Sledding Letter Find Activity

Looking for a fun, hands-on way to help your preschoolers and kindergartners practice letter recognition this winter? This free printable Sledding Letter Find Activity is just what you need!

This winter-themed activity gives young learners an engaging, hands-on way to practice identifying and matching uppercase and lowercase letters.

With snowflake letter cards and adorable sledding mats, children will search for matching letters, build alphabet knowledge, and strengthen important early literacy skills through play.

It’s an easy activity to add to your winter literacy centers, morning tubs, small group lessons, or homeschool learning time.

Learning the alphabet takes practice, and hands-on activities can help make that practice fun and engaging.

As your students identify letters and search for their matches, they develop skills that support future reading and writing.

This winter letter recognition activity helps children practice:

• Uppercase and lowercase letter recognition: Learn to identify capital letters and match them to their lowercase partners.
• Visual discrimination: Notice the differences between letters and recognize their shapes.
• Alphabet knowledge: Build familiarity with the letters of the alphabet.
• Fine motor skills: Pick up and place small manipulatives to cover matching letters.
• Focus and attention: Follow directions and search carefully for the correct letter.

This activity can also be adjusted to meet different learning needs, making it a useful resource for children who are just beginning to recognize letters and those who are ready for more challenging matching tasks.

Getting Ready to Use the Sledding Find the Letter Activity:

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What’s Included:

• 6 Sledding Lowercase Letter Mats (with different kids)
• 26 Snowflake Capital Letter Cards

What Else Is Needed:

• White Card Stock
• Scissors
• Laminator
• Laminating Sheets
• Bingo Daubers
• White Pom Poms or Small Manipulatives

To prepare this letter recognition activity for your kids, fill out the form at the bottom of this page.

After receiving the email with the printables, download and print the mat that you want to use and the cards.

Next, laminate the mat and cards. Then, cut the cards apart.

For an easy classroom setup, store the prepared cards and mats together in a labeled bag or container. This makes it simple to grab the activity whenever you need a quick winter literacy center or small group lesson.

How to Use the Sledding Letter Recognition Activity:

For this alphabet activity, your preschoolers and kindergartners will select a snowflake card and identify the capital letter on it.

Encourage your students to say the letter name aloud before searching for its match. If they’re ready, ask them to think of a word that begins with that letter.

Next, they will search the sledding mat for the matching lowercase letter.

Give your kids time to scan the entire mat and compare the letter shapes. If they need help, point out a few letters and encourage them to look closely at their shapes.

When your students find the letter, they will cover it with a small manipulative such as a white pom pom, play dough, or mini eraser.

This hands-on step adds a fine motor component while giving your children a clear way to keep track of the letters they’ve found.

They will continue to pick capital letter snowflake letters and find the matching lowercase letters on the sledding mat until they complete the activity.

You can encourage your students to name the letters again as they cover them.

This Sledding Letter Find Activity is a fun way for young learners to practice letter recognition during the winter months!

Ways to Differentiate the Sledding Letter Activity:

One of the benefits of a letter matching activity is that you can adjust how your children use it based on their current skills. Try these simple variations:

For Beginning Learners

Start with just a few snowflake cards instead of the entire alphabet. Choose letters the child already recognizes, then gradually introduce new ones as their confidence grows.

For More Letter Practice

Have children name each uppercase letter before finding its lowercase match. After covering the letter, ask them to name it one more time.

For an Extra Challenge

Ask children to identify both the uppercase and lowercase letters independently. You can also encourage them to think of a word that begins with the letter they found.

For Fine Motor Practice

Switch up the manipulatives to keep the activity interesting. Try mini erasers, pom-poms, small counters, or play dough, using age-appropriate materials and supervision.

When to Use This Winter Alphabet Activity

The Sledding Letter Find Activity works well in a variety of learning settings. Add it to:

• Winter literacy centers: Set it out as a seasonal alphabet practice station.
• Morning tubs: Give children a hands-on learning activity to complete at the start of the day.
• Small group instruction: Work with a few children at a time and provide support as needed.
• Extra practice: Use the activity to review uppercase and lowercase letters in a playful way.

For classroom use, you can also invite children to take turns selecting cards and finding matches. This provides opportunities to practice following directions and participating in a shared activity.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What age is this activity for?
It’s designed for preschoolers and kindergartners who are learning to recognize and match capital and lowercase letters.

Can I use this for beginning sounds?
Yes! Ask students to say the sound of each letter, or a word that begins with it, as they find the match.

Do I need a laminator?
No. Page protectors or dry erase pockets work well for the mat, and the cards can be used on card stock.

What can I use to cover the letters?
White pom poms, play dough, mini erasers, or any small manipulative. Bingo daubers also work if you’d rather have kids dot the letters.

More Winter Literacy Activities:

Are you looking for more winter-themed activities? Try these books and other literacy resources.

Winter Books for Kids:

Share these picture books to your young learners to extend this activity and make learning about winter fun!

Ten on the Sled by Kim Norman

Curios About Snow by Gina Shaw

Go, Sled! Go! by James Yang

After reading, invite your students to talk about the snowy setting, retell parts of the story, or share their own winter experiences.

Winter Literacy Activities for Kids:

Your students can practice letter recognition, writing strokes, and more with these themed activities.

Penguin Letter Search Activity

Yeti Letter Recognition Activity

Hibernating Bats Letter Order Activity

These resources provide additional opportunities for your kids to practice alphabet recognition and other early literacy skills throughout the winter.

You May Also Like These Winter Alphabet Activities:

Your preschoolers and kindergartners will have fun learning with this Winter Alphabet Activities Bundle!

From finding snowflake letters to feeding the yeti, your kids will practice identifying, matching, and tracing uppercase and lowercase letters with 10 low-prep, hands-on resources.

They work well in morning tubs, literacy centers, small groups, or as early finisher and intervention activities.

Click on the picture to learn more about the resources in this bundle!

Download the Winter Letter Find Activity:

To get the free printables for the Sledding Letter Find Activity emailed to you, fill out the form below.

Tip: Please sign up with your personal email address (like Gmail or Yahoo) instead of a school email. Many schools block emails from outside senders, so the download link may never arrive.

If you don’t see the email, check your spam or promotions folder. If you do not see the form, check the settings on your computer, clear your cache, and try using a different browser.