Theme Days: Frozen Fever
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“How I wish it could stay this way forever, and yet change mocks us with her beauty.” Olaf’s deep thoughts were a highlight in Frozen 2, and so timely. This current time is one of change - and it is difficult for sure. But there is also beauty to be found. Let’s find that beauty each day - by giving our kids a memorable fun day with a deep, loving relationship at the heart of it…with a Frozen Fever Day!
Plus…
Earth, wind, fire, and water…and ice!?! Seriously, there couldn’t be a better reason to study nature than a Frozen Fever Day. With Frozen 2 you have all the makings of a full homeschool day. We had one, and let me tell you, it was full of fantasy fun. I developed all our learning activities around what I already had on our bookshelves and in our cupboards - because…well: Pandemic. So you can do the same. But, if you want some guidance - here’s what we did. One more thing, if you want to do all of this in one day, and watch both movies - you need to start by 9 AM, or you will not finish everything by bedtime.
Frozen Fever Activity Book
To help us navigate the day in an efficient, educational, and fun way, we developed this activity book. It’s so much easier to host a theme day when almost all you need is all right at your fingertips. Almost everything you will read next is inside the activity book. You can download it here for free for a limited time.
Decorations and Attire
Do you have a collection of snowmen you display at Christmas? Do you have Christmas light-up villages you can set out and call Arendelle? What about blue or white tablecloths? You can utilize all of that. You can order/buy Frozen themed paper plates, napkins, and cups, or make goodie bags with Frozen themed pencils, bracelets, gummies, etc. My daughter donned her Elsa Frozen 2 dress and I wore my Walmart Frozen long-sleeve. Put on your winter hat, scarf, and gloves, and it will feel like a Frozen Fever Day!
Hug O’ War
Elsa and Anna go through quite a few trials and tribulations separately and together - and in the end, they always hug. As Anna says, “You’ll always have me.” So, we started with Shel Silverstein’s “Hug O’ War.” It’s a poem about letting go of a power struggle and instead, showing kindness and love as equals. So we read the poem and hugged like crazy - and even fell on the floor (which inevitably made our youngest cry…but we hugged it out)! It was definitely a sweet way to start the day.
“Hug O’ War” by Shel Silverstein
I will not play at tug o' war.
I'd rather play at hug o' war,
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins
Everyone should have a Shel Silverstein book in their home library. My sister and I grew up drinking in his words and feasting on his sketches. Our two favorite books growing up were Where the Sidewalk Ends (includes “The Climbers” mentioned below) and The Light in the Attic (includes “Hug O’ War”).
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Earth
A) After all that hugging, it was time to get down to business. Our first element was Earth. So we started with studying the Genesis creation story. Some say it’s a myth, but we believe it’s truth - either way, it’s a story everyone should know. The Spouse read from our Bible, and we wrote what happened each day as stated in the Bible.
B) Since we just finished studying adjectives, I asked my kids to write twenty adjectives about the earth. It was enriching to hear each of their lists when they were done. Even my five-year-old came up with words to describe a beach, a sunset, and a forest.
C) Then we watched Mr. DeMaio's YouTube video on Mount Everest. During this time, you can relax, make a snack, prepare the next element, and go to the bathroom, for a whole 11 minutes! I wanted to study mountains as our major earth component because it snows and freezes on mountains. Plus, I had a great Shel Silverstein poem to go with it too (see #6 below). (The Geography Book mentioned later has an easy mountain craft you can do at this time too.)
D) Read Mountains of the World by Dieter Braun. This is a beautiful, helpful book. I love the art. I love the simple descriptions of what mountains are and how they are made. Do not read the entire book. Pick a couple of pages that your children will connect with. I made sure to pick the yeti page as one of my pages since it feeds right into #5 below.
E) Marshmallow in Frozen 1 is a yeti, so I asked my kids to create a fable about a yeti. First my kids wrote down the descriptive words about a yeti as I read to them from Braun’s book. Then, we reviewed elements of a fable, since we’ve recently been studying them. My instructions were to pick a moral or lesson they want to teach, and use that that to create a fable with a yeti in it. You can join in too - but maybe prepare your fable ahead of time so you can assist your kids as needed. A moral you can use is in my favorite song in Frozen 2. Anna beautifully sings, “It is all I can do, the next right thing.” This is such a great moral for a fable. To recap, you can utilize this special time to character build morals, teach life lessons, and discuss safety with your children.
F) I can’t get enough of Shel Silverstein. So we read his poem called “The Climbers” which gave my kids a chuckle when they figured out the twist. And, for three days after, my nine-year-old son wrote six poems unprompted. Here’s one of his poems: “Drippity drip drop, drippity drip, The water is dripping down like zip. Drippity drip drop, drippity drip, The dripping water doesn’t make a pip.”
