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You are here: Home / Themes / Summer / Gail Gibbons Books and Activities Perfect for Summer

Gail Gibbons Books and Activities Perfect for Summer

By Shaunna Evans 23 Comments · This content may contain affiliate links.

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I have always loved using books by Gail Gibbons to help teach science. They are full of wonderful facts and nonfiction text features, and they are great for older preschoolers and kids in early elementary grades.

This month Gail Gibbons is the featured author of the  The Virtual Book Club for Kids, and I can’t wait to see what everyone shares! There are so many great books by this author that I had a very hard time choosing just one to write about. As we get ready I thought it would be fun to highlight some of the books and activities that would go along great with summer learning. Whether you are looking for resources for summer themes to study with kids or just hoping for a little summer reading inspiration, I hope this list is helpful.

For each book I’ve including activity ideas that you might try, but the list is in no way exhaustive. There are many other great ways to extend the learning introduced in these books. I’d love for you to share any additional activity ideas in the comments.

Learning Activities to Go with Gail Gibbons Books

Gail Gibbons Books and Activity Ideas for Summer

FIND EVEN MORE SUMMER THEME ACTIVITIES IN OUR PRINTABLE SUMMER LESSON PLANS.

Activity Ideas for  Sea Turtles:

  • If possible, try to visit the beach and spot a sea turtle nest.
  • Visit the Sea Turtle Conservatory online.  Turtle Tides is a section devoted to kids! There you will find links to games, activities, artwork, and more.
  • Check out some of the classroom resources and videos at See Turtles.
  • Make a sea turtle sensory bin like this one from You’ll Thank Me One Day.
  • Add the Safari Ltd. Life Cycle of a Green Sea Turtle toys to your sensory play, or use them alone to retell the life cycle of a sea turtle.

Activity Ideas for  Gulls…Gulls…Gulls…

  • If you you live near an area where you can observe gulls, take some time to go sit and watch. Older kids can bring a nature journal along to draw or write about what they see. See if you can find out which kinds of gulls are most common in your area.
  • Visit the National Audobon Just for Kids section to see videos, play games, and learn more about all kinds of birds.
  • Gather grasses, mosses, and dried weeds and make a gull nest on the ground.

Activity Ideas for  Ladybugs:

  • See if you can find ladybugs outdoors. If you can’t, you can order live ladybugs or get them at a local garden center to observe.
  • Try one of the activities on this amazing ladybug Pinterest Board created by Debbie Clement of Rainbows within Reach.
  • Make a ladybug inspired snack like these watermelon ladybug pops from Twodaloo.
  • Do a little crafty math with these egg carton ladybug math ideas from Teaching Mama.
  • Practice addition with this ladybug sensory math activity.
  • Create a ladybug small world.
  • Learn about the parts of a ladybug and create some ladybug art.

Activity Ideas for  The Honey Makers

  • Go on a bee hunt. See if you can find bees around plants in your neighborhood.
  • Taste honey.
  •  Try this honeycomb art from Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas.
  • Make a bumble bee treat like this one from Meaningful Mama.
  • Create a bee sensory bin with these ideas from Montessori from the Heart.
  • Use the free Bees printable pack from 2 Teaching Mommies.

 

Activity Ideas for  The Vegetables We Eat

  • Grow some vegetables at home.
  • Visit the farmers’ market to see which foods are grown locally in your area. Let toddlers and preschoolers spend time touching and exploring the different vegetables. Let your kids choose a new vegetable to buy. Then cook it together.
  • Set up a pretend play vegetable stand at home. We did this for our recent letter V theme, and the kids loved it!
  • Use vegetables for hands-on math activities.
  • Create a collaborative vegetable art collage.

 

Activity Ideas for  Coral Reefs

  • Try some of the activities from this Coral Reef Unit from Stacy Sews and Schools.
  • Make an easy coral reef sensory bin with blue water and the Safari Ltd Coral Reef Toob.
  • Create a coral reef play dough invitation.
  • Do this fun octopus black ink experiment from Train Up a Child.

Activity Ideas for  Whales

  • Try this fun life-sized tape whale activity from Learners in Bloom to show kids how big whales can be.
  • Set up this amazing fizzing hidden ocean world sensory activity from Fun at Home with Kids.
  • Use some of the lesson plans, printouts, and interactive resources from The Teachers Guide.
  • Pretend to be a whale in the pool and spray water out of a pretend blow hole. We use our small water squirters from the Dollar Tree. Make it into a game by trying to swim past the “whale” (person who is it) without getting sprayed.

Activity Ideas for  Sharks

  • Try one of the many activities in this Shark Unit Study from Living Montessori Now.
  • Observe sharks…at an aquarium or on YouTube videos (just be sure to screen videos before showing to kids).
  • Play sharks and minnows in the pool or on land.

Activity Ideas for  Ice Cream: The Full Scoop

  • Make your own ice cream in a bag or homemade ice cream.
  • Make some ice cream sensory dough with this play recipe from Play Create Explore.
  • Make some of this chilly ice cream goo from Fun at Home with Kids.
  • Go on a field trip to an ice cream shop. See if you can take a tour of the facility and learn more about how the ice cream is stored and prepared.
  • Set up a pretend play ice cream shop at home.
  • Let the kids plan and set up an ice cream bar for a special family dessert night.
  • Turn your tub into an ice cream parlor for kids like the one shared on Bath Activities for Kids.

