Free Preschool Games and Educational Apps

As a mom on a budget I’m always looking for free preschool games & apps and toddler activities for my littlest kids.

My kids love video games. I really can’t blame them as a gaming mom myself. But, I do try to look for educational games, especially for my littles.

Let’s face it, having some educational games on your tablet or phone are a great go-to for long doctors appointments, soccer games, or road trips when the kids are bored and whiny.

After having 3 kids, I’m in survival mode and I don’t want 3 cranky kids while we wait for the doctor or drive in the car.

Before we resort to screen time though, here are some free games to play with your preschooler.

Break out the Board Games

Sure these aren’t free, but if you already have them lying around the house you aren’t spending anything.

I love board games because they aren’t a repeated cost. You buy them once and have them to play forever. Here are some fun preschool games to play with the whole family.

Easy Arts & Crafts

Arts & Crafts don’t have to be complicated. You don’t have to have plans or a design for your preschooler.

Take some things around the house. Glue sticks, scissors, glue, toilet paper rolls, cardboard, markers, kid friendly paint, paper scraps, tissue paper and give them to your preschooler to have some creative time.

I keep an arts and craft bin and drawer for my preschooler to get creative every day after we are done homeschooling.

When you have extra cash to spend buy low cost items to add to your arts and crafts bin. Here are some ideas!

Preschool Clapping Games

Pull up YouTube to learn some fun clapping games with your preschooler. Here are some of our favorite clapping games.

Clapping games are great to play together with your child, a great family bonding activity to build your parent child relationship.

Miss Mary Mack

Miss Mary Mack Mack Mack
All dressed in black, black, black
With silver buttons, buttons, buttons
All down her back, back, back.

She asked her mother, mother, mother
For 50 cents, cents, cents
To see the elephants, elephants, elephants
Jump over the fence, fence, fence.

They jumped so high, high, high
They reached the sky, sky, sky
And they didn’t come back, back, back
‘Til the 4th of July, ly, ly!

Double Double

Double double this this,

Double double that that,

Double this, double that,

Double double this that.

Rockin’ Robin

Play this one while listening to Rockin’ Robin.

Pat A Cake

Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, baker’s man
Bake me a cake as fast as you can
Pat it and roll it and mark it with a B
And put it in the oven for baby and me

Simon Says Ideas

Simon says is the best at-home game for preschoolers because it’s simple and you don’t need more than 2 people to play.

You can get toddlers in on the fun too!

Here’s some fun Simon Says ideas! Make sure to grab my printable below to cut and grab ideas from.

Simon Says…

Touch your head, toes, nose, feet, elbow, shoulders, cheeks, hair, knees, etc.
Spin around
Jump up and down
Clap your hands
Dance like a ballerina
Do a silly dance
Make a silly face
Make a sad face
Make a scary face
Make a scared face
Make a grossed out face
Cross your eyes
Sit down
Stand up
Raise your arm/both arms
Take three steps back
Rub your belly
Rub your head
Tap your shoulder
Blink your eyes
Close your eyes
Cover your eyes
Wiggle your fingers
Shake your head yes
Shake your head no
Wave hello
Sing out loud
Give a thumbs up/down
Turn around
Do a somersault
Balance on one leg
Shake someones hand
Give someone a high five
Pretend you’re driving a car
Pretend you’re riding a bike
Pretend you’re riding a horse
Pretend you’re swimming
Pretend you are an animal
Hop like a bunny, frog, or kangaroo
Baa like a sheep
Neigh like a horse
Bark like a dog
Meow like a cat

Click the image below to get your printable Simon Says cards

Preschool Matching Games

Preschoolers love matching games, which are super easy to play and print out. You can print the free matching games I have below.

Glue them onto some card stock, recycled cardboard, or cut out cereal boxes. Put them in plastic bags to play at home or on the go!

Click the image below to get your free Preschool Match Up Cards

Read Preschool Books

Cuddle up for a good story time with your preschooler. There are so many easy ways to get free books for kids. Here are some book list ideas that you can take with you to the library.

Preschool Outdoor Exploration

Find an old magnifying glass, kitchen strainer, netting, tweezers, shovel, container, and/or box. Send your preschoolers outside to explore, looking for plants, rocks, and bugs.

Our preschooler loves to pretend she is investigating outdoors. She will take a notebook and pen outside and pretend she is taking notes about the things she finds. Sooo Cute! 😍

Free Educational Preschool Apps

Here are some completely free educational preschool apps and some you can get a free trial of.

I’ve linked to IOS (ITunes) Apps because that’s what we use. However, most of these are available on Google Play too!

Free Apps:

PBS Kids Video – Watch all your child’s favorite PBS KIDS shows anytime, anywhere with the PBS KIDS Video app! Now you can live stream educational videos and TV shows to help your child learn and grow.
PBS Kids Games – Looking for a fun, educational games for your kids to play? The PBS KIDS Games app has over 100 free learning games with your favorite PBS KIDS characters. Kids can play anytime, anywhere!
YouTube Kids – There are some non-educational videos here. But, there are also a lot of good learning videos including letters, colors, sounds, science, and music.
Khan Academy Kids – Children can learn reading, language, writing, math, social-emotional development, problem-solving skills, and motor development. Open-ended activities and games like drawing, storytelling, and coloring encourage creativity and self-expression.
Noah’s Ark Animalibrium– Splash into a sea of fun! You are Noah. Help get the animals on the ark, balance them on board and bring them to safety, or freely explore the world to discover the hidden characters (mussels are just cute!).

Free App Subscription Trials

Most if not all of these apps have a free trial available. We are permanently subscribed to our favorites. But, if we have sick days or long road trips sometimes I will subscribe to a free trial of a new game and cancel before the trial runs out.