Ok, so our preschoolers know their ABCs.  Now what?  Here's 5 solid activities to boost letter/sound recognition....

It's cute when we hear them sing or exciting when they recognize a letter off a street sign...but there are some other ways we can really boost prereading skills.  Identifying letters and hearing letter sounds are equally vital to learning to read.

Some preschools teach letter names then sounds. Some teach letters with sounds.  Montessori preschools teach children sounds before they even learn the letter names.  Bottom line: knowing sounds with symbols is crucial later when building words and learning phonics. We all remember phonics (blah) but it is proven that "phonemic awareness" aids reading and comprehension later down the road. But enough boring phonics talk! Here are some activities for both recognizing sounds and letters.

1. SALT TRAY: (this one is awesome & easy, seriously)

Take a shallow wooden tray, dish, or cardboard box. Pour salt in it until the bottom is covered. Use your index finger to draw letters in the salt. Ask your preschooler which letter or sound? Then ask her to write letters and say their sounds.  The experience of drawing in the salt helps the brain learn letters through touch as well as sight  and also helps prepare her for writing! Plus, they have fun and the mess is minimal. The salt tray is theraputic for a restless or squirrely child- even an elementary student. Another way to use this is to take a stack of alphabet flash cards, draw a card from the pile and then write it on the salt surface. It's also a great art activity because swirling and drawing in the salt is relaxing. Once your child is engaged, step back. You might even get a 20 minute break once they are into it!

2. LETTER SOUND COLLAGE: (Prepare for this in advance, it's just easier - you'll spend more time on sound concepts than cutting skills- that's a different activity! )

Cut out a handfull of pictures / images that start with the same letter  sound (start with what your child knows well). At first, make sure not to mix hard and soft sounds (glue vs. giraffe) so your child can feel confident in the activity.

Use magazines, internet pics, stickers, items, small objects, whatever. Put all the pictures /items in a basket with a glue stick.  Then take a piece of construction paper, posterboard, whatever.  Write the letter (small and/or capital) on the paper.  Give her the glue stick and with each picture/item, stress the beginning sound. Have her glue the pictures on until the basket is empty or she loses interest. You can leave the activity off to the side for later. 

Variations of this include:

• Adding other sounds into the basket
• Focusing on end sounds
• Focusing on blended sounds ("sh" or "th" etc).

3. SANDPAPER LETTERS (labor intensive upfront but cool afterward)

Use fine sandpaper (or grip tape) and cut stenciled letters from the textured material. Glue the letters (start with lower case) on cardstock . Have your child run his fingers over the letter over & over, while making the letter sounds. Touching the textured letters aids in memory and recall!

4. SOUND BOOK

Similar to the collage. Choose a letter. Choose pictures. Have your child put one on each page.  Tape or fasten the pages and your child has a book!

5. SOUND SCAVENGER HUNT

Get a basket or box. Go around the house looking for items that start with the same letter sound. Collect them and place them in the basket/box. Keep the box around and go back to it until your child has the sound dialed. Do it with another sound some other day!

6. TASTY SOUND FEAST

Find foods, fruits, drinks, snacks that start with the same sound.  Serve a letter specific lunch or dinner! For example, host a "Pizza, pineapple, potato, pudding with pink lemonade" meal for fun- get everyone into it. The fun part is letting them choose wacky or random foods. Maybe they'll even eat the meal!

So, there's a few...

Credibility Check: Dustbunny is a Certified English Teacher from the Universtiy of Colorado. She has a Bachelor's in English and a Master's in Educational Psychology: Human Growth and Learning. She also holds an online birth-three Montessori certificate and has extensive literacy training for remedial learners, and watches a couple part time under threes at her  house.  She is interested in Montessori and other research-aligned instruction.....plus she likes keeping kids busy!