Wednesday 21 September 2016

Social Studies Explore Tubs - Community

Here are the theme topics that we study each month:

December - Social Studies: Christmas Around the World
January - Science: Five Senses
February - Social Studies: Canada
March - Health: Nutrition
April - Science: Objects & Materials and
Health - Dental Health
May - Social Studies: Community
June - Science: Living Things

This is my last post on Explore Tubs! In May, we study our community, community helpers, and mapping. We usually go on a community field trip too! Last year we went to a nursery, a pasta factory, a newspaper, a gym, and an arts council. It was so much fun! Here is a look at the Explore Tubs we played with during this Social Studies unit:


*Community Books: Follow That Map, Looking at Maps and Globes, Me on the Map, Clothesline Clues to Jobs People Do, Whose Hat is This?, Mapping Penny's WorldThere's a Map on My Lap!, All Through My Town, Community Helpers from A to Z, Community Helpers 8-Book Set


*Community Helper Playdough Mats {by me on TpT}
*Play-Doh {from Amazon}


*Community Helpers Picture Sort {by me on TpT}


*Map Making Kit {from Differentiation Station Creation on TpT}
*Melissa & Doug Wooden Vehicles & Traffic Signs {from Scholar's Choice}
*Printable Roads, Lakes, etc. {freebie from me here}


*Small Foam Globes {from Dollarama or Michaels}
*Land or Water? Tally Mark Chart {freebie from me here}: Laminate. Students can play by themselves or with a partner. They throw the ball, catch it, and see where their right thumb lands. They make a tally mark if it lands on land or water.
*Dry Erase Markers


*Community Helpers Matching Puzzles {from Scholar's Choice}


*Community Helper Board Game {by me on TpT}

You can read more about my other Explore Tubs here:

Tuesday 20 September 2016

Health Explore Tubs - Dental Health

Here are the theme topics that we study each month:

December - Social Studies: Christmas Around the World
January - Science: Five Senses
February - Social Studies: Canada
March - Health: Nutrition
April - Science: Objects & Materials and
Health - Dental Health

April is Dental Health month! We spend a couple of weeks talking about keeping our teeth clean and healthy. This transitions perfectly into our community helpers unit in May! Here are some simple Explore Tub ideas for our Dental Health study:




*Happy and Sad Tooth Sort {freebie by me here}


*Dental Health Board Game {by me on TpT}


*White Unifix Cubes or Wooden Cubes Painted White
*Number Cube and Plus or Minus Cube: Use foam or wooden cubes and write three plus signs and three minus signs on one cube and the numbers 1-6 on the other cube.
*Mouth Game Board {freebie by me here}: Students start with an empty mouth board. They roll the two cubes and either add or take away teeth based on the plus or minus sign.


*Play-Doh Doctor Drill 'n Fill Set {from Amazon}


*Guess Who? Smile Edition Matching Game: Take close up pictures of students' heads. On one card crop just the mouth with the words "Guess Who?" and on the other card put the student's name and picture. Students can practice matching up the smiles! 


*Dental Health Bingo {by me on TpT}
*Unifix Cubes or Bingo Chips

You can read more about my other Explore Tubs here:

Monday 19 September 2016

Health Explore Tubs - Nutrition

Here are the theme topics that we study each month:

December - Social Studies: Christmas Around the World
January - Science: Five Senses
February - Social Studies: Canada
March - Health: Nutrition

March is Nutrition Month, so we talk about eating healthy, healthy lifestyles, and the four food groups. Here are some fun Explore Tubs to go with our unit:




*Healthy Helpings: A MyPlate Game {from Learning Resources}


*Healthy Foods Board Game {by me on TpT}


*Food Groups Picture Sort {by me on TpT}


*Play-Doh Meal Makin' Kitchen {from Toys R Us}
*Plate Mat {freebie from me here}
*Play-Doh {from Amazon}


