How to Make a Winter Hand Print Tree with Snowy Fingerprints

Let the kids use their hands and fingers to make this sweet winter hand print tree.

Every month, I let my students use their hands to create keepsake art.

After the art is done, the children tell me a story about the picture. We then work together to write the story, or I write their story for them.

These are saved until the end of the year, when I create a preschool portfolio of their art and writing.

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Snowy Fun with a Winter Hand Print Tree

For January this year, each child made a winter hand print tree.

Here’s what we did!

Winter Hand Print Tree Materials

Brown tempera paint

White tempera paint

Light blue construction paper

Pretend snow (leftover from our Arctic small world sensory play)

Related: Symmetry Snowflake Craft

Directions for Winter Hand Print Tree Art

First, have the child paint her hand brown paint. If she wants, she can paint her forearm too. Of course, help out as needed.

Next, help the child place her hand, paint-side down, on the blue construction paper. Have her press her hand down slightly onto the paper.

From there, either have the kiddo press her painted forearm down on the paper, too or use a paint brush to create the “trunk”.

Then let the child paint snow on the ground, if she wants to, using the white paint.

She can then dip her finger into the white paint and use her painted fingers to create snowflakes.

Lastly, help her sprinkle some pretend snow on the still-wet white paint. Shake off excess.

Chatting While Making Art

This is a great time to talk with children about how trees change with the seasons. Of course, this will likely depend on where you live!

My students and I had a nice discussion about which trees had lost all of their leaves for the winter (and which didn’t).

Using art to teach other concepts works really well in preschool!

The boys and girls did this little project their own way. When asked, most didn’t want their forearms painted. So either they added the “tree trunks” or I did (at their requests).

They ALL enjoyed adding the snow to the picture! Most of them used their fingers for the snowflakes, but some didn’t feel like it. They wanted to use paint brushes instead, so I let them do just that.

After each child painted their wintry tree, I let everything dry. We put the trees up around our classroom as decoration.

Since we had some leftover materials, I made sure to give the kids free painting time if they wanted to. It’s always fun to see what the kids create, even if they only have two colors to choose from.

Have you made a winter hand print tree with your kids/students?

Pop over to Pinterest for more hand print craft ideas.

Preschool Snow Lesson Plans

Save time and get right to the playful learning with our printable lesson plan sets. Each set includes over 30 learning activities related to the theme.