February Morning Tubs There are so many different things happening during the shortest month of the year! Groundhog's Day, Valentine's Day, President's Day, Black History Month, Dental Month... it seems the list goes on and on. Although a couple of activities have graphics for some of these special days, the majority of the month have graphics that can be used at any time of the year that your students are ready for them. Below is a quick overview of all of the activities included in the February Morning Tubs for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grades. ELA Morning Tubs Predicting: Students will choose from eight pictures to list the things in the pictures and what is happening. The students will then predict what will happen next. Poems: Students will read the riddle, find the matching picture, and then use colored popsicle sticks to build the picture. I Spy February Vocabulary Words: Print a class set and use anytime during the month! Students will use magnifying glasses to find the hidden words, list them, and then find those words in the word search. Variety Parts of Speech: Students will play the game to build a tower by answering the cards. The student with the tallest tower wins the game. Prepositions: Students will place mini-marshmallows to show the prepositions. The best part? Eating the marshmallows when finished! Writing Silly Sentences: Students will roll the die to choose cards and then turn their six cards into silly sentences! Inference: Students will read the paragraph to infer the emotions of the students and then draw their facial expressions. Alphabetical Order: Students will write the words in abc order. Point of View: Students will write stories from the point of view of something in the picture. Math Morning Tubs Skip Counting Puzzles: 2nd grade: Numbers to 1,000 3rd Grade: Numbers to 100,000 4th Grade: Numbers in the Millions Adding/Subracting Odd & Even 2nd Grade: 3-digit 3rd Grade: 4-digit 4th Grade: 6-digit Comparing Numbers: 2nd Grade: Thousands 3rd Grade: Ten Thousands Fourth Grade: Millions Ordering Numbers: 2nd Grade: 3-Digit Numbers 3rd Grade: 5-Digit Numbers 4th Grade: 6-Digit Numbers Adding Four Numbers: 2nd and 3rd grades Multiplying 2-digit by 2-digit Numbers: 4th grade Math Fluency: 2nd grade: Subtracting from 20 3rd and 4th grades: Multiplication Snap Cubes: Students will play a game to see who will win the winter games snap cubes contest! Fractions: Students will spin, find the matching fraction, roll a playdough ball, and smash it. Geo boards Shapes: Students will complete task cards on the Geo boards. Fine Motor Morning Tubs Dental Cursive Writing: Trace the Pictures: Dental Fine Motor Activities: Critical Thinking Morning Tubs Finish the Grid: Students will follow directions on the task cards to finish the grid. Who's the Mystery Person: A partner game Would you like to receive a FREE set of my morning tubs? Sign up for my Tuesday newsletters via email and get this set for free! Your students will be excited to begin their day with these February Morning Tubs. Click on the pictures below if you would like to see more about them in my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Fun and engaging. That's just my... Kind of Teaching!
A few years ago, I decided to implement a few NEW things in my daily classroom routine. Morning tubs was at the top of this list and I'm glad I did it! My
Say goodbye to stress in prepping morning work! I've provided more than 200+ hands-on activities for your students to try!
Embrace a soft start to your school day in the first grade classroom. Use Good Morning Tubs to give grade one students a fun way to work on math and literacy skills as well as fine motor skills and spatial awareness. It is a social way to begin the day that really calms my first grade and second grade students and sets the tone for the day.
Hands-on learning for students using morning tubs. Click now to get a mini unit for free!
Why I got rid of morning work and switched to soft start instead. Use morning tubs to start your day by building creativity and community.
