Christmas Pattern Block Mats

Rosey | Posted on November 20, 2019 |

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Pattern blocks are a fun way for kids to learn about 2D Shapes. These free Christmas pattern block mats help kids learn about shapes, counting and are great for developing fine motor skills too! I love using them in pre-k, preschool or kindergarten math centers.

Christmas Pattern Block Mats

This activity just needs a few things. You’ll need the Christmas pattern block mats, pattern blocks and an erasable marker.

Printing – The pattern blocks on the mats should fit the actual pattern blocks. But there’s a trick! Before you print the pattern block mats, first check that your printer is not set to “fit to page”. Otherwise, if you scale it, the size of the pattern blocks gets bigger.

Mat Preparation – Once printed, you can laminate the mats for added durability or put them in a dry erase pocket sleeve. I’ve become a big fan of dry erase pocket sleeves to reduce laminating costs. I love them because it’s so easy to wipe off erasable markers too! If you’re interested in getting some, just google “dry erase pocket sleeve” – they’re available from online sites like eBay and Amazon.

Set Up – Begin by spreading the pattern block mats around a table. Next fill a basket with pattern blocks and pop that on the table too. After that, grab some erasable markers so the kids can write on the mats too. Now you’re set to go!

Introducing the Christmas Pattern Block Mats

Naming the pattern block shapes is a useful way to start this activity. The pattern blocks include a green triangle, orange square, yellow hexagon, red trapezoid, blue parallelogram and a tan rhombus.

It’s also worthwhile having a chat about the different Christmas pictures on the mat. Talking about the name and function of each object is a fun way to do this. For example, “This mat has an ornament. We hang ornaments on the Christmas tree to make it look pretty.”.

How to Play

Begin by getting the kids to name the Christmas picture on their pattern block mat. Next, get them to collect the shapes they’ll need to make the picture. When the kids have finished their picture, they need to count how many of each shape they used. Then they can write the number of shapes they used in the table. Once the kids have counted the shapes, they can trace over the word and swap their mat for another one.