Spanish animals: match un perro, un gato and more

Spanish animals: match un perro, un gato and more: what children learn

Each word is shown with un or una, the Spanish words for “a”. That is on purpose: every Spanish noun is masculine or feminine, and learning the little word together with the noun makes grammar much easier later. Many masculine nouns end in o (un gato) and many feminine nouns end in a (una vaca), but not all: un pez and una serpiente have to be learned. Reading carefully and matching words to their meanings is exactly what the curriculum asks for.

Suggested grade 3 practice, selected by skill and reading demand. US states and schools teach these topics in different grades; this is not a state-standards alignment claim. French and Spanish games are grouped by challenge level; learners can begin in any grade.

ACTFL World-Readiness Standards teaching connection: Vocabulary foundations for communication. Recognizing words and building short phrases can prepare a learner for reading and communication. Follow the game with a real exchange or a short text. Word recognition alone does not establish an ACTFL proficiency level or cover all communication modes. Read the framework.

How to play

Pick a card on the left, then the card on the right that matches it. Each game has 6 pairs. Wrong matches are counted as mistakes, and you get three stars for a game with no mistakes.

Step by step

1. Start with pets. Un perro, un gato, un conejo, un ratón, un pez, un pájaro. Ask: which pets do we know?
2. Add farm animals. Un caballo, una vaca, un cerdo, una oveja, un pato.
3. Learn the article with the word. Always say un perro, una rana, never just perro.
4. Use the o and a clue. Words ending in o are usually masculine (un pato), words ending in a usually feminine (una araña).
5. Build a sentence. Tengo un perro means I have a dog. Tengo un gato negro means I have a black cat.

Worked examples

Common mistakes and how to fix them

• Mixing up un pez and un pato. Un pez swims (a fish); un pato quacks (a duck).
• Thinking every word ending in e is masculine or feminine. Words ending in e can be either: una serpiente is feminine. Learn each word with un or una.
• Saying the j and ll sounds the English way. In conejo the j is a throaty h sound, and in caballo ll sounds like y.
• Leaving off the accents in ratón and pájaro. The accent shows which part of the word to stress: ra-TÓN, PÁ-ja-ro.

Activities to try at home

• Say what pets your family and friends have: tengo un gato.
• Play animal charades: act an animal and the others shout its Spanish name.
• Sort toy animals into pets and farm animals and name them in Spanish.
• Print the game sheet and draw each animal next to its word.

Ideas for the classroom

• Play “Who has the animal card?” around the class.
• Make a class pet survey and a pictogram labeled in Spanish.
• Use animal flashcards to sort nouns into masculine and feminine.
• Extend sentences with colors: tengo un perro negro.

Free printable game and worksheet

The free printable starts with a game sheet, such as a color-by-answer picture, an answer maze or a secret-code joke, followed by a worksheet. Both use the same checked questions as the online game, and the answers are on the last page. Print it, or save it as a PDF from your browser’s print menu.

Open the free printable game and worksheet

Frequently asked questions

Related topics

• Spanish numbers 1 to 20: uno, dos, tres (Grade 3 Spanish) – What number is doce? Which word is 16 in Spanish? A free elementary Spanish game about numbers 1 to 20, with a printable game sheet.
• French animals: match un chien, un chat and more (Grade 3 French) – Match un chien, une souris and un cheval to their English meanings. A free elementary French matching game about animals and pets.

Back to Grade 3 Spanish