My blog post contains Amazon affiliate links which means that I earn a few cents from anything purchased through my links. I use that money to purchase items for my classroom. Last year, I began starting our day with morning bins as a paperless replacement for morning work. I love the versatility morning bins. You can get as complicated or simple as you want. I try really hard to use materials that I already have in my classroom. Below I've listed over 50 ideas for you, most of which I've used in my bins for my 2nd graders. I'll add links where I can. Great places to find morning bin fillers- Amazon, Target Dollar Spot, Dollar Tree, your math closet, Michael's, yard sales. STEM/Building Things LEGOS- I have a big bin of LEGOS, and I try to find them at yard sales. Yard sales are great places to find a lot of things for morning bins. I will also say that the off-brand of LEGO-style building blocks is just fine for morning bins. They're a great budget-friendly option. Brain Flakes- You can often find a variety of these at the Dollar Tree. Keva planks- So, these are expensive, but Highlights magazine has a set in their classroom rewards catalog, and I've ordered two sets of those for free. Check those out, for sure. The rewards program is free and has lots of great stuff. Magnatiles/ PicassoTiles- These are an investment but so, so good. I think they're great for building 3-D shapes during a geometry unit, so I can justify the cost. I have yet to meet a kid who doesn't like building with magnatiles. Picasso Tiles are less expensive and just as great. I have a set at home and at school. STEM straws magnetic sticks Tumble Trax magnetic marble run- These is so fun! They're one of the kids favorite items. Also, I have a two sets for bigger runs. The kids love building tracks on the whiteboard. They come up with such clever ideas. PlusPlus/hashtag blocks -Some people are lucky and find these in the Target bins. I've never found them. I have a big set of mixed blocks, but there are lots of different sets available. These are an alternative to LEGOS. Kid K'nex Interlox Snowflake Disks Bristle Blocks marble run- This is a tough one to store in a small bin, but it's a great small group activity. I see these at yard sales. Games basic card games- Go Fish, Old Maid, etc. - Ask for donations for these! So many families have games that they aren't playing anymore. dominoes- Get the foam dominoes! Your ears will thank you. I got a set from the Highlights magazine prize magazine a few years ago, and they've held up great. puzzles- The Ravensburger jigsaw puzzles are my favorite! The designs and colors are great. Puzzles are one of those things that kids rarely do anymore, but they always love them. I always break them out when see that my crew is needing more opportunities for teamwork and communication. Uno/ Dos Pizza Party dice game- This is a really cute, fast game. It's really only for 2-3 players and uses the included dice and cards. Tricky Triangle peg game Farkle Flip- Just like the dice game but with cards, which make a great visual for kids. finger soccer Kanoodle- This is a great 3-D puzzle game. It includes a bunch of puzzle cards and is perfect for students to work on spatial relationships. decks of playing cards- There are SO many things that kids can do with cards. I use them in math all of the time. I like to give kids the freedom to do what they wish with the cards, whether it be playing a game or building. brain teaser puzzles Sensory Play Play Doh- If you spend $10 on morning bins, please spend it on Play Doh...or have families make it and send it in. Second graders love Play Doh, and it's so versatile. I laminate construction paper for the kids to use as mats. Play Doh Accessories/Cutters- Plastic silverware, cookie cutters, kids' kitchen tools, and sand molds are all great options here. I try to add seasonal items to the Play Doh bin- cookie cutters, rolling pin, pony bead sprinkles at Christmastime, shades of blue and white, snowflake cutters, and pipe cleaners in the winter, you get the idea. Kinetic Sand- You might find yourself playing with the kinetic sand right beside the kids. It's so relaxing. I give them small trays to put the sand on, and then I also add the Play Doh accessories to the tub. Pompoms with scoops, cups, and plastic tweezers Fidgets: A few times a year I borrow some of these from our instructional support department to try out with different students. By putting them in the morning bins, I can see what they gravitate toward and like without calling attention to specific students. Rocks, fossils, feathers, sea shells, etc with little magnifying glasses: If your school is ever getting rid of old science kits, go through them and grab stuff for your morning tubs. magnetic wands and various metal items like paper clips, magnetic chips, other magnets, etc. Art Materials stencils and paper Popbeads - I had Popbeads as a kid and got my daughter a set, and she loved them. I bought another set for school, and the kids really love them, even the boys. construction paper scraps, hole punch, and yarn pipe cleaners and beads- specifically letter beads and pony beads foam craft