Montessori-Inspired Arctic Animal Activities Using Free Printables

By Deb Chitwood from Living Montessori Now 

Arctic animals are lots of fun to study in the winter. So are Antarctic animals. To help anyone who's confused understand that penguins are in the Southern Hemisphere, I'm sharing only ideas for Arctic animal activities today. 

I have a post at Living Montessori Now with free Arctic animal printables. Some of the printables include penguins. They're still great printables, but be sure to leave out the penguins unless you're studying both the Arctic and Antarctica. 

You'll find many activities for preschoolers through first graders throughout the year along with presentation ideas in my previous posts at PreK + K Sharing. You'll also find ideas for using free printables to create activity trays here: How to Use Printables to Create Montessori-Inspired Activities. 

At Living Montessori Now, I have a post with resource links of Free Printables for Montessori Homeschools and Preschools. 

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links at no cost to you. 

Arctic Matching Activity with Safari Ltd. Arctic Figures Plus Arctic Cards  

Free Printable: Safari Ltd. Arctic TOOB Key 

Free Printable: Arctic Animals (to match non-human animals in Safari Ltd. Arctic TOOB) from Arctic Unit Culture and Geography Pack by Every Star is Different or Animals of the Arctic 3-Part Cards (to match Safari Ltd. TOOB) by Montessori Soul 

For this activity, I used a large white Montessori Services tray (which looks much nicer in reality ... these days of early darkness make getting decent photos much harder), a clear acrylic tray, and the figures from the Safari Ltd. Arctic TOOB. 

My 3-year-old granddaughter, Zoey, loved this activity. I'll add in the card matching next time.

Animals of the Arctic Roll and Bump Game (Counting or Addition)  

Free Printable: Animals of the Arctic Bump Game from The Preschool Mom 

For this activity, I used a large white Montessori Services tray, clear glass gems to cover the numbers (I like that you can still see the numbers), a dice, and a small container for the glass gems. 

This can be a simple counting and number identification game using one dice. Or you can use two dice for an addition game. You can choose whether or not you want a child to be able to bump another child off a space already taken. Or two children can play this cooperatively, taking turns rolling the dice to see how soon they together can fill the page. 

DIY Polar Bear Cub Cards and Counters  

Free Printable: Polar Bear Numbers (part of my subscriber freebie pack, so just sign up for my email to get the link and password … or check the bottom of your latest newsletter if you’re already a subscriber) You'll find phonics printables in the polar bear pack along with the polar bear numbers. 

I used a Montessori Services medium-size tray and glass bowl with 55 snowflake gems. (There are enough in a package to have 55 snowflakes, which is the exact number needed for Montessori cards and counters.) I love the snowflake gems (so does Zoey). They can be used for many activities. (I used them in last year's snowflake post.)

 

I like to lay out my numbers and counters in the traditional Montessori way of rows of two counters with a left-over counter centered below the bottom row. This gives a visual impression of odd and even. 

For more about creating DIY numbers and counters and a link on how to present the lesson, check out my DIY Cards and Counters post. 

I use a Montessori Services rug on the floor for the layout. 

Arctic Number Order and Skip Counting Puzzles  

Free Printable: Arctic Number Order and Skip Counting Puzzles by Gracehopper at Teachers Pay Teachers 

For this activity, I just used the printable and a basket for the strips. (I'm not sure where I found the basket.) 

There are a number of puzzles in this printable and a number of different options for skill level. You can just have a simple 1-10 puzzle, like this Arctic hare puzzle, an 11-20 puzzle, or a number of options for skip counting puzzles.

Nonfiction Beginning Reader Printable Book - Arctic (with Optional Gross-Motor Activities)  

Free Printable: Nonfiction Beginning Reader Printable Book - Arctic by Hope Laugh Teach at Teachers Pay Teachers (Note: Be sure to remove the page with the penguin.) 

For this activity, I used two binder rings (although you could staple it together) and a small tabletop easel to display the book on the shelf. 

For a young preschooler, you can assemble the book. For an advanced preschooler through first grader, the child can cut apart the pages, assemble the book, and read the book independently. 

I love the versatility of this printable! For children who are interested, you can use this for a gross motor and drama activity. "Polar bears walk in the Arctic. Rabbits hop in the Arctic. Walruses snort in the Arctic. Seals swim in the Arctic. Foxes blend in the Arctic." The child can simply act out the words on each page. 

Another idea would be for a young child to find the Safari Ltd. Arctic animals that match the animals pictured in the book.

