Little Minds at Work

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Amazon Shop
  • Freebies
  • SOR Curriculum
  • Facebook Group
  • SOR Padlet
  • Shop

Explore Tubs – Set Three {lots of freebies included}


Hello there!  Say what?  It’s nearly December!  I’m back with a third edition of my explore tubs!  You can catch up on my preview two posts Set One HERE and Set Two HERE.  I am using my explore tubs as a way to make fine motor a constant in our classroom… not just something we work on the first couple weeks of school!  When do I use my explore tubs?  I have explore tubs as an option during daily five!  I assign my students to their daily fives so my kiddos go to explore 1-2 times per week or possibly more if they are a kiddo that needs it!  When else could you use explore tubs?  A lot of my readers are using explore tubs during option time and morning work!

This edition of explore tubs will be winter/Christmas themed and ALL of the explore tubs I will be share are freebies!  Woohoo!  Let’s get started!

Tub One: Paint chip match-ups! I absolutely love this fine motor center!  I snagged a few larger paint samples and cut them right down the middle creating to large rectangles!  I then cut one of the rectangles into much smaller pieces and hot-glued them onto clothes pins!  The kiddos will be building up those finger muscles by placing the matching clothes pins to the larger paint sample!



Tub Two: This explore tub integrates some fine motor AND math into one!  For this tub the kiddos will have the larger polar bear/ice mat and then numeral cards.  You can use fuzzy pom-poms or I purchased these little plastic gems from amazon but Walmart has them as well!  The kiddos will view the number on the card and place that many matching gems onto the ice mat!  For this explore tub you could use the fine motor pincers but I am having the kiddos use a “scoop and tuck” fine motor exercise.  For this the kids will grab on gem at a time and if the number is 6 they will have to keep the other five tucked in their palms and then place all 6 on the mat at one time!  This is tricky and will need modeled!  This explore tub will be part of the freebies which can be downloaded here!

Tub Three: Tub three is a classic but still so much fun!  For this explore tub I placed an ice tray, blue fuzzy pom-poms, fine motor tweezers, and matching ice numeral cards into the bucket!  The kiddos will view the number then pinch that many “ice cubes” and place them into the ice tray!  You can download the cards along with the freebie download!

Tub Four: This explore tub is for sure a HOOT!  I purchased the first snowflake cookie cutter on Amazon, but then found the smaller and perfect cookie cutters at Walmart in a set for around $5!  Play-doh is the token of all tokens in my room right now so they’ll flip!

Tub Five:  Tub five contains a felt Christmas tree, fuzzy pom-poms, fine motor tweezers, and numeral cards!  For this explore tub the students will view the numeral card and use the fine motor tweezers to grab that many pom-poms!  I purchased the felt at walmart for $0.23 and my husband cut it for me #letsgetreal ha! 🙂  The numeral cards are also part of the freebie download!

Tub Six: This explore tub is another fun one!  The students will  have the larger snowman card, numeral cards, and perler beads!  The students will view the numeral cards and the use their little pincher fingers to place that many perler beads onto the snowman mat!  This too is part of the freebie download!

Tub Seven: Tub seven is a little out of my comfort zone, but I think it will be just fine for these “special” winter months!  For this explore tubs the kiddos will be able to place snowy stickers onto their scenery picture and then color!  I really didn’t want this to just be a coloring explore tub, but then I also feel the kids DO need a time where they can just color for fun as well! 😉  I purchased these stickers from Amazon 300 stickers for $8.  I’ve included three free scenery pictures in the download!

Tub Eight: Tub eight includes dabbers!  Yay! HA!!!! That wasn’t sarcasm 😉 or was it!?  For this explore tub the kiddos will be able to use the templates and dabbers to create beautiful masterpieces! 

Again, all of the printables I shared above are part of THIS freebie download!  I hope you loved the ideas and goodies!  Have a great week!

Related Posts

  • Explore Tubs – Set Two {freebies included}Explore Tubs – Set Two {freebies included}
  • Explore Tubs! {freebies}Explore Tubs! {freebies}
  • Build Character in Kids!Build Character in Kids!
«
»

Filed Under: Freebies Tagged With: explore tubs

Comments

  1. Positively Learning says

    November 24, 2015 at 8:16 am

    LOVE your explore tubs posts, although they usually end up costing me money 😉 Thank you so much for the ideas & freebies! Jen

    Reply
  2. Laura Letiecq says

    November 24, 2015 at 9:55 pm

    Thanks for sharing so many of these. I will be checking what I already have for Christmas and winter themes to see which I should print out.

    Reply
  3. Miss Parsons says

    November 25, 2015 at 12:43 am

    Thank you! These will be great that last week before Christmas when everything is crazy!! They will LOVE these!