kits- I shop for these at Michael's after the holidays for the following year. You can get class sets for 70% off, which ends up being less than $5. coloring books/pages and Twisty crayons- The twisty crayons are special, and they LOVE them! I make a big deal about them being special, and the kids treat them nicely. dicut shapes, doilies, and stickers to make cards around the holidays- Does your school stick have a dicut machine? I feel like ours rarely gets used anymore, but the kids love those shapes! watercolor paints and paper drawing books and paper- I borrow drawing books from the school library, and the kids love them. stamps, ink pads, and paper Literacy Ideas letter cubes- You can buy these pre-made, or if you have a huge amount of Unifix cubes, you can easily make your own. I try to grab extra Unifix cubes if I see them on the discard tables in the faculty room. Bananagrams- Bananagrams is so good! It's like Scrabble without the board. It's versatile and easy to clean up. phonics dominoes- I have the digraph and blend dominoes in my room, and I'd like to add the compound word set. Found It! sight word games- Found It! is a sight word game that I created for my students. It's fast and fun. Students just need the deck of Found It! cards. I have a set for each Dolch list, so you can differentiate. Squiggle Stories- This is another activity that I created. Students use a squiggle in the illustration box to create whatever they want, and then they write a story about it. It's fun to see how different kids use the same squiggle. Mad Libs seasonal stationary and envelopes - I save envelopes from junk mail and ask my families to do the same thing. When we have a specific purpose for writing, I'll put out the colorful, fancy envelopes for them. blank cards and notecards- One of my hacks is to have my friends and family save cards that they receive, and then I chop off the part with writing. The kids write on the blank side. Super easy way to reuse cards that would end up in the garbage can. magnetic letters fact flashcards- Target often has these sets of flashcards on different topics, and they all have interesting facts on them. I have space, dinosaurs, states, and presidents. They're a dollar a pack, and the kids like them. mini white boards and colorful Expo markers- My students each have a black marker, so they love when the colorful markers come out. I have a set of mini dry erase boards that are about the size of a small sentence strip. I can't find them to link them, but they're awesome! I use them in guided reading a lot but like to put them in morning bins a few times a year. Math Ideas hexagon/ Tangram puzzles printable math games- Pick games that you've played before. I love this bundle of math games from Games 4 Gains a few years ago, and they're perfect. pattern blocks geoboards and rubberbands flashcards and task cards- I have flashcards and task cards for pretty much every math unit. I try to put them in the bins toward the end of the unit when we're reviewing. pattern links- To be fair, I kind of hate these! BUT the kids love them. They love to make ropes and patterns and whatever their little minds conjure up. I just hate untangling them. play money- They love the play money. If you have money task cards, toss those in, too. My own kids have a play cash register, and I always bring it into school around our money unit. Students LOVE playing with this. base ten and Cuisenaire rods- They love to build with these. Again, if you have some task cards for base ten blocks, toss them in with the blocks. Abstract Creations- aka: Random Stuff dixie cups/ plastic cups- They love to stack them! index cards, tape, and hole punch straws of various sizes and modeling clay or Play Doh foam balls and toothpicks- I love those small foam balls that are out around the holidays. They're usually sparkly and so fun. They're usually with the vase fillers at Dollar Tree or Michael's. popsicle sticks with Velcro dots- They get so creative with these! The sticks are a great job for a volunteer to make for you. cardboard tubes- Collect them from paper towels, toilet paper, mailers, etc. They're fun to build with and even use with paint. Amazon link to all of my morning bin favorites! I hope this gives you some good ideas for your own morning bins. If you have any more great ideas, please leave me a comment below. I'm always looking for new ideas. You don't have to spend a ton of money! Look around your classroom. You probably have a lot of great stuff available that your students don't have the opportunity to use regularly. I also ask for donations, shop the sales, and use some of my requisition money each year to buy a few new things. Thanks for reading!
Whether you call it morning tubs, morning bins, or morning work, these 2nd-grade activities help set the tone for the day. Get your students excited about coming to school each and every day. Who wouldn't LOVE beginning the day with some play? Students enjoy playing the math, literacy, fine motor,...
Morning Tubs are the perfect way to start each morning in your classroom. It gives students the opportunity to work cooperatively with each other.