More Free Arctic Animal Printables

Go to my post at Living Montessori Now for links to free Arctic Animal printables from around the blogosphere: Free Arctic Animal Printables and Montessori-Inspired Arctic Animal Activities. And be sure to subscribe to my email list if you'd like to get an exclusive free printable each month (plus two more awesome freebies right away): Free Printables.

More Arctic Animal Activities

• Montessori-Inspired Arctic and Antarctic Unit Montessori-Inspired Toddler 
• Geography Activities with Baby Beluga

If you'd like to focus on manners with children, please check out my eBook Montessori at Home or School: How to Teach Grace and Courtesy! It's written for anyone who'd like to feel comfortable teaching manners to children ages 2-12. I'm also one of the coauthors of the book Learn with Play – 150+ Activities for Year-round Fun & Learning!

Have a wonderful winter! If you're in the Southern Hemisphere, you can cool down by focusing on the Arctic! 

Deb Chitwood is a certified Montessori teacher with a master’s degree in Early Childhood Studies from Sheffield Hallam University in Sheffield, England. Deb taught in Montessori schools in Iowa and Arizona before becoming owner/director/teacher of her own Montessori school in South Dakota. Later, she homeschooled her two children through high school. Deb is now a Montessori writer who lives in San Diego with her husband of 41 years (and lives in the city where her kids, kids-in-law, and toddler granddaughter live). She blogs at Living Montessori Now.

Celebrating Families in Early Childhood Thanksgiving Festivities

Hi! I'm Ayn and I am a Ga. Pre-K teacher, serving 4 and 5 year olds in an inclusive setting. I share my classroom adventures on my blog, little illuminations.

Thanksgiving here in the U.S. is swiftly approaching. This week, we have had professional development and the rest of the week my class will be with my assistant and a sub while I'm am ever so busy in teacher heaven, I mean, at the 2012 NAEYC Annual Conference!!!!! Woot, woot, holla! (Sorry, got just a little excited there!) 

When I return, we only have one week before we are out for Thanksgiving break. There won't be time to do many of the fun things we usually do in Pre-K, but there are some things that are a big part of my Thanksgiving teaching traditions and I can't skip them! In Georgia Pre-K, one of our standards is that  students become aware of family and community celebrations and events, so that is the main thing we will be learning about and discussing in class. 

Family Homework Project-Save A Turkey!

I don't usually send home homework in Pre-K, but when I do, it is usually an activity that the family can do together, then share the results. The Turkey In Disguise family project is a favorite every year and I've heard a few families with older siblings may already be planning Tom's disguise for this year! I send home a turkey blackline master on cardstock and ask each family to help disguise the turkey so that he will be spared from Thanksgiving dinner. This would be fun as a family, too! Just print out your favorite turkey coloring page (there are thousands on the internet) and have each member disguise him any way they like!

Turkey Cooking Tips

Every year, I like to ask the kids to sit down with me one on one and tell me how their family prepares the turkey or thanksgiving dinner. If a family usually eats something else, I ask them to tell me about that. It's a great time for them to practice their language skills. I compile the answers and share them with the families at the school Thanksgiving Feast. While the are not accurate enough to use as an exact recipe, they make for EXCELLENT reading!

Talkin' Turkey

We are famous for our colloquialisms in the South. I can't tell you how many times one of the kids has come to school and repeated something they've heard a family member say, usually with a little of their own spin on it.  I like to give them part of the phrase and have THEM complete is for me. The answers are hilarious! Thanksgiving is the perfect time of year to have the kids share their answers. I think it also gives a little insight into how a 4 year old brain thinks!

Making Butter 

We make butter using heavy whipping cream and our muscles. We pour it in a bowl pop in a marble and take turns shaking with all of our might! Usually the butter is ready by the time all 22 friends have had a turn to shake. We share the butter with our families at our school wide Family Feast.

Family Feast at School

Every year, our school administration cooks a large Thanksgiving feast and invites all the families to come in and eat with their children. It's a great time of food, fellowship and fun! (I usually don't get to take many pictures since my hands are usually full. The picture below is of the children waiting for their parents to join them so we can start serving.)

Expectations Are Everything!

Thanksgiving is a very big social occasion here in the south. Such occasions can be overwhelming for small children. One of the things we will be discussing is how the children's families celebrate and what to expect. It is so much less scary for kids when we give them a chance to talk about their fears or apprehensions! 

Coming Soon!

Be sure to visit me at little illuminations soon! I'll be sharing my experiences at NAEYC and details about my meet up with some FANTASTIC Early Childhood Bloggers (you'll know most of them from here ;)!!!! 

