This is a fun preschool game because it teaches so many things at once!
Work on colors, patterns, memory, matching and shapes with this fun snatch game! There are multiple ways to play, so as your child masters one way of play, you can move right along to the next one!
Option one, matching game:
Shuffle the cards and lay them out, in a large rectangle, face down. One each person’s turn they flip 3 cards. If they find two cards that match in shape and color, they keep them. Return all non-matching cards face down to the spots where they came from. Play continues until all cards have been matched.
It’s helpful to have each person state out loud what each card’s symbol and color is as they do it. This will help improve memory skills and also help them determine their matches. For example, they may have flipped over two circles but of differing colors, stating this out loud will help them identify the difference.
Get all 4 pages of fun for 4 games here!
Option two, Snatch Game
Shuffle the cards and put them in a stack face down. Choose a number of cards from the top to reveal face-up to your child. The number of cards revealed will be dependent on your child’s age and how familiar they are with the game. As they get older and better at the game, you can reveal more and more cards. We recommend starting with three cards for a younger child.
Give your child 90 seconds to look at the revealed cards and try to memorize them. Have them close their eyes and count to ten while you remove one card from the line up. When they open their eyes they need to figure out which card was taken away. Both color AND shape.
Play through the entire deck.
Option three, Pattern Game
Work with shapes or colors only to create this fun pattern game. Set up a pattern (example: red, blue, red, blue, red) and leave it open ended. Then, give your child a choice of which card to add to the end to finish the pattern.
As your preschooler learns the concept of patterns you can start making them more complex. (example: red, blue, yellow, green, red, blue —blank—, green)
Option 4 Flash Cards
These can also be used as simple flash cards. Especially when they are first learning the shapes, this can be the perfect way to start. You could even do a round or two as flash cards before or after each game for extra practice!
For more exciting ideas and games for your preschooler check out these quiet time activities!
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