Clothes Shadow Matching
Draw a line from each item to its shadow.
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Free worksheet from maggiegames.com
Clothes Shadow Matching Worksheet
Six items of clothing and six shadows. Draw a line from each one to its shadow. Free to print, at home or in class.
About this sheet
The first sheet on the site that is not alive, and it lands differently for it. Clothes have flat, blunt outlines with no legs or tails to give them away, so the child has to work from overall shape rather than from one distinctive feature. The t-shirt and the dress are deliberately both on here: same shoulders, same short sleeves, and the only difference is what happens below the waist. It is also the easiest sheet to carry into getting dressed in the morning, which is where the vocabulary actually gets used.
How to use it
- Name each one first. Go down the left column together and say them out loud before a single line is drawn. Matching is easier once the words are in the room.
- Talk about the outline, not the answer. "This one has a very long neck" teaches the strategy. Pointing at the right shadow teaches nothing.
- A finger is fine. If holding a pencil is hard work, let the child trace the line with a finger, or cut the sheet into cards and place them side by side.
- Stop while it is still going well. Half a sheet finished happily beats a whole one finished in tears.
What it practises
Visual discrimination, the ability to notice how two shapes differ from one another. It is the skill underneath telling a b from a d later on. Drawing the connecting line adds a little fine-motor and left-to-right tracking practice on top.
If the pencil work is the hard part rather than the matching, the online version of this game uses the same animal photographs and needs only a tap.
Questions
Is this worksheet really free?
Yes. Print it as many times as you like, at home or in a classroom. No account and no sign-up.
How do I get the PDF?
Use the download button above for the ready-made PDF, or press Print and choose Save as PDF.
What age is it for?
Roughly three to seven. Younger children usually do better with the four-pair Pets sheet.
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