The ultimate collection of totally free and fun I Spy printables for kids. Encourage stimulating screen free play for kids as young as 3 with these totally free printable I Spy worksheets and games.
Looking for more neat screen free activities for kids? Check out these: super fun rainy day activities for kids, creative summer sidewalk chalk ideas, free printable summer bingo stamper printable
I Spy Printables & Worksheets For Kids
As a busy parent, you’re always on the lookout for fun activities you can encourage your kids to play with quietly.
You need options that are fun and entertaining but that also provide some educational or developmental value.
Some of the best quiet play activities you can offer your children are I Spy Printables!
It can be hard to get your kids away from those ever-enticing screens and encourage them to do something that’s actually beneficial for their development.
I Spy Printables offer children a fun alternative to screens while still providing an engaging, stimulating activity.
We offer a large variety of free I Spy Printables that will keep your children entertained for hours.
I Spy Printables are a great option to squirrel away in your indoor play arsenal, and they’re fun for children of most ages.
Read on to find out how I Spy Printables can be beneficial for your children, and download as many free I Spy Printables as you’d like!
Are you in a rush? Click here to pin these free I Spy printables to your favorite printables board on Pinterest.
What Are I Spy Printables For Kids
I Spy printables are fun, screen-free activities for children.
Unlike traditional I Spy activities, these free printables require children to find thematic objects within the worksheet and then color them according to a color key.
The last step involves counting how many of each object they’ve found and writing the number in a grid.
These I Spy printables are a combination of traditional I Spy games and a coloring by number activity.
There are easy versions of the printables that are color coded for younger children, and there are more difficult versions for children who know how to read.
What Skills I Spy Printables Encourage in Young Children
What makes I Spy printables such a valuable activity for your kids? They help strengthen children’s working memory, problem solving skills and their ability to make associations.
As children work through the I Spy worksheet, they’ll refer to a list of objects they need to search for and find. As they go about searching for the objects within the I Spy game, they’ll need to hold the items they’re looking for in their memory.
The extra element of color coding requires that the child build associations between certain colors and objects on the sheet. This is a great activity for strengthening your little one’s mental processes.
Also, I Spy printables and games provide hours of entertainment for children that don’t involve engaging a screen. Screen-free play is incredibly important for the development of children’s brains.
The learning objectives of all our I Spy printables and worksheets also include:
- I Spy games encourage autonomous play and concentration since kids learn better when they are having fun
- I Spy activities strengthen problem solving skills because kids have to use a strategy to group their items
- I Spy printables encourage and strengthen visual tracking skills
- I Spy games encourage observational and deduction skills
- Free I Spy games strengthen numeracy skills and number sense including counting and sorting
- I Spy games build on pattern recognition skills including identifying similar objects
- They build coloring skills including hand strength, pencil control and fine motor skills
- They encourage identifying colors and coloring objects appropriately based on a legend
- I Spy printables help improve reading skills by requiring children to decode colors in the more difficult stencil
Are you in a rush? Click here to pin these free I Spy printables to your favorite printables board on Pinterest.
Situations Where I Spy Printables Can Be Used and Are Beneficial
We provide I Spy printables that are suitable for nearly every theme, holiday, and event. You’ll be sure to find some printables that match the interests of your children and that are perfect for the current season.
You can encourage your children to play with I Spy printables whenever they need some quiet time.
I Spy games make for the perfect rainy day activity, and they help keep children quietly busy when you need to work. They also are fun for children to do on sick days or on any day when they need to stay inside.
Browse through our variety of I Spy printables to find the perfect quiet-time activity for your child.
A few situations where I Spy printables can be used:
- Long distance car rides and road trips
- While travelling long distances on planes, trains and buses
- When you’re out for dinner, at party or other gathering
- In the waiting room at the doctor or dentist
- As a birthday party activity
- As a boredom buster when kids complain they have nothing to do
- Indoor or outdoor
- At grandma’s house
- When the weather sucks and you’re looking for a last minute rainy day activity that will not break the bank
- Before bed to enjoy a relaxing screen free activity that helps kids unwind and relax
- At home when you’re working and need quiet time to get through a meeting
- At home during afternoon relaxation and quiet time
- At home when you need to get chores done and it would be helpful to keep your child entertained
- At home when the baby is napping and your preschooler or older toddler is not
- In the classroom when a student completes their work early
- In the classroom when you’re substituting a class and need a fun engaging activity for students
- In the classroom when you’re encouraging social time with structured play
Recommended Supplies:
I Spy printables and games for kids are a great quick and easy choice for times when you want to engage kids in quiet autonomous play. I Spy games for kids need very little in the way of supplies which makes them the perfect quick and easy activity choice.