My blog post contains Amazon affiliate links which means that I earn a few cents from anything purchased through my links. I use that money to purchase items for my classroom. Last year, I began starting our day with morning bins as a paperless replacement for morning work. I love the versatility morning bins. You can get as complicated or simple as you want. I try really hard to use materials that I already have in my classroom. Below I've listed over 50 ideas for you, most of which I've used in my bins for my 2nd graders. I'll add links where I can. Great places to find morning bin fillers- Amazon, Target Dollar Spot, Dollar Tree, your math closet, Michael's, yard sales. STEM/Building Things LEGOS- I have a big bin of LEGOS, and I try to find them at yard sales. Yard sales are great places to find a lot of things for morning bins. I will also say that the off-brand of LEGO-style building blocks is just fine for morning bins. They're a great budget-friendly option. Brain Flakes- You can often find a variety of these at the Dollar Tree. Keva planks- So, these are expensive, but Highlights magazine has a set in their classroom rewards catalog, and I've ordered two sets of those for free. Check those out, for sure. The rewards program is free and has lots of great stuff. Magnatiles/ PicassoTiles- These are an investment but so, so good. I think they're great for building 3-D shapes during a geometry unit, so I can justify the cost. I have yet to meet a kid who doesn't like building with magnatiles. Picasso Tiles are less expensive and just as great. I have a set at home and at school. STEM straws magnetic sticks Tumble Trax magnetic marble run- These is so fun! They're one of the kids favorite items. Also, I have a two sets for bigger runs. The kids love building tracks on the whiteboard. They come up with such clever ideas. PlusPlus/hashtag blocks -Some people are lucky and find these in the Target bins. I've never found them. I have a big set of mixed blocks, but there are lots of different sets available. These are an alternative to LEGOS. Kid K'nex Interlox Snowflake Disks Bristle Blocks marble run- This is a tough one to store in a small bin, but it's a great small group activity. I see these at yard sales. Games basic card games- Go Fish, Old Maid, etc. - Ask for donations for these! So many families have games that they aren't playing anymore. dominoes- Get the foam dominoes! Your ears will thank you. I got a set from the Highlights magazine prize magazine a few years ago, and they've held up great. puzzles- The Ravensburger jigsaw puzzles are my favorite! The designs and colors are great. Puzzles are one of those things that kids rarely do anymore, but they always love them. I always break them out when see that my crew is needing more opportunities for teamwork and communication. Uno/ Dos Pizza Party dice game- This is a really cute, fast game. It's really only for 2-3 players and uses the included dice and cards. Tricky Triangle peg game Farkle Flip- Just like the dice game but with cards, which make a great visual for kids. finger soccer Kanoodle- This is a great 3-D puzzle game. It includes a bunch of puzzle cards and is perfect for students to work on spatial relationships. decks of playing cards- There are SO many things that kids can do with cards. I use them in math all of the time. I like to give kids the freedom to do what they wish with the cards, whether it be playing a game or building. brain teaser puzzles Sensory Play Play Doh- If you spend $10 on morning bins, please spend it on Play Doh...or have families make it and send it in. Second graders love Play Doh, and it's so versatile. I laminate construction paper for the kids to use as mats. Play Doh Accessories/Cutters- Plastic silverware, cookie cutters, kids' kitchen tools, and sand molds are all great options here. I try to add seasonal items to the Play Doh bin- cookie cutters, rolling pin, pony bead sprinkles at Christmastime, shades of blue and white, snowflake cutters, and pipe cleaners in the winter, you get the idea. Kinetic Sand- You might find yourself playing with the kinetic sand right beside the kids. It's so relaxing. I give them small trays to put the sand on, and then I also add the Play Doh accessories to the tub. Pompoms with scoops, cups, and plastic tweezers Fidgets: A few times a year I borrow some of these from our instructional support department to try out with different students. By putting them in the morning bins, I can see what they gravitate toward and like without calling attention to specific students. Rocks, fossils, feathers, sea shells, etc with little magnifying glasses: If your school is ever getting rid of old science kits, go through them and grab stuff for your morning tubs. magnetic wands and various metal items like paper clips, magnetic chips, other magnets, etc. Art Materials stencils and paper Popbeads - I had Popbeads as a kid and got my daughter a set, and she loved them. I bought another set for school, and the kids really love them, even the boys. construction paper scraps, hole punch, and yarn pipe cleaners and beads- specifically letter beads and pony beads foam craft kits- I shop for these at Michael's after the holidays for the following year. You