Free Back-to-School I Spy (+ Answer Key!)


Published: August 3, 2024 · Updated: August 3, 2024 by Sacha — This post may contain affiliate links. Read our full disclosure.

Are your kids excited about going back to school? This free back-to-school I Spy printable is perfect for kids of all ages, and it includes an answer key that your child can use to check their answers all by themselves! Whether you are a parent or a teacher, this free printable would be a great activity to keep on hand during the back-to-school season.

If school is starting up again soon and you’ve been searching for a fun activity to get your kids in the school spirit, this free I Spy printable is the perfect way to do that. Print it out at home and use it to get your kids (or students) excited about the first day of school.

I Spy printables are a great way to help kids develop a variety of skills, and they can be adapted for multiple age groups. They are also a fun way to pass the time—my kids love it when I print out I Spy sheets, and they always ask for more when they’re done!

Why You’ll Love This Printable

  • No advance prep: This activity is perfect for days when you don’t have the time to prep any complicated activities, and it can be used by both parents and teachers.
  • 100 % free: You won’t need to enter your email address in order to download this printable—simply click on the text link in the article and you’ll be redirected to the PDF.
  • Answer sheet included: I’ve included an answer key with this printable. That means that this activity should be entirely hands-off for you, since your kids can double-check their answers themselves!

(P.S. Looking for more back-to-school printables? Check out these Back-to-School Coloring Pages or these Back-to-School Word Search Puzzles.)

Download Your Free Back-to-School I Spy Printable

Click the text link below the image to be redirected to the PDF file. (The preview image is not print resolution.)

Please note that this activity is for school and personal use only and cannot be redistributed. When sharing this printable, please link to this article rather than directly to the file. You can read our full printables terms of use here.

How to Use (for Different Age Groups)

To use this printable, print it out and encourage your child to count all the matching items and write the total on the provided line.

This activity can also be adapted for different age groups:

  • Younger kids: To help them keep track of which items they’ve counted, have them cross out each item as they count it. They can even use different colors to cross out different types of items.
  • Older kids: To make this activity more challenging, encourage them to rely solely on their memory instead of crossing out the items they’ve counted.

Once your little ones are done counting, have them double-check their answers using the provided answer sheet to make sure they’ve counted the correct number of items.

Printing Instructions

Once you have downloaded the PDF to your computer, print it on Letter-sized (8.5 x 11 inches) paper and give it to your kids so they can practice counting all the school supplies and other school-related items.

If you wish to print this activity on A4 paper, you can do so by adjusting the “Scale to Fit” setting on your printer to ensure that none of the printable area is being cut off.

How to Make This Printable Reusable

To save paper and make this activity reusable, you can laminate the page using a thermal laminator or self-laminating sheets. If you don’t have a laminator, try placing the printed game inside a separate plastic page protector or dry erase pocket instead.

Once you have done this, your child will be able to cross out the images and write the numbers on the lines using washable or dry erase markers, then wipe the sheet clean for future use. You can even turn this activity into a yearly tradition and take it out every time a new school year is about to start!

Mockup of back-to-school I Spy printable.

Frequently Asked Questions

This activity is perfect for any child who is capable of counting from 1 to 15. (The highest number they’ll need for this activity is 14.)

The exact age at which children can do this can vary, but if your child is almost there, feel free to help them out and use this activity as a learning opportunity!

Absolutely! Classroom use is both allowed and encouraged. If you are a teacher in need of preschool to middle school activity sheets, you are welcome to print out this activity for your students (as long as you don’t alter or redistribute the electronic file).

I Spy worksheets aren’t just fun—they’re also a great way to help kids practice a variety of skills, including counting, working memory and visual discrimination skills.

Being able to recognize visual details in pictures will help kids discriminate between the different letters of the alphabet once they learn to read, which makes this activity a great way to practice early literacy skills.

Have a question that wasn’t answered here? Let me know in the comments and I’ll be happy to help!

More I Spy Printables for Kids

If you have tried this Back-to-School I Spy Printable or any other activity on my website, please let me know how it went in the comments below. I can’t wait to hear from you!

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The Craft-at-Home Family