What Are Morning Tubs?

Morning Tubs are fun, hands-on activities designed for your students to work on independently at the start of the day. Instead of staring down a stack of worksheets, your kids dig into hands-on activities the moment they walk in the door.

These activities are aligned with standards, so your students are learning and reviewing key concepts while they play. Along the way, they also practice investigating, problem-solving, and working with their classmates — all before the official school day even begins.

The Purpose of Morning Tubs:

Better Way To Start The Day

If your students arrive at all different times in the morning, you know how tricky it can be to start things off smoothly. At my school, doors open an hour before class starts, and kids head straight to their classrooms.

With morning tubs, students can eat breakfast, chat with friends, and settle in while staying actively engaged in an academic activity. No matter what time they arrive, they can dive into their morning tub independently until it’s time to start the day as a class.

More Time to Get Things Done

Mornings are packed: homework folders to check, attendance and lunch counts to take, notes from parents to read.

While your students are happily working through their tubs, you have a window to handle all of that — or even pull a group of students for some small group work.

A Built-In Boredom Buster

Traditional morning worksheets tend to create two problems at once. Some students rush through and finish in a few minutes, then have nothing to do. Others get stuck, feel frustrated, and shut down before the day even starts. Neither is a great way to begin.

Morning tubs solve this by being self-paced and engaging. Because the activities review concepts your students already know, everyone can work at their own level without feeling rushed or left behind. They’re fun and hands-on, so kids are excited to dig in every single morning — instead of dreading another worksheet.

Built-In Skill Practice

Beyond academics, morning tubs give students daily practice with skills that don’t always show up on a worksheet: sharing materials, taking turns, communicating with a partner, and solving small problems on their own. That repetition matters — the more often kids practice these routines, the more independent they become, which frees you up for the rest of the day.

Morning Tubs give both students and teachers a calmer, more productive start — setting the tone for a day of learning rather than a scramble to catch up.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many morning tubs do I need? This depends on your class size and how you want students to work. Some teachers set up one tub per student so everyone works independently; others use as few as 10–15 tubs so students work in pairs or small groups. A common starting point is 10–20 activities per theme, with a few non-themed tubs mixed in to target specific skills your class needs to practice.

How do I introduce morning tubs to my students? Activities your students are already familiar with can be introduced as a whole group — just a quick run-through of how to use them. For brand-new activity types, introduce them during small group time so you can give more individualized guidance before students try them independently.

Do students have to complete a worksheet for each tub? No — that’s actually one of the biggest perks of morning tubs. There’s no required worksheet. If you’d like a way to track what students are working on, having them snap a quick photo of their completed activity creates a simple digital portfolio over time.

What age groups work best with morning tubs? Morning tubs are especially popular in preschool, kindergarten, and early elementary classrooms, where independent work time and hands-on practice matter most. That said, the format can be adapted for older students by adjusting the complexity of the activities.

How often should I switch out the activities? Many teachers rotate tubs by theme (for example, a “Back to School” set) and refresh them every month. Because laminated activities are durable, you can build a rotating library and reuse sets year after year.

Ready to Try Morning Tubs?

Getting started with morning tubs doesn’t have to be complicated. Here’s a simple path forward:

1. Choose your activities. Select the Preschool Morning Tubs or the Kindergarten Morning Tubs bundle to use throughout the school year.
2. Prep for durability. Print on card stock and laminate each piece so your tubs hold up to daily classroom use.
3. Set up your storage and labels. Pick containers that fit your classroom space — shoebox bins, pencil boxes, or a rolling cart all work — and label each tub clearly.
4. Decide how students will choose and use tubs. Will it be free choice? Assigned by group? Will partners work together? Set your expectations before day one.
5. Introduce gradually. Walk through familiar activities as a whole group, and save new ones for small group instruction.
6. Adjust as you go. Pay attention to what’s working and what isn’t, and don’t be afraid to swap out tubs that aren’t landing with your students.

For a deeper dive into each of these steps, check out the full guides on organizing your morning tubs and managing morning tub time.

Who doesn’t want a classroom full of students who are excited and ready to learn the moment they walk in? Morning tubs give both you and your students a calmer, more productive start to the day — and once your system is set up, it only gets easier from there.