Liven up play and learning time with puzzle activities that will make your little one smile. Puzzles seem pretty self-explanatory. You open the box and/or dump the pieces out. You put it together. You take it apart. You put it away. How many times can you do the same puzzle the same way over and over again. I invite you to mix up your puzzle play with these super simple puzzle activities and puzzle games.
Puzzle Activities For Preschoolers
Get creative with your puzzle play time and work on a few skills at once! These hands-on puzzle activities make learning fun for kids.
Our puzzle games will also get them moving, thinking, and laughing. You will notice that we don’t always sit to do our puzzle play.
Many of these ideas include early learning skills like letter recognition and letter sounds, counting, visual sensory work, fine motor skills, as well as sensory play.
ALSO CHECK OUT: Preschool Board Games
FREE Quick Start Sensory Bin Guide
Preschool Puzzle Games
All of these fun puzzle play activities can be adjusted to suit your supplies, kids preferences, and educational or developmental needs. Get started with a simple puzzle activity today!
Rainbow Rice Alphabet Puzzle
Combine sensory play, fine motor skills, and letter learning with a simple twist on an ordinary puzzle. Set up a colorful rice sensory bin that includes puzzle pieces to find. It is easy to make your own rainbow-colored rice for all kinds of fun play ideas.
Letter Sound Search And Find
We used the same wooden puzzle as seen above but we tried a different learning idea. We chose a piece and practiced the letter sound. We then searched the house for an object that started with that letter sound.
We were up, down, and all around. Great stuck inside activity for a rainy day with a little gross motor movement added.
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Mixed Up Puzzle Sensory Bin
Do you have a stack of wooden puzzles? We do! I made this very simple rice sensory bin as part of our 10 ways to play with a bag of rice post! Simple sensory play ideas you can create quickly and easily at home and on a budget! I love the way he can move around.
Number Train Puzzle
Take a simple number train puzzle and extend the play and learning! As you can see, we first put together the puzzle.
Then I added a box of loose parts. These could be gems, shells, pennies, mini animals, or whatever else you have plenty of.
For each number on the train puzzle, he counted out the items of the number on the cargo car. Terrific hands-on learning. You can also talk about animals!
Environmental Print Cardboard Puzzles
Check out the recycling bin and practice scissor skills too! Simple grab a cereal box or something similar and cut it up into large pieces.
Holiday Card Puzzle Activity
Another fun way to make puzzles is to use old postcards or even greeting cards. This is great for practicing scissor cutting skills too.
Puzzle Piece Scavenger Hunt
Another get up and moving puzzle activity! This time you hide the pieces. A great use for plastic eggs when it isn’t Easter. You can hide a few pieces in one container or you can hide one to a container.
Have one of those jumbo puzzles? Hide the piece itself! Great way to make a puzzle last a little longer, have kids work together, and burn off some energy!
Trucks and Puzzles Sensory Bin
Here’s another fun way to add puzzles to sensory bins! We love vehicle sensory play and this is a perfect way to make those dollar store foam puzzles a little more interesting. You can choose one of our 10 favorite sensory bin fillers.
More Awesome Preschool Activities
- The Best Sensory Bin Ideas
- Board Games
- Preschool Book Activities
- Fun Playdough Activities
- Dinosaur Activities
- Weather Activities
- Plant Activities
- Preschool Science Experiments
- Preschool Art Projects
Click on the image below or on the link for more easy and fun preschool activities.
