Are you a fan of super fun learning activities, even if there is a little bit of a messy side to them?  I’m not usually one to shy away from getting messy with my preschoolers.  In fact, the most loved (and most remembered) activities in my classroom tend to be hands-on and messy!  These cute little pigs that are in desperate need of a bath will motivate preschoolers and kindergarteners to get them all cleaned up when they discover the hidden surprise.  You definitely need your own set of our Muddy Pigs Alphabet Printable Cards to use at home or in the classroom!

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Clean the Muddy Pigs Alphabet Printable Cards

I love setting up activities for my preschoolers that include a surprise.  These Muddy Pigs Alphabet Printable Cards will fit perfectly into our farm theme too!

The printable set includes 26 pigs.  Each pig has an uppercase letter on its belly.

Print the set of pigs from the file below and cut them apart on the gray dotted line.

This is an activity where laminating is necessary.  Using clear contact paper may work, but investing in your own home laminator is worth it for sure.

When laminating the cards, make sure to leave enough space in-between the cards, so you are able to leave a complete seal of lamination around the cards.

After making sure the cards are completely sealed, they should be ready to get messy!

Prepping the pig alphabet cards is easy to do.  Use brown tempera paint as mud.  Cover some of the pigs with mud.  You can choose to do all 26 or just a few at a time.

I found that dotting the paint on the pigs instead of rubbing the paint brush back and forth covered the pigs quickly.  The pretend mud paint can be wet or dry for this activity.

Now it’s time to Clean the Pigs

I set this activity up on a tray to keep the messy learning contained.  I’m a fan of using glass jars for paint and water because they are less likely to get tipped over.  Fill the jar with soapy water and a paintbrush.

And now the cleaning begins!

The bubbly soapy water cleans the muddy pigs easily.  There is no specific way to clean them, so it may get a little messy and that’s ok!

The surprise of the letter appearing as the pretend mud paint is cleaned off, is so fun!

Because each pig has a different letter on it, there is a new surprise on each pig.

This activity is adaptable for multiple leveled learners.

Toddlers and preschoolers will love using the paintbrush to clean the pigs. Beginning with the letters in their names will make the activity more meaningful even if they are not ready to recognize all letters yet.  Use conversation during the activity to talk about the curves or lines while naming the letters.  And if the letters mean nothing yet, just let this be a fun activity that exposes the alphabet to younger kiddos.

For older preschoolers and kindergarteners who are working on mastering alphabet recognition, or have mastered all letters and sounds, work on blending sounds together to make simple CVC words.  Discovering one letter at a time makes blending sounds together more motivating and engaging too!

There are many ways to use the muddy pigs to learn and play!  Grab your set now.