What You’ll Need

• 12 Styrofoam cups
• Markers
• Felt
• Glue

What to Do

1. Decorate 12 Styrofoam cups with markers and felt to look like snowmen.
2. Then play the cup-stacking game: the object is to up-stack and down-stack the cups in pyramid formations, as fast as you can.

To Play

Start with all the cups in one stack. Then: Unstack the cups into a pyramid formation, and stack them back together as fast as possible. Time yourself to see how quickly you can do it. We show one formation above. Think of as many different cup-stacking formations as you can.

Extend the Fun

For younger kids: If stacking isn’t your thing, make a snowman village with the cups. Decorate each one with markers and felt, as above. Arrange the snowman cups in a circle around a pretend campfire made with “logs” (pretzel sticks or bite-size Tootsie Rolls), “tinder” (coconut), and “flames” (red licorice strings.) Drink hot chocolate from snowman cups decorated right-side up.

For older kids: Try competitive cup stacking: two or more players, more cups, more of a challenge! Compete with your friends, noting your times on your tablet or a chalkboard for comparison. For faster stacking, decorate the cups with markers only (not felt) or just use undecorated cups.