Arctic Animal Fine Motor Activities for Toddlers
Thinking about teaching an Arctic theme in your preschool? Then add these arctic animal fine motor activities to your preschool lesson plans. Your preschooler will love rescuing their arctic animals from the iceberg using science tools and supplies you already have at home!
A little bit fine motor work. A sprinkle of states of matter science. An exciting arctic animals theme. That equals a lot of fun for little hands!
This arctic animal fine motor rescue activity is such a hit because it takes simple materials (water and ice) and turns it into big fun. With a little planning and prep the night before, your preschoolers will get to experience arctic fun in a big way!
This fun, hands-on activity combines imaginative play with fine motor practice as children work to “rescue” arctic animals from icy habitats. Using tools pipettes or eye droppers, kids develop their fine motor skills, coordination, and precision—all critical skills for early writing and self-care tasks.
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Arctic Preschool Centers$8.00
This is a super fun and hands-on arctic animal activity, but if you’re looking for printables, we’ve got you covered there, too! 20+ Arctic Animal Printables For Preschoolers
Arctic Animal Fine Motor Rescue
One of the best things about this activity is that it’s suitable for preschoolers of all ages. This means that even your two-year-old toddler can participate as well as even your kindergartner.
And if I’m completely honest, my older kids would probably love it, too!
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Materials
- Small freezer safe bowls (I used creme brûlée ramekins)
- Larger shallow bowl (or baking dish)
- Arctic animal toys
- Pipettes or eye droppers
- Food coloring (optional)
Arctic Animal Toys
Here are s few of our favorite toys for our Arctic preschool theme. Some we selected just for this activity, others are just favorites we add to our other thematic centers.
- Large Arctic Animal Figures : TOYMANY 12PCS Arctic Animal Figures set includes Polar Bear, Reindeer,…
- Realistic Emulational Details : This polar animal figures set was made by hand painted with high…
- Awesome Birthday Gift : Such cute & different varieties of animal figures are worth to be collected,…
- Discover the Wonders of the Arctic: Immerse your child in the world of Arctic animals with our…
- Vivid and Realistic Designs: These kids magnetic tiles for kids age 3-5 feature Arctic animals like…
- Interactive Play Anywhere: These colorful magnets tiles for kids ages 4-8 have a strong magnetic…
- 【Arctic Animal Toys Set】The toy animal set include 26 pieces different arctic animal figurines,…
- 【Emulation Hand Painted Details】Each polar animal figure is finely hand painted and sculpted by…
- 【Educational Animal Toys for Kids】Perfect for educational toys for kids, Children can learn the…
- Polar Animals Themed Teaching Toys Kit: Our polar animals felt story board for toddlers with 41…
- Great Game and Teaching: It would be a fun artistic expression preschool activity for toddlers. Kids…
- Attractive Polar Story: Our polar creatures felt kits include polar bear, penguins, whale, dolphin,…
- ARCTIC ANIMALS PUZZLE FOR TODDLERS – 7 piece puzzle set of children’s favorite animals -…
- EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS – Promotes creativity, tactile and fine motor development, and problem…
- QUALITY FAMILY TIME – Elevate parent-child bonding with our engaging puzzle, fostering collaborative…
The Set Up
This activity does take a little prep work. Nothing hard, you just have to remember to put things together in advance because, you know, ice.
The Night Before
- Place an arctic animal in each ramekin. Add enough water to each ramekin to fill to mostly all the way to the top.
- You can add a few drops of food coloring for fun if you’d like. I did. But just enough to make a nice light blue.
- Tip! Use boiling water so then when the water freezes it will freeze clear without any tiny air bubbles. That I did not do.
- Put the ramekins in the freezer overnight or until frozen solid.
A Few Minutes Before
- Once frozen, set the arctic animals out on the counter to a few minutes to thaw just enough to be able to pull the block of ice out of the ramekin and place in a larger, shallow bowl.
- Fill the ramekin with really warm water. (Not hot, as you don’t want your little one to get burned).
- Place everything on a tray with a pipette and invite your preschooler to help rescue the arctic animals from the iceberg!
Your toddler will love rescuing their arctic animal from the iceberg!
Check out our Arctic Animal Preschool Lesson Plans!
The Arctic Animals Fine Motor Activity
The purpose of arctic animals fine motor activities for preschoolers like this one is not only to teach preschoolers about arctic animals but also to work on fine motor skills. This activity naturally includes developmentally appropriate science for preschoolers.
