safe and snug
When wintry winds are blowing;
Its walls are thick, and its roof keeps out
The cold when it is snowing.
The squirrels rent a little room
When leaves blow helter-skelter,
And snowbirds wee come flocking there
To share its welcome shelter.
The bright sun warms it through the day,
And so it's never chilly,
Though breezes keen with icy breath
Blow from the pastures chilly.
The spruces and the evergreens
With needles thick and furry
Are inns to which, when cold winds blow,
The wood-folk like to hurry!
"Winter Clothes"
by Karla Kuskin
Under my hood I have a hat
And under that
My hair is flat.
Under my coat
My sweater's blue,
My sweater's red.
I'm wearing two.
My muffler muffles to my chin
And round my neck
And then tucks in.
My gloves were knitted
By my aunts.
I've mittens too
And pants
And pants
And boots
And shoes
With socks inside.
The boots are rubber, red and wide.
And when I walk
I mush not fall
Because I can't get up at all.
"My Sister Would Never
Throw Snowballs at Butterflies"
by Jack Prelutsky
My sister would never throw snowballs at butterflies,
lately, they've not been around,
and certainly not at a dragon or unicorn,
both are infrequently found.
She cannot throw any at fishes or porpoises,
we are quite far from the sea,
and never, no, never at tigers or elephants,
she only throws them at me.
"Winter Morning"
by Ogden Nash
Winter is the king of showmen,
Turning tree stumps into snow men
And houses into birthday cakes
And spreading sugar over lakes.
Smooth and clean and frosty white,
The world looks good enough to bite.
That's the season to be young,
Catching snowflakes on your tongue.
Snow is snowy when it's snowing,
I'm sorry it's slushy when it's going.
"Winter Dark"
by Lilian Moore
Winter dark comes early
mixing afternoon
and night.
Soon there's a comma of a moon,
and each street light
along the
way
puts its period
to end the day.
Now a neon sign
punctuates the
dark with a bright blinking
breathless
exclamation mark!
"My Mother's Got Me Bundled Up"
by Jack Prelutsky
My mother's got me bundled up
in tons of winter clothes,
you could not recognize me
if I did not have a nose.
I'd wear much less, but she's get mad
if I dared disobey her,
so I stay wrapped from head to toe
in layer after layer.
I am wearing extra sweaters,
I am wearing extra socks,
my galoshes are so heavy
that my ankles seem like rocks.
I am wearing scarves and earmuffs,
I am wearing itchy pants,
my legs feel like they're swarming
with a million tiny ants.
My mittens are enormous
and my coat weighs mare than me,
my woolen hat and ski mask
make it difficult to see.
It's hard to move, and when I try
I waddle, then I flop,
I'm the living, breathing model
of a walking clothing shop.
"When Skies Are Low and Days Are Dark"
by N. M. Bodecker
When skies are low
and days are dark,
and frost bites
like a hungry shark,
when mufflers muffle
ears and nose,
and puffy sparrows
huddle close -
how nice to know
that February
is something purely
temporary.
"Snow Wear"
Jackets and sweaters
Stockings and boots
Snug hats and mittens
Warm woolen suits
All bundled up
And ready to go
Out of the house
To play in the snow
Although I feel clumsy
In all of these clothes
I am so happy
Whenever it snows!
"Ice Skating" by Sandra Liatsos
Higher and higher
I glide in the sky,
My feet flashing silver,
A star in each eye.
With wind at my back
I can float, I can soar.
The earth cannot hold me
In place anymore.
"Winter Worries"by Jane W. Krows
Oh, lucky, lucky, lucky me!
I'm lucky as a child can be.
When winter winds my ears would harm,
My fuzzy earmuffs keep them warm.
When ice and snow take little nips,
Warm mittens cover finger tips.
My cozy coat keeps out the breeze,
My corduroys protect my knees.
But, up to now, no clothes are sold,
To keep my nose from getting cold!
(Source of all of the above poems except for Shawn Bird's)
