Preschool Printables: Letters, Numbers and Picture Cards for Learning Through Play

Children aged 3 to 6 learn letters, numbers and new words best when it feels like play: a crayon in the hand, a picture to colour and a grown-up nearby asking, “What sound does it start with?” These printable preschool activities take ten to fifteen minutes a day, need nothing more than a printer and some crayons, and work at home, in kindergarten or in a weekend language school. Each one has a free sample, so you can try it before you decide.

Printable preschool activities: what children practise

• Letters. Recognising a letter, linking it to a picture and a word, and tracing its shape on a dotted line.
• Numbers. Counting pictures one by one, matching a number to a quantity and tracing the numeral.
• First words. Naming pictures, sorting them by theme and hearing the first sound of a word.
• Hand control. Colouring inside big outlines, tracing and cutting with an adult all train the small movements children later need for writing.
• Talking and listening. Simple card games give children a reason to describe, ask and tell short stories.

A simple week of learning through play

1. Monday – a letter. Colour the first letter of your child's name and trace it together.
2. Tuesday – a number. Pick the number that matches your child's age and count the pictures on that page.
3. Wednesday – picture cards. Colour a sheet of cards and cut them out with an adult.
4. Thursday – a card game. Play pairs or “What's missing?” with the cards from Wednesday.
5. Friday – child's choice. Let your child choose a new letter or a new number, and hang the finished page on the wall.

1. Letters: My First Alphabet

My First Alphabet is a printable colouring book with one A4 page for every letter. Each page has a big hollow capital and small letter, a picture to colour, the word and a dotted line for tracing. The book follows the alphabet of the language you choose: 26 letters in English, French and Italian, 27 in Spanish, 30 in German and Bulgarian and 32 in Polish. Letters that rarely start a word are hidden inside a word, with a hint to find them. Want to try it with your child first? Download the free sample.

How to use a letter page: say the name of the picture out loud and stress the first sound, let your child colour the big letter, then trace it together on the dotted line. Afterwards, look around the room for two more things that start with the same letter.

The free sample is a 5-page A4 PDF: the cover with a “This book belongs to” line and 3 letter pages. Enter your email on the product page and the download links appear right away – no checkout and no payment. The full book (€2.90) has one page for every letter of your alphabet.

Download the free sample See the full book

2. Numbers: count, colour and trace from 1 to 20

My First Numbers 1–20 has one A4 page for each number from 1 to 20. Every page shows a big hollow numeral, the number word in your language and the right number of pictures to count and colour – apples, balloons, fish, stars, butterflies, snowflakes and more – plus a line for tracing.

An example: Mia is 5. She takes the page for 5, touches each picture as she counts and colours it once she has said its number. Then she traces the 5 and holds up five fingers. Next week she can try the page for 10.

The free sample is a 5-page A4 PDF with the cover and the pages for 1, 2 and 3. The full book (€2.90) has 21 pages: the cover and one page for every number up to 20.

Download the free sample See the full book

3. First words: Picture & Word Cards

Picture & Word Cards is a set of 72 cards with pictures and words in 6 themes: Farm, Fruit and vegetables, Forest, Vehicles, Home and toys, and Sea. There are 12 cards on each A4 sheet, with dotted cutting lines and pictures ready to colour. In French, Italian, Spanish and German every word comes with its article, so children learn it together with the word.

Four ways to learn with the cards:

• Pairs: print a sheet twice, lay all the cards face down and look for two matching cards.
• First letter: pick a card and say which letter the word starts with – a good link to the alphabet pages.
• What's missing? Lay out five cards and hide one while your child closes their eyes – which card is missing?
• Story time: pick three cards and make up a short story with all three.

The free sample is a 4-page A4 PDF with the cover, a page of game ideas and the Farm sheet (12 cards). The full set (€2.90) has all 72 cards in 6 themes.

Download the free sample See all 72 cards

4. Everything for a whole term: the 4-in-1 bundle

If you already know you will use all of it, the 4-in-1 bundle (€7.90) puts the three books above and My Christmas Book (15 pictures and a letter to Santa) into one download: four A4 PDF files in one ZIP, more than 70 pages to colour, count, trace and play. Bought separately, the four books cost €2.90 each.

See the 4-in-1 bundle

Tips for learning through play at 3–6

• Keep it short. Ten to fifteen minutes is plenty. Stop while your child is still enjoying it, and they will want to come back to it tomorrow.
• Let your child choose. A letter from a friend's name or a number from a favourite story is more exciting than the next page in the book.
• Talk while you colour. Name the picture, count out loud, ask “Which one is bigger?” – the conversation matters as much as the page.
• Praise the effort. A wobbly line that was traced with care is a real step forward.
• Connect it to everyday life. Count the stairs, look for letters on the cereal box and name fruit at the market.

For teachers and families abroad

All the books are available in 7 languages: English, Bulgarian, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Polish. Each language has its own alphabet and its own words, which makes the pages useful for families who want to keep their language alive abroad and for Saturday or Sunday language schools. Teachers may print the files as often as they like for their own class or group.

What you need to print

A printer, A4 or US Letter paper and crayons or coloured pencils. Choose “Fit to page” when you print. For the picture cards, thicker paper makes them easier to hold, and a pair of children's scissors – used with an adult – does the rest. Every free download works the same way: enter your email on the product page and the links appear right away.

Start with one letter, one number and one sheet of cards this week – and let your child show you what they have learned.

The cover photo is an AI-generated scene. The files are for personal use (and for your own class or group if you are a teacher). Printed cut-out cards are small parts and are not suitable for children under 3.