Does your preschooler love horses? You and your child or students will love these horse games and activities that make learning fun.
From printable activities with a horse theme to horse games to play outside, you are sure to find something that is a hit with your little ones!
Targeted Skills:
- counting
- one to one correspondence
- number recognition
- matching
- shape recognition
- rhyming
- scissor skills
- fine motor skills
Horse Math Games
Give this horse board game a try! Help the horse get to the barn. Uses blocks or buttons as game pieces. Take turns rolling the die and moving that number of spaces. The first player to get to the barn, wins!
If game pieces are too tricky to keep on the board, try laminating it and using a dry erase marker to make an X in each square. Each player would have their own game board. Players still take turns rolling the die and marking the squares. The first player to make it to the barn, wins.
Go to the horse races with this free printable dice game. Roll the die and color in a square next to the number you rolled. Whichever horse has all of the squares colored in first wins the horse race.
Kids love to play this over and over again. So make sure to print enough copies or laminate it and use a dry erase marker.
This horse shape matching activity is a great way to work on visual discrimination and to talk about how the different shapes look.
Cut apart the cards. Mix them up. Then, challenge your child to find the matching shapes to put each horse back together.
Add magnets to the back of the pieces to take this matching activity to a vertical surface. Working on a vertical surface such as a magnetic easel or refrigerator is great for strengthening shoulder and arm muscles. That is important for writing. You could also use them on a magnetic cookie sheet.
This horse puzzle is a fun way to work on number recognition and numerical order. Print the puzzle onto card stock. Then, cut apart the strips or have your child use scissors to cut along the lines. Mix up the pieces. Put the numbers in order to put the horse back together.
Add magnets to the pieces and work on a magnetic cookie sheet to keep the strips from moving.
Download the Horse Math Games
Horse Literacy Centers
Practice rhyming by matching the horse to the barn with the rhyming pictures. The rhyming pairs include sock and lock, bee and tree. The second page includes snail and whale, ring and king.
Download the Horse Rhyming Activity
Fine Motor Skills with a Horse Theme
Horse Cutting Strips
Strengthen scissor skills with these horse cutting strips. Print them onto card stock. Card stock makes the strips easier to cut for young children. Cut the strips apart.
Invite the children to cut between each horse. Short snips like this are great for beginners. Once all of the horses are cut, you can use them for sorting or to make a collage with.
Horse Writing Strips
Practice writing with these simple writing strips. Help the horse get to the barn by tracing the line. Get the horse to the basket of apples. Help the horse get to his friends.
I prefer to cut apart the strips and laminate them. Then, children can use a dry erase marker. It is quick to erase and try again.
Download the Horse Fine Motor Skills Printables
Active Horse Games
Try an active horse game to strengthen gross motor skills. These games are fun to play at a party or any day in the back yard.
Cowboys and Horses
Put hula hoops around the yard. Three players wear a cowboy hat to symbolize that they are the cowboys. The other players are horses. The horses run from hula hoop to hula hoop. If they are in the hula hoop they are safe from being tagged. If a cowboy tags you, you are out. The last three horses to not get tagged become the new cowboys. This is a fun game at a horse party for a birthday.
Horse Races
Use stick horses (or these pool noodle horses) and have a race. The first cowboy to the finish line wins.
Dress Like a Cowboy
Invite children to race to different locations in the yard to dress like a cowboy. Run to the tree and put on a cowboy hat. Run to the fence to put on cowboy boots. Run to the other side of the yard to get a horse (stuffed animal). You get the idea. The first cowboy that is all dressed and crosses the finish line wins. This game is a lot of fun.
We hope you enjoy these horse games and learning activities as much as we do! Which one will you try first?
Thx.