Friday, December 21, 2012

Wonderful Winter Solstice ~ 2012


In the Northern Hemisphere, winter is the 
coldest season of the year. 
It begins about December 21 and lasts until about March 21. Around December 21 or 22, 
the sun's rays fall directly over the farthest point south of the equator - marking the first day of winter. 



Winter days have fewer hours of daylight because of the path the earth takes as it revolves around the sun. The earth completely revolves around the sun during 365 days. The earth's axis always tips about 23 1/2 degrees from a line perpendicular to its path. 





In the Southern Hemisphere, winter begins in June.
Different regions have longer winters than others. For example, in the polar regions, winter takes up half the year. In the Temperate Zones winter takes up about one quarter of the year. 








In regions where there is cold weather, it causes many changes in the environment. Water may freeze and become ice, snow, sleet or icicles. Most plants and animals become dormant and rest. 
Some animals hibernate. 
The only plants that grow and remain green are evergreens. 
People protect themselves from the cold climate with winter clothing when they go outdoors. They enjoy a variety of indoor activities or outdoor winter sports such as skiing, skating, or sledding. 


*     *     *     *     * 


Here are some fun winter links!
 


Want to make an online snowflake? Click here! 




BrainPop has some great winter and snow movies! Click here! 

Snowflake Workshop? Click here! 
What do you enjoy most about winter?


How will you be celebrating the holidays?

What activities will you be participating in this winter break?

5 comments:

  1. Dear Mrs. Yollis and class,

    I like winter because we always go skiing and snowboarding at Mountain High or Big Bear. Do you know how to snowboard? If you don't, do you know how to ski?

    I also like winter because it starts in December and in December, we celebrate Christmas. In fact, yesterday was Christmas! I hope you had a Merry Christmas!

    Warmly,
    Heather

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @ Heather,

      What a terrific winter comment! You have included excellent details about sports and locations. Nice capitalization of the proper nouns!

      You asked if I know how to snowboard. Yes, I learned about eight years ago. It took me a very long time to learn how to turn without falling. It was so difficult, I nearly gave up and went back to skiing. However, I persevered and can now turn on the beginner slopes!

      Glad you are enjoying your break!

      Your proud teacher,
      Mrs. Y♥llis

      Delete
  2. Dear Mrs. Yollis and all snowflakes,

    Brrr! It sounds cold to be in the snow! Snow sounds fun to me, even though I've never been in snow.

    Did you know that no snowflakes look or ever will look the same? Each one is unique like each individual person.

    Stay warm,
    Chl★e

    ReplyDelete
  3. @ Mrs. Yollis,
    Thank you for these fun links! I might use them when I have time haha :)
    The thing I enjoy most about winter is the snow and the cold breeze. Also, I like winter because it has my favorite holiday: Christmas!
    I celebrated my holidays in San Francisco/Daly City because most my relatives live there. It was so much fun! My favorite part was when they gave out all the presents after we all got together.
    Well, Winter Break has passed but I only did a few activities. One of them was ice skating. I've been ice skating since I was six and I still enjoy it today! It is fun to me because I like the wind blowing in my face when I glide through the ice.
    - From Euriel

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi my name is Maribel and I am from Mr. Millers room. I like all the links but my favorite link is the first one. What I like the most about winter is that its cozy warm inside although it is cold outside. I went with my dad for Christmas It was pretty fun. :) This winter break I went with my family to a carnival thing were u take pictures and play games. My favorite part was where we danced. :)

    ReplyDelete

* * *
Getting feedback is important to our writers. Let us know what you liked or what you learned.

Steps to Comment:

1. Write your comment in the box below. Be sure that you have proofread it for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization. Students should have a parent check it!

2. Choose an identity. (If you have a gmail account, use it. If not, choose name/url. You can leave the url blank if you do not have a blog.)

3. Click "Publish your Comment". You may preview your comment before publishing if you'd like.


Important: All comments MUST be approved by me.
:-) Mrs. Yollis