can get class sets for 70% off, which ends up being less than $5. coloring books/pages and Twisty crayons- The twisty crayons are special, and they LOVE them! I make a big deal about them being special, and the kids treat them nicely. dicut shapes, doilies, and stickers to make cards around the holidays- Does your school stick have a dicut machine? I feel like ours rarely gets used anymore, but the kids love those shapes! watercolor paints and paper drawing books and paper- I borrow drawing books from the school library, and the kids love them. stamps, ink pads, and paper Literacy Ideas letter cubes- You can buy these pre-made, or if you have a huge amount of Unifix cubes, you can easily make your own. I try to grab extra Unifix cubes if I see them on the discard tables in the faculty room. Bananagrams- Bananagrams is so good! It's like Scrabble without the board. It's versatile and easy to clean up. phonics dominoes- I have the digraph and blend dominoes in my room, and I'd like to add the compound word set. Found It! sight word games- Found It! is a sight word game that I created for my students. It's fast and fun. Students just need the deck of Found It! cards. I have a set for each Dolch list, so you can differentiate. Squiggle Stories- This is another activity that I created. Students use a squiggle in the illustration box to create whatever they want, and then they write a story about it. It's fun to see how different kids use the same squiggle. Mad Libs seasonal stationary and envelopes - I save envelopes from junk mail and ask my families to do the same thing. When we have a specific purpose for writing, I'll put out the colorful, fancy envelopes for them. blank cards and notecards- One of my hacks is to have my friends and family save cards that they receive, and then I chop off the part with writing. The kids write on the blank side. Super easy way to reuse cards that would end up in the garbage can. magnetic letters fact flashcards- Target often has these sets of flashcards on different topics, and they all have interesting facts on them. I have space, dinosaurs, states, and presidents. They're a dollar a pack, and the kids like them. mini white boards and colorful Expo markers- My students each have a black marker, so they love when the colorful markers come out. I have a set of mini dry erase boards that are about the size of a small sentence strip. I can't find them to link them, but they're awesome! I use them in guided reading a lot but like to put them in morning bins a few times a year. Math Ideas hexagon/ Tangram puzzles printable math games- Pick games that you've played before. I love this bundle of math games from Games 4 Gains a few years ago, and they're perfect. pattern blocks geoboards and rubberbands flashcards and task cards- I have flashcards and task cards for pretty much every math unit. I try to put them in the bins toward the end of the unit when we're reviewing. pattern links- To be fair, I kind of hate these! BUT the kids love them. They love to make ropes and patterns and whatever their little minds conjure up. I just hate untangling them. play money- They love the play money. If you have money task cards, toss those in, too. My own kids have a play cash register, and I always bring it into school around our money unit. Students LOVE playing with this. base ten and Cuisenaire rods- They love to build with these. Again, if you have some task cards for base ten blocks, toss them in with the blocks. Abstract Creations- aka: Random Stuff dixie cups/ plastic cups- They love to stack them! index cards, tape, and hole punch straws of various sizes and modeling clay or Play Doh foam balls and toothpicks- I love those small foam balls that are out around the holidays. They're usually sparkly and so fun. They're usually with the vase fillers at Dollar Tree or Michael's. popsicle sticks with Velcro dots- They get so creative with these! The sticks are a great job for a volunteer to make for you. cardboard tubes- Collect them from paper towels, toilet paper, mailers, etc. They're fun to build with and even use with paint. Amazon link to all of my morning bin favorites! I hope this gives you some good ideas for your own morning bins. If you have any more great ideas, please leave me a comment below. I'm always looking for new ideas. You don't have to spend a ton of money! Look around your classroom. You probably have a lot of great stuff available that your students don't have the opportunity to use regularly. I also ask for donations, shop the sales, and use some of my requisition money each year to buy a few new things. Thanks for reading!
September morning tubs are a fun and engaging way for Second and Third graders to learn important skills. These tubs are easily prepped!
Morning Tubs are a wonderful way to start the school day. They allow students to showcase their creativity while building social skills.
50+ Morning Tub Ideas A Morning Tub is a great way to offer a play-based opportunity for students to explore, create, and communicate. A non-threatening way to start the day, Morning Tubs help redu…
Creating a calm morning routine in the classroom is essential for starting the day on the right foot! Check out these tips and procedures!
