BIRTHDAY PARTY

In the middle of winter

In the white season completely new possibilities for a children's birthday party: How about, for example, a little exploration tour in the forest? When there's snow, you can discover many animal tracks and follow them for a long time. Can you recognize which animals the tracks belong to?

And do you also know the different conifers, that right now in the winter forest look especially splendid? If the birthday party should be a little more action-packed, sledding or ice skating great alternatives to a winter hike.

Let's go outside!

• Expedition at the North Pole:For this you'll need large paper plates or wooden boards with holes drilled in them and string or elastic cord. The paper plates or wooden boards are tied to the feet. Now everyone lines up in a row. The leader stomps a trail in the snow first. All the others follow, always having to step into the same holes.

• Snow relay race:Two teams form single-file lines. The first runner sets off with a flat plate piled high with snow, runs to a designated point — and back. The next takes the plate, runs ... and so on. The team that first has no more snow left on the plate loses.

• Snow variety show:Two people carefully pull a sled on which someone performs tricks: standing on one leg, doing pirouettes, doing a handstand ... Whoever is not currently pulling or performing is a spectator and may give scores from 1 to 10, like in a figure skating routine. Whoever achieves the most points is sled world champion.