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Five Valentine’s Day Math Activities from One Free Printable

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January 18, 2018 by Sarah Punkoney, MAT

When it comes to the holidays, any holiday, I love to stock my centers with fun thematic activities! This year, I’m adding these FREE heart pattern blocks printables to our math center, making it a sweet addition to our other Valentine’s Day math activities!

Five Valentine's Day Math Activities from One Free Printable

When we celebrate Valentine’s Day in preschool, we celebrate for much more than a single day. That’s because we always do a friendship preschool theme in February, which I find so fitting for Valentine’s Day!

It’s pretty simple to take the traditional story of St. Valentine and use that as a jumping point to teach children about loving others for their friendship and kindness. (You can preview this short YouTube video and show it to your class. This is another, less cheesy, one.)

While hearts are a kitschy way to represent Valentine’s Day, they are fitting for what they represent. In preschool, that is the celebration of caring and kind friendships.

Valentine’s Heart Pattern Block Printable

Have you ever wondered why these little geometric shapes are called pattern blocks? Typically when they are used, children are simply matching up the colors and shapes to complete designs with a range of complexity. Where is the ABAB in that? Well, making matches is one of the beginning steps in learning how to make patterns.

As children work with pattern blocks, they learn to differentiate colors, shapes, and sizes as they are making those matches. All skills which are important in copying, extending, and building real patterns.

Materials

  • laminator
  • heavy card stock
  • pattern blocks
  • free printable at the end of this post

The Set-up

Just print the free math printable in color, then laminate! Place on a tray with a bowl of pattern blocks. (You can grab your copy of the printable at the end of this post).

Five Valentine’s Day Math Activities from One Printable

As always, I like to offer a few different ways to use my printables, as I understand that you may have some preschoolers who need some extra challenge or some accommodations. Who wants to buy extra stuff when you can make what you have multipurpose?

Use just one printable for five Valentine's Day math activities


Here are five different ways children can use the pattern block printable:

  • Use this printable the traditional way and building real patterns the pattern blocks to the appropriate shapes in the heart.
  • For more of a challenge, invite preschoolers to see how they can make the shapes using different pattern blocks. For example, can three green triangles make a trapezoid? Or what shapes can be used to make the yellow hexagons?
  • For more of a challenge, invite preschoolers to try to copy the pattern on a separate tray, using the printable as a guideline, not a template.
  • For younger preschoolers, help them choose one color/shape to find and add to the printable. It is common for younger preschoolers to get overwhelmed by a giant bowl of various shapes, so choosing one color is easier. Then, when they are placing the color on the printable, you can help them name the actual shape.
  • For really young preschoolers (2-3 years), just let them add the pattern blocks however they choose. Simply being allowed to “play” with the pattern blocks helps the child build spatial awareness and fine motor skills, and it builds their confidence and independence as they get to make their own choices. Sit down next to the children and talk about the shapes and colors they are choosing and model making matches.

Valentine's Day math activities with a free printable

Want More Heart Activities?

Check out these other hear activities and then keep scrolling to get your FREE copy of my Valentine’s pattern block printable from this post!

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:
Heart Letter Puzzles // Pocket of Preschool

Valentine Hearts Ten Frame Clip Cards // Mrs. Jones Creation Station

Heart Digraph Puzzles // The Kindergarten Connection

Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator

Alphabet Hearts // Playdough to Plato

Valentine’s Day Emergent Reader // Sweet Sounds of Kindergarten

Heart Syllable Sort // Recipe for Teaching

Candy Hearts Count and Clip Cards // Modern Preschool

Heartbreakers Sensory Activity // Sugar Spice and Glitter

CVC Hearts // The Primary Post

Valentine’s Day Number Recognition Bingo Game // Schooling a Monkey

Valentine’s Day Activities (Heart Craft & Cutting Practice) // Fairy Poppins

Heart Counting Cards // Powerful Mothering

Sorting Hearts Fine Motor Tray // Teach Me Mommy

Candy Heart Estimation Station // The STEM Laboratory

Contraction Conversation Hearts // The Simplified Classroom

Chocolate Heart Play Dough Mats // Fantastic Fun and Learning

Jar of Hearts: Editable Sight Words to Read and Write // Liz’s Early Learning Spot