My little boys used the pipettes to drip warm water onto their arctic animal in efforts to free it from the iceberg. Prior to actually doing this activity, we read a few books about what it’s like to live in the Arctic.
Using the pipettes gave the boys plenty of fine motor work. Using the pipettes helps develop the pincer grasp needed for a mature pencil grip.
My toddler, on the other hand, doesn’t have the coordination to use the pipette correctly, so he used it more as a tool to chip away bits of ice.
Try our Arctic Slime Avalanche sensory activity, too!
The Rescue Activity
Soon, the boys began to notice that their iceberg was melting. This led to the discovery of interesting nooks and crannies in the ice. Plus it freed up more and more of the arctic animal!
My toddler gave up on the notion of freeing his arctic animal with the warm water and pipette, so he opted to pick up the iceberg and put it in his mouth. This was ok as it gave my toddler more oral sensory input that he needed from the activity.
One of my sons noticed how his walrus looked from the bottom of his iceberg, and there was a bit of laughter as he thought he found its belly button.
Soon, the arctic animals were freed from the ice! This activity then moved away from the fine motor and science fun and into chilly water sensory play.
In fact, do this activity at the water table and your preschoolers can enjoy the ice sensory play until every last drop is melted. And even then, the leftover water can become the ocean.
This pure white playdough recipe is excellent for an arctic preschool theme.
Arctic Themed Fine Motor Activities
Engage little learners with arctic-themed fine motor activities that combine hands-on fun with skill-building. These activities are perfect for strengthening small muscles, coordination, and precision while sparking creativity and imagination.
From rescuing arctic animals to exploring icy textures, these activities make winter learning both exciting and developmentally enriching.
- Marshmallow Snowball Transfer Game
- Rescue the Arctic Pups Fine Motor Activity
- Pipe Cleaner Arctic fine Motor Activity
- Arctic Animal Fine Motor & Prewriting Tray
- Snowy Owl Suncatcher Craft
- Arctic Animal Lacing Cards
Arctic Animal Activities for Toddlers
- Arctic Animal Small World Play
- Polar Bear Snack Tutorial
- Set of 7 Arctic Animal Plushies
- Polar Animal Babies Match-up Puzzles
- Polar Bear Stacking Blocks
- Set of 10 Polar Animal Wooden Figurines
Children’s Books About Arctic Animals
Learning about these magical animals requires great visuals into both their habitat and their unique adaptations to such a harsh lifestyle. We’ve picked picture books that include amazing illustrations and photos to show arctic animals and their stunning habitat.
- McDonald, Jill (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 26 Pages – 10/08/2019 (Publication Date) – Doubleday Books for Young Readers (Publisher)
- Le Xuan, Vuong (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 26 Pages – 01/09/2024 (Publication Date) – Independently published (Publisher)
- Henrietta Bancroft (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 32 Pages – 12/01/1996 (Publication Date) – HarperCollins (Publisher)
- Rustad, Martha E. H. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 24 Pages – 07/31/2015 (Publication Date) – Capstone Press (Publisher)
- Hardcover Book
- Bittel, Jason (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
Arctic Animal Fine Motor Rescue
This arctic animal fine motor rescue activity is a great way to infuse science and hands-on play. Invite your toddler or preschooler to melt the ice and save the arctic animals!
Materials
- 1. Small freezer safe bowls (I used creme brûlée ramekins)
- 2. Larger shallow bowl (or baking dish)
- 3. Arctic animal toys
- 4. Pipettes or eye droppers
- 5. Food coloring (optional)
Instructions
1. The night before, place an arctic animal in each ramekin. Add enough water to each ramekin to fill to mostly all the way to the top.
2. You can add a few drops of food coloring for fun if you'd like. I did. Just enough to make a nice light blue.
3. Put the ramekins in the freezer overnight or until frozen solid.
When Ready For the Activity:
- Once frozen, set the arctic animals out on the counter to a few minutes to thaw just enough to be able to pull the block of ice out of the ramekin and place in a larger, shallow bowl.
- Fill the ramekin with really warm water. (Not hot, as you don't want your little one to get burned).
- Place everything on a tray with a pipette and invite your preschooler to help rescue the arctic animals from the iceberg!
Notes
*This activity does take a little prep work. Nothing hard, you just have to remember to put things together in advance because, you know, ice.
* If you really want to go all out, use boiling water to cover the animals so when the water freezes it will freeze clear without any tiny air bubbles.
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I’m Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home-mama of five! I’m the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught a range of levels, from preschool to college and a little bit of everything in between. Right now my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction.