This earth element is the biggest bulk of the educational content, because it’s early in the day. For my kids, the best part of the day for them to be willing to sit, listen, and complete work is the morning. It’s the magic of the morning. So, I planned the most content for first thing - Bible, parts of speech, geography, geology, fables, character building, and poetry. You can dive deeper into any of these subjects if you plan ahead. You could even spread it out over a week and make each element one day of the week.
Ice
Ice - spoiler alert - the fifth element! I put this second in line though because now your kids will be ready to craft something. So, set up three to four stations for each kid to rotate through one kid per station. Before you start, teach or demonstrate each station first and then put on the Frozen soundtrack. Once you’ve done that say “Go to your stations and have fun!” Give them ten minutes at each station. Just make yourself available at the various stations for anyone who needs help.
Here are the four stations:
1) Ice Station:
Let’s freeze stuff! Get out their favorite juice and carbonated water, frozen berries and fresh fruit, and ice cube trays (especially the ones with the cute shapes). This will be enjoyed as a later treat while they watch the movie.
2) Art Studio Station:
This is the time you will be thanking me for your home art studio. Make sure they have paper, canvas, tree bark, watercolor paper, or etc. We used sheet music. Also provide a fresh new medium - like watercolor crayons and a water spray bottle (which is what I made available). Your instructions are the following: “Have fun making snowy or frozen art.” Then let them create! The cool thing about these is you color like a normal crayon would color, then you can use your fingers to smear the crayon, or spray it with water and make it a water color. These are the ones we have and my biggest artist loves using them:
3) Marshmallow Ice Castle Station:
See what I did there? Marshmallow the character in Frozen 1 and using marshmallows to connect toothpicks to make structures. You just need a bunch of hot chocolate size marshmallows and dozens of toothpicks, plus some whipped cream or white or blue frosting for snow - put it all on a lipped cookie sheet and you have a winter wonderland! My engineering son thoroughly enjoyed this activity since he got to engineer unique structures. My story-telling daughter created a number of little structures and named them. Let the kids build their cubes/castles first. Then, after everyone has rotated through and the stations are completed, let them each dress the cookie sheet with some of the whipped cream to create a pristine snow day. If you have drink umbrellas, add little Olaf in there with the umbrellas and sing his song, “In Summer!” Make sure you have extra marshmallows for a special treat!
4) Activity Book Station
If you have a fourth child or more, then utilize a fourth station to work on their independent work in the activity book. That’s what the word search, word play, and crossword pages are for.
Next for the ice element, in the activity book there are two pages with interesting facts about snowflakes that you can read aloud, discuss, and dig deeper. One sheet is about place value and adding zeros up to the number 100 quintillion! To be honest, I never knew that quintillion came after quadrillion. Okay, so I didn’t know about quadrillion either. See all that you get to learn by homeschooling!?!?
Movie - Frozen 1
It’s lunch time, so it’s time for the movie! Get hot coco ready with marshmallows and enjoy Frozen 1! The movie is everyone’s free time and downtime, so use it wisely! Normally I do not allow screen time during the day, unless it’s an educational video like Mr. DeMaio or a documentary about what we are learning. So, this time is also a treat for me! My son is not really interested in most movies, so he has the freedom to do what he wants at this time. He rides his bike, he plays with his trains, and he might catch some of the movie.
Water
“Where the north wind meets the sea, There's a river full of memory.” Frozen 2 has a number of heart-felt songs - and “All is Found” is one that is all about a river. I printed off the lyrics and we sang it together. We did not discuss water memory at this time, although a major theme of Frozen 2.
But, I did focus on rivers and dams. The Geography Book, by Caroline Arnold is packed full of geographical study that you will love having on hand. The activities are super simple and easy to do while being fun and educational. and we read aloud the 1-2 page chapters 25 “Rivers and Streams” and 28, “Dams and Reservoirs.” We utilized the activities included in those chapters. With a cutting board, some foil or plastic wrap to make a canyon, and a faucet or hose, you can show how a river directs water and can funnel it into an outlet. You can also use a casserole dish, cardboard, and water to create a dam. Using this book we also learned about the Johnstown Flood in 1889 and the damage water can cause to a city and its people. This is all great prep work for Frozen 2. Your children will more deeply appreciate what the river, dam, and potential flooding mean to the main characters.
Wind
A) First, watch both of Mr. DeMaio's YouTube videos on tornadoes and hurricanes. Your kids will enjoy learning this way, and it gives you time for you.
B) Read What's the Difference pages 48-49 which, on these pages, compares tornadoes with hurricanes. We love this book and it’s art and comparisons of natural elements, animals, transportation vehicles, and more. We use this book a bunch depending on what we are studying. While you are reading these pages out loud to them, direct them on how to complete the Venn diagram in the Activity Book. Also, you can discuss what a gale is, since in Frozen 2, Olaf names the wind current, “Gale.”