Here are some of our favorite recommendations for making your child’s I Spy experience a really fun and engaging one:
- Good quality printing paper since kids press hard when they color and you want to prevent the paper from ripping. We recommend This heavy weight cardstock printing paper available via Amazon because it is thick and resistant to coloring.
- A color printer to print the I Spy worksheet in vivid color. We recommend this Brother Multifunction color printer because it’s a great value at under $200 for a wireless color printer.
- Markers, coloring pencils or wax crayons for coloring and grouping the I Spy elements
- A laminator for laminating these worksheets so they can be used over and over again with dry erase markers
- A timer to add an element of competition and make it a challenge
Tips for Getting The Most Out of I Spy Activities:
These I Spy printables can be used in a variety of creative ways that encourage children to have fun while playing and learning autonomously.
Here are a couple of tips for getting the most out of these I Spy printables for kids and making them a go-to in the car, at home and in the classroom.
Create An I Spy Busy Book
Print a variety of different I Spy games in different themes and create a busy book that you can pull out on the fly when you need fun activities that encourages quiet independent play.
Creating your very own I Spy busy book is really quite easy. Print a variety of I Spy games (click here to see our entire database of free I Spy games), hole punch them using a 3 hole puncher and place them in a 3 ring binder or duotang folder so they are all neatly stored in one place.
Laminate Your I Spy Games
Laminating your I Spy printables is a great way to cut down on paper and make your I Spy games for kids 100% reusable.
We love the idea of reusing I Spy games for kids by laminating each individual worksheet and using dry erase markers in a variety of colors to complete the activity.
Laminate a variety of I Spy printables and games to have a good selection to rotate and reuse.
Add a Timer
If your child likes an added challenge you can make traditional pen and paper I spy games even more fun by using a timer.
Using a timer turns this solo activity into a challenge that can motivate kids to work more quickly and more efficiently. Challenge them to find items in a set number of minutes and then slowly reduce the allotted time to make it even more difficult.
Adding a timer is especially fun when I Spy games are being used in group settings like birthday parties and in classroom settings. Group kids in pairs and have them compete to solve an I spy challenge.
Carry Extras
Kids have this way of ripping, soiling or otherwise destroying paper. As a result, we highly suggest you print multiple copies (click here to check out our entire collection of free I spy games for kids) to have extras on hand should you need them.
Carrying extras also makes sharing easy! After all, sharing is caring!
Are you in a rush? Click here to pin these free I Spy printables to your favorite printables board on Pinterest.
Free I Spy Printables & Games
I Spy Space
For kids who love learning about space this I Spy Space activity requires kids find rockets, astronauts, planets, UFOs, stars, constellations and satellites.
Click here to be taken to the download page for this I Spy Space worksheet.
I Spy Dogs
Cute puppies and dog themed objects make this I Spy Dogs worksheet a favorite among kids. Children are asked to find: puppies, food bowls, bones, collars and dog houses in their grid.
Click here to be taken to the download page for this I Spy Dogs worksheet.
I Spy Aliens
Engage kids that are fascinated by outer space and extraterrestrials! In this free printable I Spy Aliens children need to find and color a variety of different aliens based on the legend.
Click here to get to the free I Spy Aliens download page.
I Spy Bugs
For bug enthusiasts this I Spy Bugs worksheets asks kids to color, count and group lady bugs, grass hoppers, ants, bubble bees, butterflies, spiders, crickets and beetles!
Click here to the free I Spy Bugs download page.
I Spy St Patrick’s Day
Celebrate the luck of the Irish with the fun I Spy St Patrick’s day activity. Children are asked to find, color and count St Patrick’s day themed objects including Leprechauns, rainbows, clovers, horseshoes and coins.
Click here to be taken to the free download page for this St Patrick’s day I Spy game.
I Spy Winter Activities
Celebrate Winter and all the fun activities you can do with this cute I Spy Winter activities worksheet. In this I Spy game children are asked to find, color and count items we use for winter activities including sleds, skates, skiis, snow mobiles, shovels, snow boards and snow shoes.
