Winter brings excitement, creativity, and a perfect opportunity to blend sustainability with STEM learning. Whether students are building snowmen from recyclables or engineering solutions to cold-weather challenges, this season offers plenty of ways to spark curiosity while reminding students how their choices impact the planet.
Here are three Sustainable STEM ideas that bring winter magic into your classroom while keeping environmental stewardship at the heart of learning.
K–1: Recycled Snowflakes: Symmetry + Sustainability
Little learners love creating winter art, and this activity weaves together creativity, geometry, and eco-friendly design.
Activity:
Have students create large snowflakes using only recycled materials, such as scrap paper, leftover packaging, tissue paper bits, cereal boxes, etc. Begin by exploring real snowflake photos and talking about symmetry in nature. Then challenge students to cut or assemble their own snowflakes using only what they can rescue from the recycling bin.
Sustainability Connection:
Students learn that beautiful things can come from reused materials, and that reducing waste is a simple way to help the Earth, even during the holiday season.
Grades 2–3: Pinecone Bird Feeders: Winter Wildlife Engineering
When food sources get scarce in winter, birds rely on creative helpers…like your students!
Activity:
Introduce students to the idea that animals face challenges in the colder months. Then have them build simple bird feeders using pinecones, twine, sunflower seeds, and a seed-friendly binder like vegetable shortening.
Students test how well their feeder holds seeds, adjust design choices, and reflect on which features were most successful.
Sustainability Connection:
This activity blends empathy for wildlife with the engineering design process. Students learn that humans can support local ecosystems year-round, especially in winter when small acts make a big difference.
Grades 4–5: Recycled Winter Lanterns: A Make-and-Take Upcycling Project
Upper-elementary students love creating something they can bring home, and this project turns “trash” into a functional, winter-themed treasure.
Activity:
Students design and build a winter lantern using a recycled jar or clear plastic container, an LED tea light, and materials rescued from the classroom recycling bin (tissue scraps, cardboard, paper, fabric bits).
They plan their design, test different ways to diffuse light, and decorate with winter patterns or sustainability messages. Each student finishes with a glowing lantern they can take home and share with their families.
Sustainability Connection:
This make-and-take project highlights the power of upcycling—transforming discarded materials into something useful and meaningful. Students reflect on how creativity and engineering can reduce waste during a season known for excess.
Bringing It All Together
Sustainable STEM isn’t just another seasonal activity; it’s a mindset we can weave throughout the winter months and beyond. By helping students think critically and care for the world around them, we’re building habits that last far beyond the holidays.
Ready to lead your students on this exciting trail map? Take a look at some blogs that can bring sustainability into your classroom.
Miss Makey: Turning Trash to Treasure