C) More fable time! We read “The Sun and the Wind” fable from the book Fairy Tales and Fables, by Gyo Fujikawa. This anthology has some familiar fairy tales and fables, and many we’ve never heard too. “The Sun and the Wind” fable is a story teaching how every person has a calling. Every person has a purpose. That calling and purpose is different for each person. Be true to your calling, be true to your purpose - and work hard at what you are created to do. To try to be someone else and to try to follow someone else’s calling is a futile endeavor. This is a great fable to discuss with your children in using their interests and talents to become the people God created them to be. Also, it’s a major theme for both Frozen movies. Once Elsa finds her calling, she is confident, secure, effective, and able to be who she was made to be. Just as she says, “Show yourself! Step into your power,” give your kids the chance to do the same. In the activity book, we give your children a sheet to explore their skills and interests, and how they can grow those and bless others with them too.
D) Bring movement to your day with another wind activity that will take about five minutes. My kids love doing this. Play the song, The Four Seasons: Summer (Presto) by Antonio Vivaldi. While you do, listen for the thunder storm. Pretend you are trees blowing in the wind. Have one of you pretend to be the bird when the solo violin plays the high melody. And obviously, one of you gets to be the wind. We actually performed this in a talent show as a family, and it was hilarious with the Spouse as the air violinist. This song as well as a dozen more are included with the book Can You Hear This? by William Lach. For every song track there is a famous work of art pictured to match the song’s story. There’s even an ice skating song you can perform together pretending to ice skate as well. This book is definitely worth owning as part of your library - bringing music and movement to your homeschool day. We have owned this book for four years now and still enjoy it. Click on the link included above to check it out.
Fire
By now your kids are getting tired. It’s nearing dinnertime and they want to relax, eat, and watch a movie. There is so much we can do with fire, but for now, I settled on teaching a little bit about fire with some fire facts, learning fire safety, discussing an escape plan, and making s’ mores in our fireplace. While we sat by the fire we read from the activity book. We looked for flame colors. We referenced back to our trip two years ago to Muir Woods…we discussed that redwood trees are fire resistant, and how forest fires can actually help these mature trees plant their seeds. Then, we enjoyed our marshmallow treat. There’s so much you can do with fire - but by now it had been a long day, and we were ready for Frozen 2.
Movie - Frozen 2
Now it’s time for Frozen 2! Get out those ice cubes you made earlier in the day and enjoy. It’s a beautiful movie. Full of mythical creatures, haunting tunes, artistic scenes, and numerous life lessons. As you watch, the elements will mean more to you and your children. You will remember the myths and fables you read, wrote, and discussed. You will treasure the wind dance you had together when the characters are swept up in a tornado. During the blueish-purple fire scenes you will notice how the characters escape the danger. As the water rushes toward Arendelle, you will picture the dam you all built together. The elements become much more real to you all - and hopefully the wisdom you shared will too.
Extras
There are a couple additional items I wanted to include that I want to mention here for you to customize your day for your kids interests and age levels.
A) Emotional Intelligence: “You feel what you feel and your feelings are real.” Thank you Sven! When Sadness is at Your Door, by Eva Eland is a touching book teaching children about a feeling that can be overwhelming for all of us, unwelcomed, and pushed away. The story gives the emotion a body and helps a person face it in a healthy way. We read this book on our Frozen Fever Day and discussed when Anna deeply experiences sadness. Then we explored how each of us have experienced sadness in our own lives. We referenced the book for ways to experience sadness that will help us heal. This sweet book is a helpful way to grow your children’s emotional intelligence (EQ).
B) Candy Making: I wanted to make candy with my kids for this day - since candy is magic. But, Pandemic. We didn’t have some of the key ingredients like glucose syrup, so better planning would have definitely been nice. This beautiful book, Candy is Magic, by Jami Curl is a delicious book of recipes for gumdrops, lollipops, caramels, and more. I can’t wait to use if for another magical day!
C) Sticker Mosaic: We have a number of these sticker mosaic books and my girls really enjoy them. What I like about the Paint by Sticker Masterpieces activity book is that the sticker mosaics are famous works of art. So, I had planned to utilize the page with giant waves, called The Great Wave off Kanagawa, by Japanese artist Hokusai. (For information, see Wikipedia.) We ran out of time, so I will save it for another Frozen day or oceans study.
D) Norway Study: You can study the country, the Fjords, the culture, the food, and more for the country of Norway where Frozen takes place. Books like Under the Moon - A Kids Guide to Norway Fjords, or Norway Travel Activity Book and Journal: For Kids! can really help your kids experience the country where Elsa and Anna live.
Whatever you do on Frozen day - it can be fantastical fun. Just be present, be energetic, walk through hard emotions, make memorable activities, and show unconditional love. It will be a day of making magic beyond the elements. Love goes beyond the natural world - and this day is a day to show that. A day to say to your children, as Anna says, “I believe in you."
(See https://screenrant.com/frozen-2-best-magical-quotes-lines/ for the movie quotes included in this article.)
What are your favorite Frozen theme activities? Comment below!
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