*MyPlate Sorting Boxes {from Oriental Trading}


*Healthy Choices Bingo {from me on TpT}
*cubes or bingo chips

You can read more about my other Explore Tubs here:

Saturday 17 September 2016

Social Studies Explore Tubs - Christmas Around the World {with freebies}

I'm back with another Explore Tub post. Sorry, if you're getting sick of these. I only have a few more to share! ;) I have a few fun Christmas freebies for you here though, so stick around! Here are the theme topics that we study each month:

December - Social Studies: Christmas Around the World

In December, I teach a Christmas Around the World unit using my Scrapbook & Craft pack. This unit recently got an update--8 additional countries (including Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Diwali!).


I wanted to come up with some fun Explore Tubs for Christmas time to keep my students engaged until the last possible second before Christmas Break! So although these tubs are not exactly Christmas Around the World related, they are Christmas-y and they are a lot of fun! There's a few STEM-type challenges thrown in for them too. Check them out below:


*Christmas Around the World books: A Porcupine in a Pine Tree, Dashing Through the Snow, The Twelve Days of Christmas in Canada, Santa is Coming to Canada, Christmas Is..., Carter's Christmas, The Legend of the Poinsettia, Kevin's Kwanzaa, Caleb's Hanukkah, Babushka, Wombat Divine, Diary of a Christmas Wombat


*Christmas Play-Doh Mats {freebie from me here}
*Christmas Cookie Cutters {from Amazon}
*Play-Doh {from Amazon} --> I'll probably make some homemade gingerbread smelling playdough. Check out these Christmas playdough recipes from Kleinworth & Co.


*The Elf on the Shelf Find It Game {from Amazon}
*Question Cards {freebie from me here}: Students choose a card and have to try to find the object inside the game tube.


*Random Christmas STEM Challenge Supplies {from Michaels, Dollar Store, etc.}: straws, popsicle sticks, pom poms, Play-Doh, washi tape, mini solo cups
*Christmas Tree Building Challenge Design Sheet {freebie from me here}: Students have to design and build a Christmas tree using the various materials in the bin.


*Santa Claus Floor Puzzle {from Scholastic many years ago}
*The Elf on the Shelf Floor Puzzle {from Amazon}


*LEGO {from Amazon}
*Examples of Christmas LEGO Creations {images found from Google}


*Pattern Blocks {from Amazon}
*December Pattern Blocks Activities {from Katie Mense on TpT}

You can read more about my other Explore Tubs here:

Sunday 11 September 2016

Health Explore Tubs - Safety

The second theme topic I cover in October is Safety. We talk about playground safety, bus safety, and fire safety! I use activities from my Interactive Health Journal, my School Bus Safety Unit, and my Fire Safety Unit. Check these out on TpT:

    

This theme only covers a couple of weeks, so the Explore Tubs will be easy to prep and use. Here's a look at the safety tubs!


*Safety Books: No Dragons for Tea, Stop, Drop, and Roll, Sparky the Fire Dog, Miss Mingo and the Fire Drill, Let's Meet a Firefighter, A Day in the Life of a Firefighter, Fire! Fire!, The Gingerbread Man Loose on the Fire Truck, Staying Safe on the School Bus, Staying Safe on the School Bus, Safety Dave and Daisy Ride the Bus, Safety on the Playground, Staying Safe on the Playground, Please Play Safe!


*Bus Safety Game {from my School Bus Safety Pack}
*Fire Safety Game {from my Fire Safety Pack}
*game markers
*dice


*Melissa & Doug Giant Fire Truck Floor Puzzle {from Amazon}
*School Bus Floor Puzzle {from Scholastic many years ago}


*Bus Safety Cover Up Game {from my School Bus Safety Pack}: Also available in colour.
*Fire Safety Cover Up Game {from my Fire Safety Pack}: Also available in colour.
*Do-A-Dot Markers {from Amazon}
*dice


*Fire Safety Playdough Mats {from twinkl.co.uk -- need a membership to access}
*Play-Doh {from Amazon}
*Play-Doh Town Fire Truck {from Amazon}
*Play-Doh Town Firehouse {from Amazon}


*Hot or Not Sorting Activity {freebie from me here}
*Stop, Drop, Roll Cards {freebie from me here}: Students can practice putting the cards in order and practice their stop, drop, and roll!