If you are lucky enough to make it to NAEYC, too, look for me, I'll be the one with the goofy ear to ear grin, looking like I've died and landed in teacher heaven!

Stop by and visit me anytime at littleilluminations.blogspot.com or visit the little illuminations fanpage on facebook!

American Culture, Tradition, and Patriotism

Greetings from an American traveler! This summer my family and I have embarked on a journey across the states to celebrate our son’s graduation from high school. As I have contemplated what to put together for this blog coming out just after our country’s birthday celebration, I began thinking about patriotism, why we celebrate days like the Fourth of July, how we celebrate days like this and the traditions we follow, etc., etc. This lead me down a path of considering culture and what it means to be American. Which lead me back to thinking about why I decided to make it possible for the family to get in the car the night of June 14 and set out across the western states to experience our country.

Charles Miller, High School Grad (at last) 

Disclaimer……this blog is very much about my personal (although professionally influenced) thoughts about being an American and the American culture and traditions that people share that make us Americans. It is not meant in any way to diminish any or be insensitive to other cultural heritage. I firmly believe there is a time and place to celebrate and promote other cultures, but during a time of year where we parade around the American flag, I’d like to take a few minutes to encourage you to think about what makes you an American and how that might be incorporated into your early care and education programs.

What is culture and how is it transmitted from one generation to the next?

According to lingualinks.com, “Cultural transmission is the process of passing on culturally relevant knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values from person to person or from culture to culture” (1996). “For anthropologists and other behavioral scientists, culture is the full range of learned human behavior patterns” (http://anthro.palomar.edu/culture/culture_1.htm). There is a vast amount of scholarly literature in the social development and anthropological fields of study that can be referenced about culture, cultural transmission, and social learning theory. In deference to making this blog the most reader-friendly as possible, I will not go into any more detail than to say that the basic premise is that children learn what they are taught…..if you provide opportunities for children in your program to learn about culture, they will learn it.

The Grand Tetons....a natural American icon.

Here are some things to think about when you contemplate program planning in the future and how you might renew or implement teaching the American culture and continuing traditions in your corner of our amazing United States:

1. So, just what does make a person American? Not just citizenship, but what is the American way? I believe there are certain ideals that Americans hold that make us unique in the world. Ideas like freedom of speech, rights to assemble, working hard for prosperity and success come to mind. How do you define being an American? Do you create learning/play opportunities that promote those ideals and beliefs?

Old Faithful, Yellowstone National Park

2. How do you define your American culture and your traditions?

Back to our trip…..Doing this blog topic made me think about why I decided to take the family in a car to camp across 17 states and 2 provinces in 30 days this summer. When I was growing up, my parents had summers off as educators often do, and we would pack up a car or van every 3 years or so and head out to explore our country. It’s amazing how vast and diverse yet similar our country is. We started off in Georgia and have been through Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Alberta (Canada), British Columbia (Canada), Washington, Oregon, California, and are now in Nevada. This afternoon (July 5) we are setting out for Utah again and then Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, and back home. We are camping, and in a car (no DVD players…but ipods and cell phones are allowed). To me, this is an excellent way to experience our country and learn about being American……the vast expanses of lands, the ability to cross close boarders (between states) without military involvement, the ability to use the same currency and speak the same language and expect and receive similar goods and services over 5,000 miles. During this time we have had a chance not only to bond, but to tell our children about each state, ourselves, and our history. It has been a way to experience and further define our American culture within ourselves through the family tradition of travel.

Camping in Yellowstone...Great American Bison 20 yds from our tents!

            Note: There is a difference between culture and tradition. Culture is a more broad, historically influenced way of being and considering ourselves. Traditions are more individualized and help display culture. You might think of culture as a set of beliefs with history behind them that define a group of people in a large context, and traditions are behaviors that allow you to see and demonstrate those beliefs.

3. What traditions are you passing down in your program that help children identify and demonstrate their American culture?

Trout fishing...3 keepers from Yellowstone Lake.

4. Patriotism….what is it? How do you convey it to children?

I leave you with those questions to ponder as you either continue in or plan for your new year with young minds who are just now learning what it means to be a person. How are you helping pass on the culture of Americanism?

~Dr. Ellaine B. Miller

Miller family experiencing the Redwood Forrest!

Blog entry by Dr. Ellaine B. Miller, PhD. Family Child Care Partnerships at Auburn University.www.humsci.auburn.edu/fccp