Hearts Make Ten Game // Sara J Creations

Heart Roll, Cover and Write Mats // Fun Learning for Kids

Heart Ice and Oil Density Experiment // Science Kiddo

Candy Heart Sentences // Pages of Grace

Heart Sight Word Match // The Letters of Literacy

Heart Name Crafts // Fun-A-Day

Grab Your FREE Valentine’s Pattern Blocks Printable Here

This you want to add this to your math center or busy box for quiet time? You can grab your own copy by clicking the image below!

Want more Printable Valentine’s Activities?

Then you’ll love my Valentine’s printable pack! And while you’re here, take a look at St. Patrick’s Day, too!

Click on the images below for more details.

Valentine's Day printables        St. Patrick's Day printables

What are some of your favorite Valentine’s Day math activities for the kids?

Sarah Punkoney, MAT

I am Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home mama of five! I am the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught range of levels, including preschool and college, and a little bit of just about everything in between. Right now, my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction

stayathomeeducator.com/

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Filed Under: algebra, Geometry, Thematic Activities Tagged With: featured, free, free printables, Printables, Shapes, Valentine's Day

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Trackbacks

  1. Alphabet Hearts - Playdough To Plato says:
    January 18, 2018 at 6:00 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  2. Valentine’s Day Emergent Reader says:
    January 18, 2018 at 6:00 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  3. Jar of Hearts: Editable Sight Words to Read and Write | Liz's Early Learning Spot says:
    January 18, 2018 at 6:01 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  4. 3 Heart Name Crafts for Preschoolers To Make This Valentine's Day says:
    January 18, 2018 at 6:06 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  5. Heart Counting Cards says:
    January 18, 2018 at 6:47 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  6. Heart Roll and Cover Mats says:
    January 18, 2018 at 7:57 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  7. Heart Letter Puzzles (Uppercase and Lowercase Letter Match Ups) - Pocket of Preschool says:
    January 18, 2018 at 8:27 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  8. Candy Heart Sentences - Pages Of Grace says:
    January 18, 2018 at 11:39 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  9. Chocolate Heart Valentine Play Dough Mats - Fantastic Fun & Learning says:
    January 23, 2018 at 5:17 am

    […] Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator […]

  10. Heartbreakers Sensory Activity for Kids ⋆ Sugar, Spice and Glitter says:
    February 13, 2018 at 11:50 am

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  11. Make Math Fun with a Hands-On Valentine Bingo Game says:
    April 17, 2018 at 9:30 am

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  12. CVC Hearts FREEBIE - The Primary Post says:
    January 30, 2019 at 7:08 am

    […] Clip Cards // Mrs. Jones Creation Station Heart Digraph Puzzles // The Kindergarten Connection   Printable Valentine’s Math Activities // Stay at Home Educator   Alphabet Hearts // Playdough to Plato   Valentine’s Day Emergent […]

  13. Valentines Day Math - Stress Free Math for Kids says:
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    […] Valentines Day Pattern Block Printable- […]

  14. Valentine's Math Center - Mrs. Jones' Creation Station says:
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  15. Candy Heart Estimation Station - The Stem Laboratory says:
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  16. 20 STEM Valentine’s Day Activities for Kids says:
    January 15, 2020 at 8:33 pm

    […] 18. Valentine’s Day Math Activities […]

  17. 30+ Valentine's Day Math Ideas for All Ages says:
    January 30, 2020 at 11:48 am

    […] Stay At Home Educator has a free Valentine’s Pattern Block printable to add to your centers or early learning fun. Before handing it to your student, you might challenge them to see if they can make a heart (or how many different ones) out of pattern blocks. Then, compare their hearts to the heart in the printable. Are they the same? What’s different about them. […]

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