The Letter Learning Game

For little ones, learning the letters of the alphabet is a challenging task. All of those lines and curves appear impossible to distinguish, while typical alphabet drills tend to be dull and monotonous. However, disguising letter lessons as a game makes them exceptionally more fun!

Capture your child's interest by creating this alphabet craft project with him. It is not only a great way to spend a shared afternoon together, but it will help him progress through the stages of letter recognition. As your child helps you cut and build each magnet, he will also be refining his own motor skills, giving this project extra credit!

What You Need:

• Scissors
• Colored tagboard
• Markers or crayons
• Pictures from magazines or other printed images
• Magnetic sheets (can be purchased at a craft or office supply store)
• Refrigerator (or other magnetic surface)

What You Do:

1. Begin by cutting out each letter of the alphabet from the colored tagboard. It is a good idea to use the uppercase style of each letter to begin with.
2. After each letter has been cut out, trim a piece from the magnetic sheets and apply it to the back of each letter. The sheets generally have an adhesive on one side to stick to the tagboard shapes.
3. With your child, assign a picture or image to the correct sound of each letter. For example, "A" can be associated with a picture of an apple, because it begins with the typical sound that the letter "A" makes. Below, there is a list of example images for each letter.
4. Once your child has decided on what image he associates with a particular letter, cut out a small rectangle from the tagboard and let your child draw each figure or paste a picture that was cut out from a magazine.
5. Aid your child in sticking a small strip from the magnetic sheets to the backs of each image.
6. Gather all the picture magnets and letter magnets and head to the refrigerator, or other magnetic surface. Laying out the letters on one side and the pictures on the opposite, ask your child to match the letters with their corresponding images. As he correctly matches each set, set these aside and progress through the entire alphabet.

Image Ideas:

A-apple

B-bear

C-cat

D-dinosaur

E-elephant

F-fish

G-goat

H-hat

I-igloo

J-jungle

K-kite

L-lemon

M-moon

N-nightlight

O-ostrich

P-plane

Q-quarter

R-rhino

S-swing

T-table

U-umbrella

V-vest

W-walrus

X-xylophone (X is a toughie, and is optional!)

Y-yak

Z-zebra

As your child gains familiarity with the letters, challenge him by going through the alphabet backwards, or randomly choosing letters for him to find from their image.