Brain bins are what I call morning tubs in my first-grade classroom. They include open-ended materials that my students use to explore, create, build, and-
A few years ago, I decided to implement a few NEW things in my daily classroom routine. Morning tubs was at the top of this list and I'm glad I did it! My
Morning Tubs are a great alternative to traditional morning work used in primary classrooms. They provide an opporunity for children to explore and play.
5 reasons to start the day with morning tubs in first grade. Morning tubs are hands on morning work activities to use with math manipulatives that get your first graders thinking and doing to start the day. This gives teachers time to take attendance and other jobs. Morning tubs will help you spiral your curriculum because you can use tubs to keep reviewing.
Brain bins are what I call morning tubs in my first-grade classroom. They include open-ended materials that my students use to explore, create, build, and-
Morning Tubs (Ideas, Management, and More) 3 comments morning routine, morning tub ideas, morning tubs, morning work alternative, play, STEM materials I have been intrigued by the idea of morning tubs for the past few years. Starting the day with play based learning just seemed so developmentally perfect to me. However, it wasn't really a viable option for me until this year. And, let me tell you, they are the best. This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience. I earn a small commission each time someone makes a purchase through one of my links. For more information about my Disclosure Policy, please visit this link. This summer, I spent some time reading (and rereading) blog posts from The Brown Bag Teacher. I used her information and suggestions to formulate a morning tub system that works for me. I love that the kids start their day with a small chunk of time that lets them just be kids. They get time, right from the start, to interact and play. It's a great way to get that "out of their system" so they can focus on their learning. Morning Tubs Morning tubs are a hands-on alternative to morning work. Instead of completing a worksheet, or filling in an agenda, the kids are touching, creating, thinking, talking, sharing, and having a great time. Additionally, depending upon the kind of materials you put out, your students can work on their fine motor skills. Through play, they learn to problem solve and interact with their peers. It's a non-threatening way to ease into the day, which for some kids is huge. How I Manage Morning Tubs I have five table groups in my classroom. There are anywhere from 4 to 6 kids at a table group. Every day, each table group gets a new tub of materials. The students get 7 minutes to use the materials, and 2 minutes to clean them up and put them away. We have a few rules: No complaining about the materials in your bin. Work nicely: share materials, use kind words, and work together. Use the materials appropriately (no flicking or throwing materials across the room). The tubs can be used on the floor, so long as the whole group agrees. Use appropriate voice levels. Clean up within specified time. Here are a few more particulars: If a student doesn't like the materials at their table, they have the option of silent reading instead. While the tubs are in use, the students are expected to use "level 2" voices (table talk voices). If they are too loud, they could lose their tub. If a specific student is having a hard time sharing with the group, or being kind, they lose the privilege of using the materials the rest of the morning. When it's time to clean up, they must do so at a "level 0" (silence). If the class struggles with a quiet, and speedy, clean up they don't get morning tubs the following day. Voices aside, students are not allowed to throw materials into the tubs. They must place them into the tubs carefully, without making extra noise. The use of tubs has so many benefits, but ultimately, it is a privilege to get to use them. So, I do hold the students accountable. We have had days where the tubs were off limits so we could revisit expectations. How I Store Morning Tubs These are the 10 drawer rolling carts from Michaels. They are perfect for storing and presenting morning tub materials. The materials are placed in the drawers. Each morning, I remove a tray and place it at a table group. When it's time to clean up, the drawer is placed back into the cart. I numbered each drawer with vinyl numbers (see top photo). This helps me make sure that the drawers are placed back into the carts in the proper order. The square number tags are attached with velcro and are used to note which table group gets that particular tub of materials. Every day, the tubs go back into the rolling carts in numerical order (vinyl numbers) and the table group cards are moved to the next tub in the rotation. This means that the students get to use a variety of materials throughout the week and a few weeks will pass before they use the same tub again. This eliminates burnout and keeps the kids excited about the materials. What I Put in My Morning Tubs Anything I think the kids will love to use. I'm not picky, and neither are they. I have lots of building materials, as well as some materials that are meant to encourage imaginative thinking. Take a peek! Beads are perfect for fine motor development. Plus, they are fun. I use pony beads mixed with some animal beads. My kids use pipe cleaners to