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Party Preparation Sequencing Cards: Two Four-Step Stories

Free printable PDFs · A4 & US Letter · No sign-up

Complete pack · A4US Letter

Actual printable pages in the party preparation sequencing cards pack.

Set a party table and decorate a wall through two small picture stories. This printable set has two four-step stories, eight unnumbered picture cards, matching order boards and separate answers. Choose one story for a short round, then try the other when you are ready.

Choose Your Download

The complete pack contains 7 pages. Both paper sizes include the same content. Downloads open directly without an email sign-up.

FileA4US Letter
Complete pack (7 pages)A4 PDFLetter PDF
Mixed story cards (2 pages)A4 PDFLetter PDF
Ordering boards (2 pages)A4 PDFLetter PDF
Answers (2 pages)A4 PDFLetter PDF
Instructions (1 page)A4 PDFLetter PDF

Print and Cut the Story Cards

Choose A4 or US Letter to match your paper and use portrait orientation at actual size / 100%. Print the two mixed-card sheets and the two order-board pages on the same setting so their spaces match. The cards are 82 × 76 mm; each board has four spaces of that size. The complete file also includes two answer pages and one instruction page, so you do not need to print those separate downloads again.

Actual sequence printable: print and cut the story cards.

Cut only the mixed-card sheets along the outer rectangle and shared straight grid lines. Keep the order boards whole. There are no little tabs to trim or pieces to fold. For sturdier cards, use card stock suitable for your printer, or glue an uncut sheet to backing paper, let it dry flat, and then cut. Keep each four-card story together.

Party Table: Find the Finishing Detail

The bare brown table comes first. A pink striped cloth covers its top next; the yellow cake then appears in the middle. The last picture adds one upright, unlit candle. Compare the cake pictures closely: the table and cloth remain the same, so the candle decides which is later. A possible telling is, “First we covered the table. Then we put out the cake.” Let the child choose the imaginary occasion or guests. The pictures show a paper story, and the activity needs no real candle or party supplies.

Actual sequence printable: party table: find the finishing detail.

Party Wall: Add Decorations in Layers

The second story starts with a blank cream wall and a floor line. Five colored bunting flags appear across the upper part. Two balloons, one blue and one coral, arrive next. Two starburst paper rosettes fill the space between them in the completed scene. Ask the child to point to what stayed from one card to the next as well as what appeared. The balloon picture belongs after the bunting-only picture and before the rosettes. Keep this story separate from the table cards for the first round.

Actual sequence printable: party wall: add decorations in layers.

Use the Board and Tell the Story

Put one story’s four shuffled cards beside its matching board. Find the starting picture and place it in space 1, at the top left. Continue left to right across the top row, then across the bottom row: 1, 2, 3, 4. The card fronts have no step numbers or words, so look for a visible addition, movement or change each time.

Actual sequence printable: use the board and tell the story.

If the child hesitates, compare two cards and ask, “What is here now that was not here before?” You can place the first card together and leave the other three for them. Keep the answer page aside until they have made a choice. Then compare all four pictures with the reference; move a card and tell the story again if needed.

Invite a sentence for each card using first, next, then and last, or simply let the child point and describe. Ask what the last picture shows rather than requiring one exact spoken sentence. Mix the same four cards for another round, or switch stories. Store the two story sets separately with their boards so preparation is easy next time.

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