Simple Sticker Matching Game for Toddlers & Preschoolers

Visual discrimination is the ability to recognize details and subtle differences. Why is visual discrimination an important skill for toddlers and preschoolers? VD is critical in reading and writing. Consider how close letter b, d, p, and q look. Noticing the subtle differences in these letters changes the words you are reading and writing. Sight words like "were" and "where" and "was" and "saw" can give early readers big troubles because they are unable to easily detect the slight differences in the words while reading. 

Sticker matching is a fun and easy activity for preschoolers. To get started, grab some stickers and blank paper. Find stickers in your packs that have exact matches. Put one of each pair on the left side of the paper and the other on the right. Not only will kiddos be working on VD and matching, they will also be working on fine motor skills by drawing lines.

My kiddos love sticker matching, and now they are able to create their own! They love looking for matching stickers and finding a "tricky" spot on the blank paper for each sticker. After they fill up the page, they let each other have a go.

Check out Jack (age 3) working on the sticker matching game in this video.

Initial Sounds Phonics Easter Egg Activity

Today I'm sharing a fun learning activity using plastic eggs! If you are like me, you have tons of stickers that need a purpose. I grabbed some plastic eggs, a Sharpie, and some of those random stickers. Attach one sticker to the top half of each egg. On the bottom, write the letter for the initial sound.

 S is for Spiderman!

L is for leaf!

Pop the eggs apart and let your kiddos get to work matching the letters and sounds.

There are so many variations of this cute, simple activity to differentiate for the needs of your students. To challenge your kiddos, you can set up the activity for students to match final consonant sounds. Frog= /g/  Ball= /l/ Leaf= /f/  Working on medial vowel sounds?  Have students match stickers to the vowel sound of the sticker. Cat= /a/ Frog= /o/ Pig= /i/ Bug= /u/

Another fun extension... Kids love tiny things so this activity is right up their alley. Have students choose an egg and find a small object that begins with the letter on the egg AND fits inside the egg. If you are doing this in the classroom, each student could take an egg home and bring it back to school to share with the class.

8 more Educational Easter Egg Activities

Check out these fun math & literacy printables! Perfect for morning work, stations, independent practice.

Easter Art Paper: Torn Paper Easter Egg Craft

Looking for a fun and easy Easter art project? I love the way these torn paper eggs turned out! Tearing and ripping paper is great for tiny hands and fine motor skills. This art project is great for toddlers, preschoolers, and even elementary kids. Elementary students can create mosaics, color patterns, and creative designs. Younger students will enjoy tearing the paper to make pieces in various shapes and sizes. Mount the torn paper egg on a piece of card stock for a beautiful bulletin board display.

We used glue sponges for this craft. Elmer's glue and a paintbrush or sponge brush would also work well.

Jack using the glue sponge to adhere all of his orange torn paper. 

Tearing paper requires strength and endurance of the muscles in the hands. For preschoolers, this project is a perfect combination of fine motor skills and art! 

Materials: Egg Template, Construction paper in various colors, Glue, Sponges, Clothespin (optional) 

I'm not great at free handing ovals, so I googled "printable egg template" and lots turned up! Thank you, Google! 

Love how bright and beautiful our Easter eggs turned out!

Be sure to check out Spring and Easter fun-filled learning... Includes math and literacy activities. Perfect for PreK and Kindergarten students during March, April, and May!