Click here to be taken to the free download page for this I Spy Winter Activities.
I Spy Winter
Celebrate the arrival of winter and explore fun winter themed ideas. Kids need to spy, color and count snowflakes, snow men, sates, sleds, mittens, hats, Christmas trees and hot cocoa.
Click here to get to the free download page for this I Spy Winter worksheet.
I Spy Santa’s Favorite Things
Celebrate all things Santa with this adorable I Spy Santa’s favorite things. Kids are asked to spy, color and count cookies, hot cocoa, reindeer, Mrs. Claus, presents, chimneys, elves and sleds.
I Spy Christmas
Boost holiday spirit with this cute I Spy Merry Christmas I Spy activity. Children need to find, color and count reindeer, Santa, wreaths, stockings, Christmas trees, elves, gifts and gingerbread men.
Click here to be taken to the download page for this Merry Christmas I Spy Worksheet.
I Spy Festive Wreaths
Add this Festive wreaths I Spy activity to your holiday activity list this year. Children are asked to find, color and count a variety of different festive wreaths.
Click here to be taken to the download page for this festive wreaths I Spy activity.
I Spy Christmas Ornaments
Celebrate decorating your Christmas tree with these cute Christmas ornament I Spy game. Kids are asked to find, color and count ornaments in a variety of shapes and designs.
Click here to be taken to the download page for this Christmas ornament I Spy game.
I Spy Santa’s Helpers
If the kids love elves then this I Spy Santa’s helpers is a must in anticipation of Christmas. Children need to find, color and count a variety of cute elves in the worksheet grid.
Click here to be taken to the download page for this Santa’s Helpers I Spy game.
I Spy Christmas Trees
In this I Spy activity kids need to make the visual distinction between a variety of different holiday trees.
Click here to get to the download page for this Christmas Tree I Spy worksheet.
I Spy Christmas Stockings
Click here to get to the download page for this Christmas Stockings I Spy game.
I Spy Thanksgiving
Click here to get to the download page for this Thanksgiving I Spy worksheet.
I Spy Dinosaurs
For kids who love learning about dinosaurs this Dinosaur I Spy activity asks children to find, color and count a variety of different dinosaurs.
Click here to be taken to the download page for this free printable dinosaur I Spy game.
I Spy Emojis
Click here to get to the download page for this Emoji I Spy game.
I Spy Superheroes
Click here to get to the download page for this Superhero I Spy activity.
I Spy Spooky Ghosts
Click here to get to the download page for this spooky ghosts I Spy worksheet.
I Spy Spooky Halloween
Click here to get to the download page for this free Halloween themed I Spy game.
I Spy Jack-O-Lanterns
Click here to get to the download page for this free printable Jack-0-Lantern I Spy game.
I Spy Scary Monsters
Click here to get to the download page for this spooky monsters I Spy activity.
I Spy Cute Monsters
Click here to get to the download page for this cute monster I Spy activity for kids.
I Spy Fall Leaves
Click here to get to the download page for this fall leaf I Spy worksheet.
I Spy Yummy Donut
Click here to get to the I Spy donuts download page.
I Spy Magical Unicorns
Click here to get to the I Spy Unicorns download page.
I Spy Back To School
Click here to get to the I Spy Back To School download page.
I Spy Hello Autumn
Click here to get to the I Spy Autumn download page.
I Spy Summer Activities
Click here to get to the I Spy Summer Activities download page.
I Spy Summer BBQ
Click here to get to the I Spy Summer BBQ download page.
I Spy Summer
Click here to get to the I Spy Summer download page.
I Spy Day At The Pool
Click here to get to the I Spy Day At The Pool download page.
i Spy Day At The Beach
Click here to get to the I Spy A Day At The Beach download page.
I Spy 4th of July
Click here to get to the I Spy 4th of July download page.
I Spy Fruits & Veggies
Click here to get to the I Spy Fruits & Vegetables download page.
I Spy Camping
Click here to get to the I Spy Camping download page.
I Spy Carnival
Click here to get to the I Spy Carnival download page.
I Spy Popsicles
Click here to get to the I Spy Popsicles download page.
I Spy Ice Cream Cones
Click here to get to the I Spy Ice Cream Cones download page.
Save these I Spy games before you go. Click here to pin these free I Spy printables to your favorite printables board on Pinterest.
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I need something to keep my son busy. Thank you for this!
Glad you are enjoying them!