Polar Bear Kids Activities

Discover the wonders of the Arctic with our Polar Bear books and sensory play Kids Activities in celebration of International Polar Bear Day.

International PolarBear Day is an annual event celebrated every February 27 to raise awareness about the conservation status of polar bears and the impact of global warming and reduced sea ice on the polar bear population. So, we started our unit study by reading about polar bears and the dangers they are facing.  

See here for the Books we are reading for the International Polar Bear Day.

Learning About Polar Bears

Polar bears ~ the world’s largest carnivore, can grow up to nine feet tall (when standing) and weigh 1400 pounds. Polar bears live in the North Pole region and are native to Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Norway, and Russia. It is believed that all polar bears are left-handed!

Polar Bear Sensory Bin

After reading, we explored through sensory play. I strongly believe that sensory play is extremely important for children since by manipulating different textures, children trigger various senses. In turn, triggering sensory stimulation sends multiple signals between neurons, thus strengthening neuron connectivity and spurring neuroplasticity (the production of new connections between neurons, even new neurons themselves). All of this inevitably induces the brain’s agility. Also, the clean-up is minimal since everything is contained in a tub, tin, box, or any other container. 

We talked about the danger of ice in the Arctic ocean melting earlier each year, shortening polar bear’s hunting season, and causing a shortage of food. Once the ice melts, the seals swim out to sea, making it harder to catch them. Sometimes polar bears have to swim out too far ~ some drown.

Stimulating tactile senses – the sense of touch.

 The texture of water jelly beads was slippery and “squishy,” the ice felt cold, while insta-snow (non-toxic, and expandable once add water) felt “fluffy”(buy here). 

 As a result of this fun sensory activity, Adrian stimulated two senses:

1. 👀  the sense of Sight/Visual sense, and
2. 🖐🏻 the sense of Touch/Tactile sense. 

Ringed seals are polar bears’ favorite food. 

Polar Bear Kids Activities

A cub learns to hunt by observing his mother. 
Cubs live with their mother for two years, after that, she leaves them, ready to mate again and have more babies.

Through this sensory stimulatory play, we learned a lot about polar bears and the dangers they face, and we also paused and thought about what we could do to help them. “One drop raises the sea,” I tell my children: each and every one of us can make a difference, even if the difference seems small, even insignificant compared to the magnitude of global issues we are facing. But once we realize that we all share our home with every other living thing, and if we act respectfully to each other and conserve and cherish the resources that are finite, we can make a difference!

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For More Polar Bear Kids Activities

For more on the Arctic region, see here Polar Regions Unit Study

You might also like to read here our 🌊 Ocean Unit Study.

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