    Reply
  4. SAM says

    November 25, 2015 at 1:25 am

    Your explore tubs are my students FAVORITE thing that we do in the classroom! I love love love that you are sharing your ideas for these. THANK YOU!!!!

    Reply
  5. Taryn Ryan says

    November 25, 2015 at 1:26 am

    Tara! These are so awesome! Thank you so much for sharing your freebies. I always feel like I don't have enough fine motor activities, so these are PERFECT! Thanks again! 🙂

    Reply
  6. traci527 says

    November 25, 2015 at 1:53 am

    Wahoo! I was just thinking last night I wonder if Tara is going to do more explore tubs and then you post!!! Thank you so much for such fabulous ideas and freebies!

    Reply
  7. Lee Ann Rasey says

    November 25, 2015 at 2:27 am

    Thanks! Where do you keep the materials for the other tubs when you're not using them? I'm having a terrible time storing the others since I have absolutely no storage!

    Reply
  8. lorena says

    November 25, 2015 at 3:31 am

    Thank you! Such awesome ideas!

    Reply
  9. Th Ch says

    November 25, 2015 at 3:09 pm

    Love, love, love these Explore Tubs, well actually my students love them MORE! Thank you for always sharing and showing us what is in your classroom:)

    Reply
  10. Medea Jones says

    November 27, 2015 at 4:00 pm

    I've been patiently waiting for a new blog post about explore tubs #3! My kinders LOVE your explore tubs! Thank you so much for making them a freebie! I can't wait to make them. Thank you so much for all that you do. We love so many of your ideas and products!

    Reply
  11. Kteacher says

    November 28, 2015 at 12:10 am

    I LOVE these fine motor tub ideas! I couldn't WAIT for your next explore tubs post! Thank you for sharing and my students LOVE them!!!

    Reply
  12. 1st grade tcr says

    December 2, 2015 at 10:41 pm

    These are so perfect for fine motor – such a big problem in my room! Thank you so much for the freebies!

    Reply
  13. JGriffiths says

    July 22, 2016 at 3:44 am

    Do you use theses explore tubs year long? I am new to Kindergarten and thinking about using them, but would like more information.

    Reply
  14. JGriffiths says

    July 22, 2016 at 3:44 am

    Do you use theses explore tubs year long? I am new to Kindergarten and thinking about using them, but would like more information.

    Reply
  15. 에볼루션 카지노 says

    July 25, 2022 at 5:17 am

    all the technical KINGDOM777 solutions and staff we need for 에볼루션 카지노 operators who provide world

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Find it Fast!

Follow on Instagram

NEW + FREE! 300 INSTANT Digital Math Fluency Drill NEW + FREE! 300 INSTANT Digital Math Fluency Drill slides! These are offered in PDF and Google Slides! 10 decks offered- numbers, subitizing, shapes, addition, subtraction, and more! Snag them linked in my Instagram profile! #iteachk #tpt #tptfreebie #iteach
KinderMath Digital Teaching Slides! These slides m KinderMath Digital Teaching Slides! These slides make teaching math so easy! Each lesson provides you with 5 slides. That gives you a slide for number sense, fluency, math talk, core lesson, and a collaborative partner game! The slides are offered in PDF and Google Slides! Snag them ON SALE linked in my Instagram profile! #iteachk #tarawest #tpt #iteachtoo
❤️🧡💛💚💻 2,500 FREE DIGITAL SLIDES D ❤️🧡💛💚💻 2,500 FREE DIGITAL SLIDES DOWNLOAD! These digital slides are hosted on Google and also come in a PDF format. You can download a PPT version from the Google version as well! Encoding, decoding, high frequency words, nonsense words, backwards blending, and so much MORE! Download them linked in my Instagram profile/bio! #tpt #guidedphonics #sor #tptfreeebie #scienceofreading #tarawest #iteachk #iteach
❤️🧡💛 Guided Phonics + Beyond FREE Additi ❤️🧡💛 Guided Phonics + Beyond FREE Additions! 💚💙💜 So many amazing free additions to the Guided Phonics + Beyond curriculum! View the video linked in my Instagram bio to see the updates in detail and hear where to find these additions. Quick lesson checks, book trackers, 260 HFW orthographic mapping scripts, character cards, posters/cards and more! #guidedphonics #tpt #iteachk #sor #tarawest #iteachtoo
🌈 6 NEW #guidedphonics DOLLAR DEALS! The great 🌈 6 NEW #guidedphonics DOLLAR DEALS! The great thing about these dollar deals is that they are part of my #guidedphonics mega bundle!!! If you have that bundle simply redownload! View these 6 dollar deals linked in my Instagram profile! #iteachk #tpt #sor #guidedphonics #iteach #prek
FREEBIE REWIND! Did you snag these freebie abc mag FREEBIE REWIND! Did you snag these freebie abc magnets last year? If not, you can snag them NOW! These INSTANT Alphabet Magnet Mats are perfect for a small-group warm up activities or literacy centers! Snag these free mats linked in my Instagram profile! #iteachk #kindergarten #tpt #tptfreebie #freebie #iteachk #prek
❤️🧡✏️ PHONICS-BASED WRITING CENTERS! SO ❤️🧡✏️ PHONICS-BASED WRITING CENTERS! SOR-aligned and phonics-based writing centers. Unit 1 works with beginning sounds/alphabet. Unit 2 is 100% decodable using CVC words! 10 activities included in each packet along with 100 picture cards in each unit. View the writing centers linked in my Instagram profile! #sor #guidedphonics #iteachk #iteachtoo #iteachfirst
🌈💻 Guided Phonics + Beyond DIGITAL Drag and 🌈💻 Guided Phonics + Beyond DIGITAL Drag and Drop Games! These games are pre-loaded for you in both Google Slides and Seesaw! Aligned 💯 to the Guided Phonics + Beyond SOR curriculum! Units 1-3 currently available with additional sets coming soon. These are part of my Guided Phonics + Beyond digital growing bundle or you can snag each unit separately! Linked in my Instagram profile! #sor #guidedphonics #iteachk #kindergarten #tpt #iteachfirst
💚💛❤️🔢 10 FREE numbers handwriting fre 💚💛❤️🔢 10 FREE numbers handwriting free downloads! Snag 10 awesome and engaging handwriting freebies for practicing numbers! Linked in my Instagram profile! #iteachk #kindergarten #tpt #tptfreebie #iteack #prek
Follow on Instagram