Activity Ideas for  Surrounded by Sea: Life on a New England Fishing Island

  • Visit a marina to look at boats. See if you can find fishing boats.
  • If you know someone with a boat, see if they could give you a little tour of it.
  • Go fishing. If you can’t really go fishing, then fish for letters or pretend fish in the tub or pool.
  • Make a fishing island sensory bin or small world.
  • Turn your tub into a boat and let kids set sail with lots of pretend play.

Activity Ideas for  Hurricanes!

  • If you live in a hurricane prone area, work together as a family to update your hurricane readiness supplies. 
  • Read through the hurricane names assigned to this year.
  • Track the storms closest to your area. Have each member of the family predict how far we’ll get through the list of names for the current year before hurricane season ends.
  • Little ones will have fun moving like a hurricane. You can discuss speed and rotation while getting a little energy out.

Activity Ideas for  Tornadoes!

  • Try this easy DIY tornado in a jar experiment.
  • Discuss and practice what kids should do if there is a tornado.

I hope this list gives you a little inspiration. I look forward to seeing what you have to share for Gail Gibbons month.

Looking Back at Previous Authors 

  • Dr. Seuss
  • Julia Donaldson
  • David Shannon

Virtual Book Club for Kids

If you are looking for more book-related activities to try now, check out the Virtual Book Club for Kids Pinterest Board.

MORE SUMMER FUN WITH PRINTABLE SUMMR THEME LESSON PLANS

Save time and get right to the playful learning with our printable lesson plan sets. Each set includes over 30 playful learning activities related to the theme, and we’ve provided different versions for home preschool families and classroom teachers so all activities are geared directly toward your needs.

GET YOUR LESSON PLANS

Preschool Summer Theme Lesson Plans

Also available on Teachers Pay Teachers.

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Filed Under: Book Lists, Book Related Activities, Gail Gibbons, Kindergarten, Preschool, Science, Summer, Virtual Book Club for Kids Tagged With: book related activities, Gail Gibbons, kids science books, summer reading books, summer themes

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. stacysewsandschools

    June 17, 2013 at 5:58 pm

    Thank you SO much for including my study unit!!! 😀

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 22, 2013 at 8:14 am

      So happy to include you!

      Reply
  2. clara lauber

    June 17, 2013 at 1:26 pm

    This is a wonderful unit on Gail Gibbons. Thank You!

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 22, 2013 at 8:14 am

      Thank you!!

      Reply
  3. Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas

    June 14, 2013 at 11:39 pm

    Shaunna thanks for sharing this great resources on the Sunday Showcase. I’m featuring it this week.

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 15, 2013 at 8:49 pm

      Thanks so much for featuring this post. Your collection of learning activities is terrific!

      Reply
  4. Beth

    June 13, 2013 at 10:10 pm

    So many great ideas. We LOVE Gail Gibbons! One of our go to children’s authors =)

    Thanks for linking up to TGIF! Hope to see you again tomorrow =)

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 15, 2013 at 8:34 pm

      Thank you! We love Gail Gibbons, too. So many great resources and opportunities to connect learning across different subjects.

      Reply
  5. Sugar Aunts

    June 13, 2013 at 9:40 pm

    We are featuring your post on a HUGE list of Rainy Day Summer Play activities! We will be sharing with all of our followers on our social media sites (including group boards and communities!!) Thanks for sharing with us at Share It Saturday!
    Colleen at http://www.sugaraunts.com

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 15, 2013 at 8:33 pm

      I saw your HUGE list! It’s awesome. Thanks for including some of our activities.

      Reply
  6. Ticia

    June 13, 2013 at 10:45 am

    I love Gail Gibbons, she’s one of my go-to authors for nonfiction.

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 15, 2013 at 8:25 pm

      Mine, too! She has so many great books on such a wide variety of topics.

      Reply
  7. Carla

    June 10, 2013 at 2:57 pm

    Can I just say, “WOW!” This is an amazing collection of resources and ideas! Thank you so much for sharing it at Teach Me Tuesday at Preschool Powol Packets!

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 10, 2013 at 8:50 pm

      Thank you, Carla! There are so many awesome ABC activities out there. It was a lot of fun to put this resource together.

      Reply
  8. Tara from The Magnolia Barn

    June 7, 2013 at 10:54 am

    This is a great list. We have actually been using Gail’s Ladybug book this week to study ladybugs. You’re right, it’s cute and full of information while also having a nice story. It’s probably our favorite book out of the stack we got at the library.

    Reply
  9. Jacquie@KCEdventures

    June 3, 2013 at 10:43 am

    Love this post! Gail Gibbons is such an amazing author and her books are a wonderful way to introduce kids to non-fiction; we use them all the time too!

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 4, 2013 at 9:07 am

      I absolutely agree…so much to learn and discover in each book!

      Reply
  10. Anna - the Measured Mom

    June 3, 2013 at 8:30 am

    What a great resource! I love Gail Gibbons.

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 4, 2013 at 9:07 am

      Thanks! Me, too!

      Reply
  11. JDaniel4's Mom

    June 3, 2013 at 7:51 am

    I had the best time looking over your book selection and the ideas to go with them.

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 4, 2013 at 9:06 am

      Thanks! I had the best time putting them together! I think I’ll have to revisit Gail Gibbons again in the fall…so many awesome book choices.

      Reply
  12. Veens

    June 3, 2013 at 7:39 am

    This is an amazing list. Thank you for sharing… Pinning it 🙂

    Reply
    • Shaunna

      June 4, 2013 at 9:06 am

      Thanks!

      Reply

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