DIY Farm Play Mat (Free Printable)

From cows and pigs to barns and ponds, kids love farms. Imaginary play is popular and important for young children. Creating opportunities for this hands-on play can get tricky and expensive, but with this DIY Farm Play Mat making a large area to play with lots of options for imagination is easy!

Often with young children, finding storage for their play things and toys can be challenging, especially in a classroom. That’s why I created this play mat using a yoga mat. The mat easily rolls up and stores easily.

Even if you’re not artistic, this mat is easy to create using the free printable template. It simplifies the shapes and images for the mat. Simply then add color to make the pictures stand out and be recognized as things found on a farm.

Once you’ve created your mat, the rest is up to each child’s imagination. Each time you roll out the mat, the different sections become something new and wonderful.

diy farm play mat shows a pinterest pin.

Since this play mat has been so popular, I have created many other DIY play mats and sensory experiences for children including a DIY Car Play Mat, DIY Sensory Path and the popular We’re Going on a Bear Hunt Sensory Walk based on the popular children’s book.

DIY Farm Play Mat Materials

To create this DIY play mat, all you need is a yoga mat, paint, brushes and the template. You will need a variety of colors, but the shapes and images are quite simple. You can use any color of yoga mat.

I used a bluish/green, but you can use any color. The dollar store in my area sells the mats so this was a very inexpensive project.

sensory play shows a rolled up yoga mat.

Using the template begin either sketching the shapes onto the mat, or start painting. Don’t worry about the images being perfect. Children can decide what they want each image to represent for them.

sensory play for kids shows a yoga sheet with a red barn painted.

I have provided a template that you can print, for free. The template has the basic shapes that I included in my project. You can change the template and add, or change anything you want. The template includes the following items:

Water/Pond
Grassy Area
Animal Pens/Gated Area x3
Barn
Mud Patch
Field x3

diy farm play mat shows a template with the land of a farm.

You can paint the basic shapes and then add details to them, or leave them simplified.

DIY Farm Play Mat for Kids

Once you have painted and created your mat, it is a good idea to use a protective spray on the mat to help keep the paint from chipping off. This will allow you to use the mat for many play periods.

DIY farm play mat shows a yoga mat painted to look like a farm play mat.

One of the great things about this play mat, that I love using it for kindergarten is that yoga mats are quite long and allow for many children to play on the mat at once. At least four children can play on the mat at the same time.

sensory play for kids shows a red barn and other animal items.

Once you have created the mat and everything is dry, it is ready to be played on! All you need to do to set up the mat is roll it out and provide a bin of farm related toys and animals.

If you have a few extra materials that you think children may use as they play, I encourage you to include them in the bin. It is always amazing what children come up with.

DIY farm play mat shows children playing on a mat that has farm animals and items.

Sensory Play Set Up

A few ideas for materials to include with your farm play mat include:

farm land play shows a farmer character and a play mat.

Farm Play Animals
Wood Slices
Wooden Characters
Felt Leaves/Plants/Food
Buttons
Play Trees
Wooden Homes
Blue Gems
Gate Pieces

DIY farm play mat shows a birds eye view of a play mat painted to look like farm land.

The more materials you provide for children the more children that can play at the mat and the more creative their farm area becomes. I included buttons with my group and they quickly became plants/vegetables in the fields.

kindergarten play for kids shows a play mat with carrots and fields.

You don’t need to purchase special or fancy items for your play area. Give kids the opportunity to use different and seemingly random items and let them use their imagination.

Once you have provided children with the toys and materials, give them as much time as possible to explore and create. This type of hands-on play is very valuable for children at home and at school.

DIY farm play mat shows children playing with farm related animals and field items.

It encourages children to work with and communicate with their peers. Both as they create their farm land and also as they play and move the animals around.

DIY farm play mat shows a child playing with a farmer wooden person.

This DIY farm play mat can easily be rolled up and stored in a small space to be brought out anytime. I hope your children enjoy the mat as much as my children and students have.

Download the Free Template

Subscribe Through Grow

Join Play Learn Inspire and subscribe through Grow. Click the grey lock box below and include your email address. Once you subscribe you will unlock the other freebies on this site and the DIY farm play mat will download right away.