Description
Bring the African savanna into your classroom with these engaging Safari Animals Pattern Block Mats. This collection includes 13 wildlife-inspired designs with built-in differentiation, giving your preschool and kindergarten students hands-on practice with shapes, counting, and fine motor skills. Just print, add pattern blocks and some dice, and you’re ready for math centers that bring the wild to your classroom.
Why Teachers Love This Resource
- Safari engagement: African wildlife designs keep students excited about math practice
- Built-in differentiation: Three difficulty levels from full-color matching to outline-only challenges
- Two activity formats: Build and Count develops counting skills, while Roll and Build adds game-based learning
- Low-prep setup: Color and black-and-white options for flexible printing
- Independent-friendly: Students can work on these pattern block puzzles without constant teacher support
What’s Included
13 Safari Animal Designs:
- Chimpanzee
- Crocodile
- Elephant
- Flamingo
- Giraffe
- Gorilla
- Hippo
- Lion
- Meerkat
- Ostrich
- Rhino
- Vulture
- Zebra
Pattern Block Mats (156 mats total):
- 39 Full-Color Build and Count Mats (students build and count blocks used)
- 39 BW Build and Count Mats
- 39 Full-Color Roll and Build Mats (students roll a dice and build with matching blocks)
- 39 BW Roll and Build Mats
Differentiation Levels:
- Full-color design (easiest, students match blocks to colored shapes)
- Black-and-white version (moderate challenge with shapes outlined)
- Outline-only design (most challenging, students identify shapes independently)
Skills Covered
These safari pattern blocks support students as they practice:
- 2D shape recognition and identification
- Counting and one-to-one correspondence
- Shape sorting and matching
- Fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination
- Spatial reasoning and visual discrimination
- Following visual patterns
- Problem-solving
How to Use This Resource
- Math centers
- Morning bins
- Fine motor stations paired with science units on African animals or habitats
- Early finisher activities that keep students engaged
- Sub plans
Perfect For
- Preschool and kindergarten classrooms
- Animal-themed math centers
- African animals or habitats science units
- Homeschool families exploring world animals
- Early childhood programs focusing on hands-on learning
Printing Notes
- Use black-and-white versions to save ink while maintaining full functionality
- Laminate for durability and reuse year after year
- Store with pattern blocks and dice in a bin for easy access
These Safari Animals Pattern Block Mats give your students meaningful practice with shapes, counting, and fine motor skills while exploring the exciting world of African wildlife. The combination of Build and Count and Roll and Build formats keeps learning fresh, and the three difficulty levels ensure every student can participate successfully. Print, laminate, add pattern blocks, and you’re ready for math centers your students will love.