*Fire Safety Bingo {from me on TpT}
*cubes of bingo chips

You can read more about my other Explore Tubs here:


Friday 9 September 2016

Christmas Around the World Updates!

Hey folks! I'm back again! I'm here to share with you an update of my best selling item--my Christmas Around the World Scrapbook & Craft pack! This update has been a year in the making and I've finally gotten around to it!


I have added 8 new scrapbook pages, crafts, and suitcase stickers for Canada, U.S.A., Hawaii, Kwanzaa (U.S.A.), Russia, Ukraine, Diwali (India), and Hanukkah (Israel).



I've also added a new, full colour answer key for all the countries that has the map, flag, fill-in-the-blank answers, and a sample picture to draw in the circle. No more research for you--it's all right there!


And lastly, I've added bulletin board decorations so you can display your trip around the world in your classroom! I added a country card to the bulletin board after each "visit" and even used push pins and string to show the location of the country on the large world map!


If you have already purchased my Christmas Around the World Scrapbook & Craft pack, you can redownload the unit and find the new additions for no extra charge! Just login into your TeachersPayTeachers account, go to My Purchases, search for Christmas Around the World, and redownload the file. The new and improved file will be there waiting for you!


*Note* If you purchased the Christmas Around the World Interactive Slideshow or Informational Text or Christmas Around the World Bundle, I am currently finishing the updates for the slideshow and will post them soon! I will add the updated scrapbook pack to the bundle when I am done the slideshow! Thanks so much!

Thursday 8 September 2016

Social Studies Explore Tubs - I Belong

Explore Tubs were a huge hit in my classroom last year and I can't wait to bring them out again next year! I've been putting some finishing touches on my Social Studies and Health Explore Tubs so I'm ready to go when I return from mat leave next fall. The first theme I teach is Social Studies "I Belong". We talk about the groups we belong to, our family, our culture, friendship, conflict resolution, and emotions. I use my Social Studies Interactive Journal to teach the lessons and then students are free to play with the Explore Tubs when they are finished their journals. September is a pretty busy month and we are just learning our routines and procedures, so I kept these tubs pretty simple. I didn't want the tubs to need much of an explanation, so I kept them pretty play-based. Here's a look at our first round of Explore Tubs:


*I Belong Books: Families, The Family Book, Family, Families, Who's in a Family?, Where I Belong, We All Come from Different Cultures, What Is Culture?, Making Friends Is an Art, How To Be a Friend, and Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend


*Play-Doh Body and Face Mats {free from picklebums.com}: Students can decorate or dress up the people/faces on the mats by using Play-Doh and various other pieces.
*Various Loose Parts (beads, pipe cleaners, pom poms, sequins, wiggly eyes, etc.)
*Play-Doh {from Amazon}


*Colourful House Sorting Mats {idea from playtolearnpreschool.us}: Students can sort or graph the family counters.
*All About Me Family Counters {from Amazon}


*I Belong Board Game {freebie from dancingintofirst.blogspot.ca}: Such a cute idea for students to practice talking about groups they belong to. Check out Dynelle's blog to see other game and centre ideas for Social Studies!


*Good Friend/Not a Good Friend Sorting Activity {free from me here}


*Inside Out Game of Emotions {free from printablecrush.com}: Students move around the game board. If they land on a circle, they have to share a memory.
*Inside Out Box of Mixed Emotions Books {from Amazon}
*Inside Out Mini Figures {from Amazon}


*Feelings Bingo {from me on TpT}
*Emotion-oes {from Amazon}

You can read more about my other Explore Tubs here: