These little bear math manipulatives are my favorite for all sorts of bear themed learning activities! Learn colors, count, build shapes, and more!
Some links on this site are affiliate links and I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you! Learn more.
Have you read Bear Snores On? This fun picture book features a bear whose friends set up an entire party while he is hibernating his way through winter. It’s a delightful read with fun illustrations, and this week’s Virtual Book Club for Kids pick.
My kids (and a couple friends, it turns out) created this bear shape activity to go along with the book. My co-hosts have more fun bear themed learning activities, as always!
Learning Shapes with Bears
What You'll Find on This Page
I played with these three bear family counters as a child, and now my children – and their friends – love them as well. My son Johnny carried one of the large green bears EVERYWHERE in place of a lovey when he was small. It turned out to be an incredibly practical “special” toy, because we had so many of them. I have noticed that the green bears are somewhat endangered these days. We lost a few on day trips, but I always kept a spare in my diaper bag.
Besides making cute counters that also teach colors, these bears are proportionally weighted. The large “papa” bear weighs 12 grams. The medium sized “mama” bear weighs 8 grams. And the smallest “baby” bear weighs 4 grams.
These different weights allow for all sorts of learning opportunities! This time, however, we kept it simple with the kids experimenting with different shapes. Circles and hearts proved most popular, but they experimented with ovals, egg shapes, squares, and even an attempt at a double walled pentagon (above).
While I think they were originally inspired by the Goldilocks and the three bears story, these little guys work great for any bear-themed learning activity. I use them with my kids when they start to feel frustrated over a math problem. Its impossible to get angry with tiny plastic bears!
More Bear Themed Learning Activities for Kids
Bears are always popular in our house! Check out these other bear themed learning activities for kids:
- Teddy Bear Ordering and Sorting
- Bear Dreamed About Colors Printable Book to Color
- Preschool Bear Theme Playdough Templates
- Fashion Bear Felt Board Template
- DIY Dress-up Bear Ears Tutorial
- Fleece Teddy Bears with Pattern
- Valentine Bear Kids Can Sew
- Teddy Bear Color Sorting
Do you have a favorite bear themed learning activity that should be on this list? Please let me know, and I’ll get it added in! Share links in the comments below, or share a post link on my Facebook page! You can also tag me on instagram.
MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.
I love the weight components. This could make these counters interesting for older kids too!
It really extends the life of the toy.
we had bears, rabbits and trains when the lad was little… then discovered some toy cats… the cats were the total bomb. :) So much fun to be had with counter critters.
I love the idea of cat counters! Those would be a hit at our house, for sure!
Those little bears are just too adorable. I love them.
We had some frog counters like those and my boys used to love them. Such fun learning opportunities!
I loved those bears and all the variations when my kids were little.
There are so many fun ways to use math manipulatives!
What a creative use of these little bears!