string the beads, but you could use lacing strings too! I also have some alphabet lacing letters. The kids love stringing together favorite words, especially their names. The drawer below the lacing letters features some felt pieces that I found at the Target Dollar Spot over the summer. I got some plain felt (off the bolt) from Hobby Lobby and cut it into 12x18 inch pieces. The large pieces of blue felt serve as a background, and are folded and stored at the bottom of the tub. The kids place the cute pieces from the Dollar Spot on the larger pieces of felt to build scenes. These plastic animals (and a few trees and fences) are a bigger hit with the kids than I thought they would be. They build scenes and engage in imaginative play. It makes my heart happy to see that. The drawer below the animals contains small tiles that the kids use to make words. I've had these for a while, and since they weren't seeing much action, I decided to put them in a tub. This Melissa and Doug building set is great. I found it on clearance at Target, but Amazon sells it as well. The kids work together to make all kinds of interesting creations. Plus, it's great for fine motor skills. Below the wooden building set are our snowflake blocks. These are lots of fun too! Currently the kids love building rainbow patterned wands. They often work together to make really long "trains" of blocks. These brain flakes (similar to the snowflake blocks) are fun and easy to use too. They are also great for fine motor skills while allowing students to be creative. I also put out snap cubes. These were some extra cubes I had on hand (left over from an old math program), so I put them in a tub. My students love using them to build tall towers, walls, and other creative structures. I saw these balance toys in the Target Dollar Spot over the summer, and decided to give them a try because the price couldn't be beat. I got two sets, and I'm glad I did. The kids really, really like them. You can find similar balance toys on Amazon. The dominoes are left over from when we used Everyday Math. They make for a great morning tub now! Finger puppets are a fun morning tub too. I was worried that my second graders would think they were too babyish, but I was wrong. They are perfect for imaginative play. The drawer below the puppets is filled with square tiles. Another math program "left over." The kids typically stack them or arrange them to make patterns or pictures. LEGOs...a no brainer. Kids love them. They build all sorts of things with them. I got mine at Walmart last year (Black Friday deal). Keep you eyes peeled for deals, they pop up around the holidays. Below the LEGOs are our building block bars. They're fun, colorful, and easy to use. Shown below is a gear set that I found at Costco. They are fun, and the kids really like them, but they are kind of big and actually take up two drawers. The magnetic blocks in the second drawer are fun too. These blocks tend to be really pricey, but I got lucky one day and grabbed this set on Amazon as a lightning deal. It isn't a huge set, but the kids love it and do build creative things. These hashtag blocks are super small but they let the kids be creative as they build. Plus, they work on fine motor skills. I found these in the Target Dollar Spot over the summer. And, I basically wiped out their entire supply when I bought them. Haha!! The foam pattern blocks are from our math program. The kids like to use them to create pictures and patterns. Where I Got My Materials Truthfully, I purchased most of them. But not all at once. I've accumulated things over time and have used them for different purposes in my classroom up until deciding to use them as morning tub materials. Many of these materials were once part of my "Fun Friday" stash. I just repurposed them into morning tubs. Some of the materials are from our current math program, or left over from previous math programs. In other words, they were things I had on hand that weren't really being used for much. My favorite places to find materials include: Amazon Target Dollar Spot Zulilly As soon as my own kiddo outgrows her toys, I plan to add many of them to my morning tub rotations. So, don't forget to raid your own kids' toy stash! Donors Choose as an option for getting materials like these in your classroom. Amazon even allows you to create a wish list that can be shared with your students' families. Also, don't be afraid to ask your own friends and family to gift an item to your classroom. Many times, our loved ones are willing to purchase something that we want/need for our classrooms. Click HERE for a direct link to my Morning Tub Ideas page on Amazon. DON'T FORGET IT, PIN IT! Share It:
January can be hectic! These January morning tubs can help keep your students excited about coming to school and keep hands on learning fun!
Creating a calm morning routine in the classroom is essential for starting the day on the right foot! Check out these tips and procedures!
Get your morning routine perfected with the 2nd Grade Back to School morning bins. Getting into a good routine can be a challenge at the beginning of the school year, but I've got something for you to help make your morning transitions
Hands-on learning for students using morning tubs. Click now to get a mini unit for free!
Morning Tubs are the perfect way to start each morning in your classroom. It gives students the opportunity to work cooperatively with each other.
