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This funny, relatable book follows a kid with BIG plans and even bigger confidence: they're going to build the most incredible snowman EVER. They walk through every step with total certainty, and then... the snowman looks absolutely nothing like what they imagined. And they think it's perfect anyway. It's a wonderful book about pride in your own work, the gap between expectations and reality (which every little kid lives in constantly), and the pure joy of just making something.

Discussion Questions

• What did the kid in the book think their snowman was going to look like?
• What did the snowman actually look like? How did the kid feel about it?
• Have you ever made something that didn't turn out the way you planned but you still loved it?
• If YOU were building the world's best snowman, what would it have on it?
  
  

Playdough Snowman SculptingBuilding a snowman out of playdough is the perfect match for this book and your learner gets to plan their ultimate snowman and then see what actually happens when their hands take over. The stacking, rolling, and pinching involved is excellent fine motor work.

Supplies

• White playdough (store-bought or homemade)
• Small household items for decorating: buttons, toothpicks, dried beans, small pebbles, googly eyes, bits of fabric or ribbon for a scarf

Homemade playdough tip: 1 cup flour, ½ cup salt, 2 tsp cream of tartar, 1 cup water, 1 tbsp oil. Cook on the stove over medium heat, stirring until it pulls away from the sides. Knead it together and you have playdough! Store in a sealed container. We add silver glitter to ours if we're feeling fancy.

Steps

1. Before starting, ask your child: what is your snowman going to look like? Let them describe their vision in full glorious detail. Hype it up.
2. Roll three balls of white playdough: big, medium, and small. Talk about which goes where and why.
3. Stack them carefully. This is the tricky part! Let them problem-solve if the stack wobbles.
4. Add the decorations: press in buttons, poke in a toothpick for arms, add a ribbon scarf, whatever they've got.
5. Step back and look at it. Ask: "Is this the best snowman ever?" (The answer should absolutely be yes.)
6. Compare it to what they described before they started. Is it the same? Different? Does that matter?
   
   

Tips for Parents

• The whole point of the book is that the snowman doesn't have to look perfect to be wonderful. If your child gets frustrated when it doesn't match their vision, that's actually the perfect moment to connect back to the story.
  
  

Extensions

• Measurement fun: When making the snowballs talk about those early math words. Which is biggest? Smallest? Can you find something in the house that's about the same size as each ball?
• Try making a snowman family: different sizes, different personalities. Who are they? What are their names?
• If you live somewhere with real snow, take the book outside and actually try to build one. Then compare your real snowman to the playdough version!