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- Feb 13, 2023
- 2 min read
I’m Cuban, and grew up with my Tías’ warnings about El Sereno, the ghoul who comes with the chill evening wind to steal babies’ souls (anyone’s souls, really) when they aren’t bundled up enough against the cold. Those cold, cold, Cuban evenings. That folklore and over 30 years spent in Florida’s various - all mostly warm - climates are my context, and I am not trying to mess around with feeling cold if not absolutely necessary. And really, not even then. I know kids who are happy to face the cold in shorts, but myself and my child are not those kids!
Those things said, here are routines I’ve noticed are helpful for myself and my kids, and for Purple School kids when they are here at the Outdoor School. Once we get temperatures down into the 40s, I dress myself and my outdoor preschooler in no less than 3 layers, everywhere, feet included.
The warmest days are when the base layer is a wool blend or synthetic. Hat and scarf are nonnegotiable. Mittens live in the backpack if not on the hands. On days with a wet ground, a waterproof layer goes over at least the bottom half of the kiddo. They’ll very likely sit or kneel in a wet spot at some point, and wet and cold is not what we’re going for.
As I’ve heard Lesley tell my children many times: If you start the day warm, you’ll stay warm. You can always shed a layer, but getting your base temperature back up when it’s gone below comfortable is a much harder task.
Three layers for cold days:
Base layer: wool blend or synthetic
Fleece
Waterproof layer, hat, scarf, and mittens
Warm food and warm tea go a long way to regulating the internal temperature. On many of our chilly days, we will serve tea to the children at the Takoma Park Cooperative Nursery School - this is a ritual with benefits beyond warmth - and a thermos full of a warm drink from home is also a very good idea.
Bodies in motion are warmer!
We’re building plenty of music and movement into the mornings in the classroom, and neighborhood walks will pick up frequency and become a little longer.
Written by Teresa Jimenez
- Oct 10, 2022
- 1 min read
How and what to play with children in all weather
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