These animals in winter books are a great way to teach elementary students about the types of animal adaptations. For example, Hibernation Station by Michelle Meadows and Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson are great books for teaching about hibernation. In addition, Going Home: The Mystery of Animal Migration by Marianne Berkes is great for teaching about migration. Each animals in winter book on this list shares valuable information in an engaging and meaningful way. Your students will love these children’s books about animals in winter! Learn more about some of my favorite winter picture books below and don’t forget to grab the activities that go with these animals in winter books!
This post highlights the following winter read alouds with animal characters:
- Hibernation Station
- Bear Snores On
- The Snowy Nap
- Over and Under the Snow
- Frederick
5 Animals in Winter Books
Below are a list of some of my favorite animals in winter books to share with elementary students!
1. Hibernation Station by Michelle Meadows
Hibernation Station is a fictional story about what happens when too many animals try to hibernate in one place. Winter is approaching, and all of the animals in the forest head to the hibernation station to settle down until spring. However, some of the animals are having trouble sleeping: a black bear’s roommate is too noisy and a groundhog wants more light in its room. Soon, many more animals are uncomfortable in their rooms. Luckily, the bears in charge help all of the animals settle down and they soon fall fast asleep!
Check out these Hibernation Station teaching resources and activities to help you plan and deliver highly engaging read aloud lessons!
2. Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson
The next book on this list of animals in winter books is Bear Snores On. In a cave in the woods, Bear is sleeping soundly through the long winter. Mouse enters the cave and lights a fire, and, soon, Hare joins him and they begin popping corn and brewing tea, but the bear snores on. Badger, a gopher, a mole, a wren, and a raven soon ask to share some of the food, and, despite the commotion, Bear remains fast asleep. That night, Bear eventually wakes up, and, with a great roar, scares the animals off. He is upset that they had all that fun without him. Noticing why he is sad, Mouse offers to brew more tea and pop more corn. Soon, the rest of the animals return and the party continues through the night!
Check out these Bear Snores On teaching resources and activities to help you plan and deliver highly engaging read aloud lessons!
3. The Snowy Nap by Jan Brett
In the story The Snowy Nap, Hedgie takes one last walk around the farm before hibernating for winter. Hedgie runs into the different farm animals and they all tell him about the different fun things that happen in winter that he will miss out on. Hedgie decides that he is going to stay up for winter.
Hedgie ends up falling asleep outside and Lisa brings him inside because he is frozen! In the cozy house, he is able to watch winter happen from the window. When he is finally ready, he falls asleep for winter and Lisa brings him inside to his warm den in a tree trunk.
Check out these The Snowy Nap teaching resources and activities to help you plan and deliver highly engaging read aloud lessons!
4. Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner
In Over and Under the Snow girl and her dad are out cross-country skiing together. When the girl notices a fox disappear into a crack in the ground, her dad tells her that there is a whole world under the snow. As they ski through the woods, the girl considers all of the animals both nested under the snow, such as mice and voles, and those her and her dad notice above the ground, such as deer and owls. That night, the girl dreams of all of the animals she had seen that day, and imagines the secret kingdom under the snow.
Check out these Over and Under the Snow teaching resources and activities to help you plan and deliver highly engaging read aloud lessons!
5. Frederick by Leo Lionni
The story Frederick is about a family of mice that are preparing for winter. Frederick’s family gathers nuts, corn, wheat and straw to have food for winter. Frederick has a different idea of what he thinks is necessary for winter. Frederick gathers sun rays, colors, and words for the winter time. When the food finally runs out, his family is shocked to learn that the things Frederick gathered are incredibly helpful.
Check out these Frederick teaching resources and activities to help you plan and deliver highly engaging read aloud lessons!
Get All of the Animals in Winter Book Activities!
Scoop up all of the activity packets based on the picture books featured in this post!
Or Get All of the Activity Packets for 600+ Picture Books!
Starts with a Story is a collection of hundreds of book companions based on high quality children’s literature that support you in delivering highly-engaging interactive read alouds with follow up activities. Each book companion includes:
- reading comprehension questions with sample student responses
- 30 writing prompts targeting 10 different types of writing
- SEL lesson ideas based on character and events from each story
- printable student activities
- editable teaching slides with book-based clipart
- and more.
Learn how to get unlimited access to all 600+ book companion packets below!
Related Animals in Winter Activities
One Last Thing Before You Go… Grab this Free Reading Resource!
If you want to get more book ideas to read aloud to your elementary students, then grab this reading freebie for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade classroom teachers. It includes:
- seasonal read aloud books lists for teachers
- printable reading logs to track students’ reading
- monthly reading challenges to motivate students to read more
It will have you covered for the entire school year, as well as the summer months! Grab this free elementary reading packet now!
In closing, we hope you found this list of animals in winter books helpful! If you are a member of Starts With a Story, you have access to all of these book companion activities. Lastly, you may also be interested in these winter books for kids if you love read alouds like us!
