Bear themes are so much fun, whether they're Brown Bear, Brown Bear themed, Teddy bear themed, or featuring any of the beloved bear characters from literature. But a real bear unit can be fun, too. Kids are generally fascinated by bears, and hibernation is a great theme for fall and winter.
At Living Montessori Now, I have a list of free bear printables featuring real bears. The free printables include my latest subscriber freebie (a Montessori-inspired bear pack). Here, I'm sharing ideas for using free bear printables to create Montessori-inspired activities.
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).
Montessori Shelves with Bear-Themed Activities
My shelves with bear-themed activities include a free bear culture card designed by The Montessori Company. You’ll also find Montessori-inspired bear numbers, letters, spinners, and and more (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)
I always have related books available throughout a unit. I absolutely adore the National Geographic animal books. There are a number of awesome National Geographic bear books to choose from. I included Bears: Polar Bears, Black Bears and Grizzly Bears (Kids Can Press Wildlife Series) on my introductory bear shelf. I have lots of fictional bear books in our book baskets and on our book shelves.
My 4-year-old granddaughter, Zoey, loves puzzles, so I have a giant world foam puzzle with 54 pieces in a large basket (not shown in my photos). That's great for using with Safari Ltd. or Schleich animals.
When Zoey was younger, I used the puzzle that I have displayed for animal geography. I don't think it's available any longer. For home use, I don't use the Montessori continent puzzle, which is a bit too large and impractical. I like to get world puzzles that are less expensive and can be changed according to Zoey's developmental level.
I have a few Schleich bears as an introduction. (I'm collecting Schleich animals for my two grandbabies who will be born in the next few months!)
You could mix your bear-themed activities among your shelves according to curriculum area. Or you could have a special bear-themed area something like the one pictured. My shelves this month have a mixture of skill levels. Many of the activities can be adapted for a variety of levels. If you’re a homeschooler, just choose the activities that work for your child’s interests and ability levels. If you don’t have room for all the activities you’d like to do, simply rotate them.
Bear Culture Card (on Shelf Introducing the Bear Theme)
I'm happy to share with you this awesome hand-painted bear culture card from The Montessori Company. You can use it on your shelves to introduce a bear unit. I’m hosting the free printable as an instant download at Living Montessori Now. You can always access the free bear culture card here.
The description says: “Bears are omnivores that eat berries, honey, nuts, fish and other mammals. In the winter they dig holes to hibernate in.” I displayed the card with a Schleich North America sloth bear and Bears Are Curious book (especially good for toddlers, young preschoolers, and beginning readers).
Matching Animals of North America Cards with Safari Ltd. Animals
Free Printable: North American Mammal Cards from Welcome to Mommyhood I used mainly animals from the Safari Ltd. North American Wildlife TOOB. I just used a bamboo paper plate holder for the materials. Bamboo paper plate holders are inexpensive and work well for a number of activities.
Matching North American Animal Silhouettes with Animal Pictures
Free Printable: North American Animal Silhouettes from Imagine Our Life
This couldn't be much easier to prepare. I just printed it, cut it out (rather than having the child draw lines to match the animal and silhouette), and put it in a Montessori Services basket.
Letter Z Object Basket with Mystery Bag and Blindfold
Free Printables: Bear Letters for Letter B Object Basket (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)
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| Using the Letter B Mystery Bag and Blindfold to Identify Objects Starting with the /b/ Sound |
We used a Montessori mystery bag and blindfold for interest and to work on the stereognostic sense. I got the basket, mystery bag, and blindfold from Montessori Services. I don't put this out each unit, and Zoey loves when I do use it.
Letter B Sand Tray
Free Printables: /b/ is for bear in manuscript, D'Nealian, or Cursive for Letter B Sand Writing Tray (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)
For the tray, I used the wooden tray from the Melissa & Doug Lace and Trace Shapes. You can use whatever tray or container work best for you, though. I added a Safari Ltd. bear for interest.
Tray for Making an Animals That Hibernate Mini-Book
Free Printable: Little Book of Animals That Hibernate from Lil’ Country Librarian
I just used a Multicraft tray and a few office supplies for the book. Zoey was very drawn to this work and loved the book she made.
Bear Puzzles
Free Printable: 4 Bear Puzzles from Polar Bear Pack (now a subscriber freebie) from Blessed and Happy Home
You'll also find some free bear puzzles on Teachers Pay Teachers.
These are simple puzzles that work well for a young preschooler. For Zoey, I mixed up four puzzles in the Montessori Services baskett so that she can sort them out before putting them together.
Matching Numerals with Miniature Bears and Bead Bars
Free Printable: 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)
This activity uses a piece of felt for a table mat and bead bars from the decanomial box in a Multicraft tray and a Bambu condiment cup (what I used here) or Montessori Services basket. (My bead bars, which I love, are from Alison’s Montessori. You can get bead bars on Amazon, although I haven’t personally used materials from those companies.)
I also added 20 Safari Ltd. Good Luck Mini black bears. I was lucky to find them at a great price in an outlet store. I would also have been happy using fish (something bears like to eat) for the counters. I still have the silver fish from our penguin theme, so I would have used those.
You could make a game using one of the spinners from our subscriber freebie or you could play it like a card game. I like to mix the cards up, turn them over, and have the child draw a card. The mini bears are laid out and then the bead bars to represent the number drawn.
Hibernation, Migration, and Adaptation Activity
Free Printable: Animals in Winter: Migration, Hibernation, and Adaptation (subscriber freebie) from The Natural Homeschool
This was another super-easy activity to prepare. It just requires the printables and some office supplies. Hibernation, migration, and adaptation are great concepts for children to understand.
More Free Bear Printables
Go to my post at Living Montessori Now for links to free bear printables from around the blogosphere: Free Bear Printables and Montessori-Inspired Bear 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.
HELPFUL ANIMAL CLASSIFICATION POSTS
- Living and Non-Living
- Plant and Animal Sorting
- Montessori Animal Classification
- Free Zoo Printables and Montessori-Inspired Zoo Activities
- Montessori-Inspired Animal Units
Have a great rest of the month!
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 42 years (and lives in the city where her kids, kids-in-law, and 3-year-old granddaughter live). She blogs at Living Montessori Now.
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