This Space Same and Different Game will help preschool and kindergarten children practice visual discrimination skills. Visual discrimination skills help children identify letters and numbers, as well as distinguish the difference between similar letter shapes such as p, q, b, d, and number shapes such as 3 and 8, 6 and 9.
You could use this activity with your Space Theme.
To prepare the cards, just print them out (see download below) and cut them apart. There are four cards per page. I highly recommend cutting the cards apart. If you leave all four on one sheet, it could be visually confusing for the children. Laminate the cards if you choose.
On each card there are four pictures: three are the same and one is different. To play the game, children will take a card and look at all four pictures. They will find the one picture that is different, and mark the picture that’s different with a manipulative.
You can use almost any manipulative to cover the picture that’s different or you can have children clip the picture with a clothespin.
Manipulatives to use:
- Clothespins
- Plastic chips
- Unifix cubes
- Marker caps
- Table scatter
- Mini erasers
- Flat floral marbles
To download these same and different cards, click the download button below. These cards start with an easy set on the first page and increase in difficulty on each page. The last page might be too difficult for some preschoolers, but I included these to be challenging for children who can easily do the other sets. There are 16 cards in this set.
Download the Space Same & Different Cards:
Note: These are free printables, just click to download.
Look here for more Visual Discrimination Printables!
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I love your games and activities.
Love all of your card activities. Just curious how you store all of yours. We put them into ziplock bags with the manipulatives and then we often forget what we have. What do you suggest for storing and keeping track of all of it?
Hi Amy, I put mine in ziplock bags and store them in a plastic box by month. So, for example, my March box would have all of my St. Patrick’s activities and Wild Animals activities because those are themes I do that month. When March rolls around, I just pull out the box and I have all of the activities for that theme.
Thank you Karen! Great idea!
Thank you Karen for this activity. It sure will make the children use their imagination. I will use them with my students.
You are very generous! I really appreciate your ideas. Give us motivation and help us to be better.
Keep doing that!
I so appreciate you sharing your knowledge and ideas! You save me much time and money! Thanks for being part of the village that raises the child. 🙂
Thank you!
Thank you for the cards. My 3’s will enjoy the game. Lyn
Thank you I love all your cards.