Free Cut and Play Printables for Kids: 20 Cut-and-Match Scenes
Twenty free cut and play printables for kids. Each page has a colorful scene with six numbered shapes and six small pictures to cut out. Children cut out the pictures and match each one to its place in the scene. Themes include farm, ocean, space, dinosaurs, garden, camping, safari, castle, airport, pirates and more. Download one scene in US Letter or A4, or a whole volume.
The 20 cut and play scenes
Every page has a scene on top and six pictures to cut out below. The six pictures for each scene are listed on its card.
Download Volume 1 (10 scenes), US Letter PDF · 9.6 MB (scenes 1 to 10: Farm Friends to Arctic Explorers)Download Volume 1 (10 scenes), A4 PDF · 9.6 MB (scenes 1 to 10: Farm Friends to Arctic Explorers)Download Volume 2 (10 scenes), US Letter PDF · 12.1 MB (scenes 11 to 20: Jungle Adventure to Space Pets)Download Volume 2 (10 scenes), A4 PDF · 12.1 MB (scenes 11 to 20: Jungle Adventure to Space Pets)
Free for personal, home and classroom use. Not for sale or resale.
How cut and play pages work
- Print the page at 100% (Actual size) on US Letter or A4.
- Look at the scene. It has six numbered silhouettes, which are the empty spaces where the pictures belong.
- Cut out the six pictures from the bottom of the page along the dashed lines.
- Match each picture to its numbered silhouette and glue or tape it down. The number on each picture matches the number in the scene, so children can also check by number. Ask your child to say the name of each picture.
- Talk about the scene. What is happening? Which animal is biggest? What would come next?
What children practice
- Scissor skills: cutting along dashed lines, small shapes and curves.
- Visual matching: comparing a picture with an outline, like shadow matching.
- Vocabulary: naming animals, vehicles, foods and objects.
- Fine motor control: holding paper, using glue and placing small pieces.
- Storytelling: inventing a story about the finished scene.
For more practice with cutting, see our scissor skills worksheets. For another way to match pictures to outlines, try shadow matching.
Choose a scene
- Animals: Farm Friends, Under the Sea, Safari Adventure, Arctic Explorers, Woodland Camp, Jungle Adventure, Dinosaur Valley, Pet Playroom and Butterfly Garden.
- Places and vehicles: Little Builders, Busy Airport, Pirate Island and Fairytale Castle.
- Space and weather: Space Mission, Space Pets and Weather World.
- Home and play: Toy Room Fun, Sweet Bakery, Garden Harvest and Music Parade.
Printing and cutting tips
- Print at 100% (Actual size). Cardstock or thicker paper makes the pictures easier to handle, but plain paper works too.
- Younger children can tear or cut along the outside of each box, then trim closer as their cutting improves. An adult can pre-cut the pictures for the youngest.
- Use a glue stick or tape. For a reusable game, put sticky tack or a small piece of hook-and-loop tape on the back of each picture.
- Always use scissors with adult supervision.
Credits and licences
Many of the pictures and icons in this set use Noto Emoji artwork by Google. The Noto emoji fonts are licensed under the SIL Open Font License 1.1, and most of the emoji images are licensed under the Apache License 2.0. The page layouts, text and KidsTracing logo are our own. These printables are free for personal, home and classroom use, and not for sale or resale.
Frequently asked questions
What is a cut and play printable?
It is a printable page with a scene and a set of pictures to cut out. Children cut out the pictures and match each one to the matching silhouette in the scene, so the page becomes a small play scene.
How many pictures are on each page?
Each page has six pictures to cut out and six numbered silhouettes in the scene.
What age are the cut and play pages for?
They suit preschool and early elementary children who are learning to use scissors. Younger children can have a grown-up pre-cut the pictures, and older children can cut and glue them alone.
Do I need to print in color?
Yes, the scenes are colorful, and the matching works best in color. Black-and-white printing makes the pictures harder to tell apart.
Is cutting safe for my child?
Use child-safe scissors with an adult nearby. An adult can cut the pictures out for the youngest children.
Which size should I print, US Letter or A4?
Use US Letter in the United States and Canada, and A4 almost everywhere else. Every scene comes in both sizes.
Can I use the pages in a classroom?
Yes. They are free for personal, home and classroom use, and not for sale or resale.
Why are there two volumes?
The 20 scenes were made in two batches. You can download each scene on its own, or a whole volume of 10 scenes in one PDF.
More printables: paper crafts, memory match games, sticker sheets, activity passports and 30-day challenges. For cutting practice with lines and shapes, try the scissor skills worksheet maker.