Follow on Facebook

This message is only visible to admins.
Problem displaying Facebook posts. Backup cache in use.
Click to show error
Error: Error validating access token: The session has been invalidated because the user changed their password or Facebook has changed the session for security reasons. Type: OAuthException
Little Minds at Work

3 months ago

Little Minds at Work
FREE DOWNLOAD! CVC Themed Spin, Tap, Map, Write sheets! Snag them here: bit.ly/3zTashX ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Little Minds at Work

3 months ago

Little Minds at Work
FREE DOWNLOAD! Sound sort/assessment sheets! Grab there HERE: bit.ly/3zTashX ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Little Minds at Work

3 months ago

Little Minds at Work
🌈 NEW + FREE "Spy It" phonics-based science of reading sheets! Snag them here: bit.ly/3zTashX ABC, cvc words, digraphs, blends, and CVCE words included! ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Little Minds at Work

3 months ago

Little Minds at Work
FREE DOWNLOADS! Take my free fluency sheets and cut them into fluency STRIPS! Phonics HERE: bit.ly/3ojFL3h Math HERE: bit.ly/35w1ihX ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Little Minds at Work

3 months ago

Little Minds at Work
👀 Nothing to see here.... just 120 FREE SOR DOWNLOADS! Snag them all compiled and linked in ONE single doc HERE: bit.ly/3sspPMw ... See MoreSee Less

Sign Up

Little Minds at Work

littlemindsatwork.org

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Follow on Pinterest

  • Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
    Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
  • Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
    Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
  • Searching for CVC word activities for kindergarten? These hands on activities are highly engaging and simple to prepare. Click the pin to check out a huge variety of CVC word activities, including some freebies too!
    Searching for CVC word activities for kindergarten? These hands on activities are highly engaging and simple to prepare. Click the pin to check out a huge variety of CVC word activities, including some freebies too!
  • Searching for CVC word activities for kindergarten? These hands on activities are highly engaging and simple to prepare. Click the pin to check out a huge variety of CVC word activities, including some freebies too!
    Searching for CVC word activities for kindergarten? These hands on activities are highly engaging and simple to prepare. Click the pin to check out a huge variety of CVC word activities, including some freebies too!
  • Searching for CVCE word activities for kindergarten? These hands on activities are highly engaging and simple to prepare. Click the pin to check out a huge variety of CVCE word activities, including some freebies too!
    Searching for CVCE word activities for kindergarten? These hands on activities are highly engaging and simple to prepare. Click the pin to check out a huge variety of CVCE word activities, including some freebies too!
  • Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
    Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
  • Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
    Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
  • Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
    Completely transform your teaching with these FUN & engaging, yet still rigorous, lessons and activities! These INSTANT Theme packets are perfect preschool and kindergarten offer engaging, hands-on material for each themed set. The INSTANT Themes packets are completely comprehensive...toss in a few hands-on manipulatives and let the learning begin. Click the pin to see all the themes included in the money-saving bundle!
Follow Me on Pinterest

 Tara West © 2017 - Privacy Policy

Cleantalk Pixel