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Ice Cream ABC Matching Game {with printable}

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Written by Pam Odd of Keeping Life Creative.

Since learning is a way of life at our house, it’s not surprising my preschooler thinks “school” should be part of her day as well – even though most of her “school day visions” come from what she’s seen on TV. Many mornings she packs a backpack with books, crayons, or toys, and announces she’s ready for school.

Ice Cream ABC Matching Game {with printable}

I don’t do a lot of formal preschooling because I feel the best way for young ones to learn is through play. However, to appease her desire to do what the big kids are doing, I provide her with “schoolwork.” Activity books from the dollar store, lots and lots of read alouds, puzzles, games, coloring sheets, and Super Why make up most of her school time and keep her busy while the big kids are working.

This is an ABC matching game she’s been loving.

ice cream alphabet matching game

One early literacy skill kids learn before reading is recognizing the difference between uppercase and lowercase letters. This simple game helps kids match “big” letters and “little” letters by placing an ice cream scoop on the coordinating cone. Here’s how to create the ABC matching game for your preschoolers:

Ice Cream Cone ABC Matching Game Supplies

How to Make the ABC Matching Game

Step 1: Print the matching game pieces.

preschool printable matching game

Since I was taking the time to create this game, I wanted it to last so I chose to print it on colored cardstock – brown for the cones and different colors for the ice cream scoops.

Step 2: Laminate for durability (optional).

ice cream ABC matching game

Have you invested in a personal laminator for your homeschool? It’s one of my most frequently used “teaching supplies,” and I highly recommend owning one! They’re inexpensive, and if you’re taking the time to make games like this, you’ll likely want them to last more than one use (or child!). I’ve found Sam’s Club/Costco to be a good place to purchase refill lamination sheets.

Step 3: Cut out game pieces.

ABC matching game for preschoolers

Step 4: Play the game!

printable ABC game for preschoolers

Match the uppercase letter cone to the lowercase letter scoop.

How do you do preschool? Formal, or more laid back?

>>Download your free Ice Cream Cone ABC Matching Game printable.

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This article was written by a Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers guest author. See the author's full bio in the body of the post.

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7 Comments

  1. Love this idea, but wondered what your ideas were about teaching the letters first. Upper and lower case letters do not look the same many times. Maybe I missed something unique to help with the match up.
    Again, love your work!

    1. That’s a great point, Melanie!
      This matching activity definitely comes a bit later in the learning process, after kids are already familiar with the alphabet and what each letter looks like in capital- and lowercase-form. There are soooo many ways to teach kids how to recognize letters. I suggest doing a quick search on Pinterest. . . . I’m sure you’ll find hundreds!
      Hope that helps.
      xoxo, Pam

  2. I thought this was a great idea! Unfortunately, the ice cream parts did not printout. I was able to print the cones. Thank you!

      1. I ran the print and all pages printed out but the pages with the tops (ice cream) came through empty. All the other pages printed great. I even tried to print just those pages and all I got was empty pages.

        1. That’s really strange. Both Pam and I have printed them without any trouble. Are your ink levels okay? I’ve had trouble before when my black ink got too low. If your ink is fine, I’m not sure what else might be causing the problem. Sorry!

  3. This idea is great! Wish I saw this earlier, but at Wal-mart there was a similar thing used to teach math. Each of the ice cream scoops would have a number, and you could put a digit in the cone to illustrate what that sum of the numbers of the scoop are.

    It’s a really fun idea for my young kids because ice cream is their favorite treat and playing with these cutouts really gets them engaged.

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