Sloth Letter Match for Preschoolers

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This FREE, fun, hands-on Sloth Letter Match activity complements my International Sloth Day pack. It will allow your preschoolers to work on letter recognition and matching uppercase and lowercase letters.

This activity is also great for helping preschoolers develop concentration, visual discrimination, letter knowledge, one-to-one correspondence, creating sets, eye-hand coordination, fine motor skills, interactive play, and language development.

It is essential to give children plenty of opportunities to work on their ability to recognize and name the letters of the alphabet and say the letters’ sounds so that later on, they can put sounds together to make syllables, then words, and finally, words together to form phrases.

Sloth Letter Match Activity

This printable can be used in different areas and ways, such as:

Small group activity.
Writing center option.
Reading area option.
Take home game
Quiet area option.

It comes with ten pages with upper-case sloths and lower-case leaves. This low-prep activity is straightforward to put together. For this, you only need a handful of materials, which are:

Free Sloth Letter Match printable (at the end of this post).
Printer.
White cardstock.
Scissors.
Laminator
Small basket or Ziploc bag.

To prepare for the activity, complete the form below to download and print the free printable. Print each page using white cardstock, then cut out and laminate all the cards to make them last longer. Place the cards in a small basket or Ziploc bag to protect them.

How To Use the Sloth Letter Match Activity

This activity can be played individually or with a partner. To begin, preschoolers will get the basket or Ziploc bag with the cards. They have to identify the letter accompanying each sloth, find the leaf that matches that letter, and place it next to or under the sloth card.

If your kids are starting to learn the names of the letters, allow them to begin with just a few pairs. Then you can have two or three more every time they play.

When your kiddos know all the letter names, have them say each letter’s sound as they match the sloths and the leaves.

Other Ideas

Use it to teach or review the letter’s sounds and names.

Show a letter card and invite the children to say a word that starts with that letter.

You can use it as a folder game by cutting out the sloth cards and gluing them into a manila folder. Then, cut out the leaf cards and place them in a clasp envelope or a Ziploc bag to keep them safe.

Have them match the letter with magnetic, foam, or wooden letters.

They can write the letters on paper using pencils, markers, or crayons or trace them using a dry-erase marker.

They can find words that start with all or some letters around the room, in magazines or newspapers, and match them with the appropriate sloth card.

To give your preschoolers more choices, prepare centers using this activity and the others included in my International Sloth Day pack.

Sloth Related Books

I have repeatedly said there is no such thing as too much reading. The more you read to your children, the better, and to keep them interested in books, it is essential to change your library periodically according to the theme and season.

These are some excellent suggestions you can use. You can find all these books at your local library, a used books store, and on Amazon. Use the links in each title to get them through my Amazon links so you can grow your library fast for years to come.

Sloths: Fascinating Animal Facts for Kids by Tyler Grady teaches about the sloth’s habitat, diet, breeding, lifespan, behavior, and threats. It also uses beautiful color photography to make each animal come to life.

All Things Sloths for Kids by Animal Reads is filled with amazing real-life images and combines fun with education to help kids learn about sloths.

Sloths Don’t Run by Tori McGee uses rhyme to tell the story of two rainforest creatures who embark on an unlikely adventure – running The Great Rainforest Race. The pair proves that with hard work, they can do what seems impossible and learn the true meaning of courage.

“Slowly, Slowly, Slowly,” said the Sloth by Eric Carle. This book uses dazzling collage illustrations to introduce readers to the exotic beauty of the Amazon rainforest and the many unusual animals living there.

Bedtime for Baby Sloth by Danielle McLean is a sweet story about a baby sloth who doesn’t want to sleep.

Sloan the Sloth Loves Being Different by Misty Black is a self-awareness story that helps children recognize and develop their unique talents and improve their self-worth.

What is a Sloth? by Ginger Swift teaches about the adorably cute and sleepy tree-dwelling mammal, the sloth. The book uses vibrant pages filled with playful tropical rainforest animal friends and fun sloth facts.

Hurry, Hurry, Little Sloth by Little Hippo Books invites children to follow Little Sloth through this beautifully illustrated board book as she moves at her own pace and discovers the wonders of not rushing through life.

Epic Sloth Facts for Kids by Samuel J. Wilco contains facts, vivid imagery, and amusing sloth stories to grab your kid’s attention.

Pin It For Later

If you are in a rush and don’t have time to read the post and download the printable but want to save it, pin it to your literacy board on Pinterest for later.

I hope this Sloth Letter Match activity helps your kiddos and makes lesson planning easier. Don’t forget to get your FREE printable! Click on the bottom below to download it and start using it.

Be happy, safe, and creative. I wish you well.

Love,

P.D. Please let me know if this activity works for you. I aim to help you in any way I can, and I wouldn’t say I like anything better than posting something that you might find helpful.