Dot to Dot

Barbara J. Feldman

Dot-to-dot puzzles, also known as connect-the-dot pictures, are a terrific printable activity for youngsters just learning to count or to recite the alphabet. And with a coloring picture as a fun reward, who can resist them?

ABC Ya! Kindergarten Fun

5 stars

For something a little different, ABC Ya! brings us interactive dot-to-dot games played online. The games have audio instructions ("Connect the dots to make a picture") to make it super easy for preschoolers and kindergartners to use. There are six connect-the-dot games on this kindergarten page, but they are not grouped together, so be sure not to miss the ABC Order game or Numbers 1 to 50 game. For a Numbers 2 to 100 game not included on the kindergarten page, return to the home page, and then click on First Grade Games.

Coloring-Page: Connect the Dots

4 stars

These forty-four printable connect-the-dots puzzles are all numeric, no alphabet games included. The coloring pictures are very cute and the numbers range from 1-10 to 1-120. But in order to find out how hard each picture is, you will need to click through to open it. To print the puzzle without the ad, don't use your browser print function. Instead, click on the image, and as long as you have JavaScript enabled, a print dialog box will open.

Dot to Dot Puzzles

5 stars

Dot to Dot Puzzles is my pick of the week because of the size of their collection (125 printable puzzles) and the consistent quality of their pictures. The puzzles are all numeric, and organized by categories such as Animals, Flowers, Sports or Toys. The largest puzzle goes up to forty dots, but these are intermingled with the simpler ones, so you'll just have to browse to find what you need. In addition to the free one-at-a-time downloads, Dot to Dot offers a $9 option to download the entire collection all at once.

Kids R Crafty: Dot-to-Dot

5 stars

Kids R Crafty has a nice collection of numeric and alphabetic dot-to-dot puzzles, including both capital and lowercase letters. What I like best about the site is that each puzzle is clearly labeled with the numbers or letters included. And it's the only one of today's sites that includes puzzles for counting by twos, fives or tens. Other preschool activities on the site include printable coloring pages, mazes, shapes, letters and numbers.

Print Activities: Number Dot-to-Dot Printables

4 stars

Nicely organized by theme and labeled with the numbers included, this collection includes one puzzle with more than a hundred dots. Visit for the seasonal and holiday themes (Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Halloween, and Christmas) and the unusual alphabet puzzles. These alphabet puzzles are numeric dot-to-dots done in the shape of each lower and uppercase letter. For example, lowercase "a" is a 1-20 puzzle, while uppercase "A" is a 1-10 puzzle.