Welcome to the first post in our new series called Alphabet For Starters focusing on simple alphabet activities for beginners. I don’t want to put an age range on these activities because kids become interested in letters at all different ages.
Follow their interest and jump on the bandwagon when they are ready. Most importantly have fun with letters and use them together. Letters are used in so many wonderful combinations and hopefully, this series will help popularize the notion that drilling letters are not the first step to learning them and ultimately reading. We have always believed in playing, creating and making connections with letters and I am excited to start this with my youngest. This is our first organized activity.
This activity is not a new or novel idea but I hope that my tips along the way may make it easier for you and your child to play and learn.
- Gather your materials. You will need some plastic Easter eggs, some letters that fit inside but are big enough not to pose a choking hazard, a cute box, some Easter grass and a metal cookie sheet. I use the cookie sheet because the letters are magnetic. It gives my daughter a spot to put them and it keeps us focused and contained. It’s not a must.
- Pop the letters in the eggs. You may notice I am only doing 9 letters. I purposely chose the 9 I did. In the 9 there are 3 letters she has mastered and points out everywhere. This sets her up for some immediate success, which is key for a great first experience. I also have the letters of her name. Using meaningful letters as a jumping off point is a great way to do it. Also, I have 2 I have no clue is she knows or not. I will find out if she does, and if not she will be introduced to them gently.
- Put them in the basket and add kiddo in PJ’s.
- As she opened them she put them on the tray and I asked her what was in the egg. She announced some gleefully but if she didn’t know I would say “Look you got L!” Never drill.
- After she opened a few I would sneak them off the tray one and a time, refill the eggs and pop them back in. This kept the momentum going without her having to wait for mama to set everything back up, that way only her desire to end the activity ended it. Also, it let us reinforce the letters a few times in a fun way.
- After a few times, I asked her to point out some letters when they were on the sheet – I didn’t expect her to know any other than A and E (her favorites) but she did.
- And she was so proud – you gotta love that cheer!
Remember to watch your child. Children just starting to explore letters are sponges. But if we put the pressure too soon we can make them think of it as work not play. So keep things playful and remember that these beginning experiences aren’t going to take up a lot of time. But the repetition is great so keep the supplies handy and play it again and again.
For more learning activities for your preschooler, make sure to follow me on Facebook!
Amanda says
I’m so excited about this series! J has been noticing more and more letters every day, so I’m looking for letter recognition activities for him. I was actually going to put letters in our Easer Eggs sometime this week…looks like such an engaging way of learning letters.
Allison says
Fabulous activity. I’m excited about the new series!
Malia says
I love your reminder that children need to play and explore before they can really begin memorizing letters. It takes a little pressure off of us as parents too. 🙂
When I taught kindergarten, one of the ABC activities the children loved most was sorting letters by shape: curvy, straight or both. It would be a perfect follow up to your activity because it helps little ones start noticing differences. I wrote a blog about it a few weeks back. You can find the post here:
http://www.playdoughtoplato.com/2012/03/11/letter-sort-curvy-or-straight/
Thanks again for putting this series together!
Malia
admin says
Malia I just found your blog and scrolled through excited to find a kindred spirit! I’d love to have you contribute on our Reading and Writing Readiness Pinterest Board .
The Monko says
I really like this, I’m going to try it with my son. He enjoys opening the little plastic eggs.
admin says
Try popping colors or shapes in there too!
crystal@growingajeweledrose says
Oh, I am so excited about this new series! My older daughter is beginning to show a peaked interest in the alphabet.
admin says
I hope to do at least one a week – right now it’s all she wants to do ” etters, etters?” so hopefully it’s a fun journey for all of us!
Sarah says
Love this idea! So simple and exciting for budding letter lovers!
Sarah says
Love this idea! So simple and exciting for budding letter lovers!
Mama (Karen) Carmody says
I love your emphasis on having fun while learning….that is definitely where I stand. You are right its never to early to start a learning concept but you need to keep an eye for your child’s interest and then go with it. Have fun and keep the smiles coming.
admin says
Thanks. She is just at that perfect age where new things are happening so fast, it’s exciting!
Carrie says
This is a great idea for a series. My 2 1/2 yr old is just starting to point out letters and he loves to open anything, this will be a great activity for us. I can’t wait to see what other activities you will have in this series. Simple, creative, fun…such a great combination to keep young children learning and moms engaged too. Thank you!
admin says
So glad others are interested, I hope it’s fun for everyone.
Liz says
LOVE this, and how you are sure to specify that this should be fun.. no “pressure to learn” involved! Letters can definitely be fun, and all of the letter learning around here happens at the pace of each child, and in only the most fun ways 😉 Looking forward to this series, thanks for sharing!
Andrea says
Thanks for the cookie sheet idea! You just solved my problem for my plan for a co-op class lesson. I didn’t have a chalkboard or anything for magnets to stick to but I do have cookie sheets!
Georgina @ Craftulate says
Hi! I’ve linked to this great idea at my new Easter activity round-up here: http://craftulate.blogspot.com/2013/03/8-easter-crafts-for-young-toddlers.html
Dana says
I’m going to set this up right now! Thank you for sharing!