Alphabet Archives - I Can Teach My Child!

Outdoor Alphabet Track

April 30, 2013 by Jenae — 5 Comments

It is finally feeling like spring around here so we decided to have some fun outside! This activity was so simple and both boys enjoyed it far longer than I expected. It was especially great for my little “mover and shaker”, who sincerely appreciated the pairing of gross motor learning along with letter recognition! :)

All you need is sidewalk chalk!

Make a path by writing the letters of the alphabet on your driveway. Please excuse the cherry blossom petals also on the ground…my husband already tried to take credit for scattering flower petals for me this morning. :)

Little Brother rode his tricycle on the path and we sang the ABC song together as he rode over each letter.

After that, we sang it again while walking over each letter!

The end of the alphabet led to a giant pot of mulch…perfect for rambunctious boys to climb. :)

Check out more alphabet activities here and on our “Alphabet Activities” Pinterest board!

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Filed Under: 2-3 years, 3-5 years, Alphabet, Gross Motor Development, Language Development, Motor Development, Outdoor Fun

Hide-and-Seek Alphabet Puzzle

April 23, 2013 by Jenae — 4 Comments

I’ve had this bean tub in our closet for over 2 years now. Big Brother used to love playing with it, and still does on occasion. Little Brother had not had a chance to play with it yet…until now (mainly because I forgot about it by the time he was old enough to not put the beans in his mouth anymore). I bought the beans in a large bag from Dollar General and stored it in a plastic tub with a tight-fitting lid.

Little Brother is sort of cantankerous about activities (although he is coming around) and he isn’t a huge fan of puzzles. Whenever I ask him if he wants to do a puzzle, he adamantly says “no”. But this time I enticed him to complete this Melissa & Doug Alphabet Puzzle by first hiding the pieces in the bean tub. He was automatically interested! :)

Here’s what you’ll need: An alphabet puzzle, beans, and a plastic tub with a tight-fitting lid. You also may want some cups for scooping.

(Our letter “Z” puzzle piece is nowhere to be found)

1. Dump the alphabet puzzle pieces into the bean tub. Be sure to bury some of them to make it a bit more challenging.

Ready to go!

2. Let your child get started. Be sure to be close by to emphasize the letter name and sound.

Making progress!

Little Brother found all of the letters and recognized most of them!

Little Brother earned some free play in the bean tub after he finished the puzzle! :)

Be sure to check out our other sensory tub ideas.

*Please note: This activity is not appropriate for children younger than 3 or those who still put small pieces into their mouths.

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Filed Under: 3-5 years, Alphabet, Language Development, Sensory, Sensory Tubs

S is for Snake: Alphabet Craft

April 18, 2013 by Jenae — 2 Comments

Little Brother and I created this Striped Snake for our Letter “S” Craft. We conveniently used a sponge to create our stripes all while Little Brother was wearing his striped sweater (Repeat the last 2 sentences 3 times as quick as you can…go!). Actually, the striped sweater thing wasn’t planned…after all, who would expect a child to need a sweater in mid-April. Thankfully, it is one of two long-sleeved shirts left in his closet after last week’s overhaul. :)

This is one of several alphabet crafts that Little Brother has created recently and he is progressing well on being able to recognize the letters in the alphabet. He has definitely matured some in the last couple of months…he will do an activity with me without whining or throwing a fit. Hooray! :)

Here’s what you’ll need to create your own Snake “S”: Construction paper, tempera paint, googly eyes, a dry sponge, a pen, and glue.

1. Write the letter S (block style) on a piece of construction paper.

2. Cut it out. If your child is proficient at using scissors, allow him/her too. The curves in the “S” make it a little tricky, so I cut this one out myself.

3. Cut off a small section of your sponge.

4. Prepare a dab of paint. I just use an old scratched-up melamine plate that we got when we were first married.

5. Give your child the sponge and the paint and have him/her paint the stripes on the “S”.

6. Let it dry completely.

7. In the meantime, cut out a small red tongue.

8. Once the “S” is dry, let your child glue on the tongue (on the back) and the two googly eyes.

All done!

Be sure to check out our other alphabet crafts and visit our “Alphabet Activities” Pinterest board.

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Filed Under: 2-3 years, 3-5 years, Alphabet, Alphabet Crafts, Language Development, Zoo

Alphabet Craft: Easter Egg Stamping on the Letter “E”

March 26, 2013 by Jenae — 5 Comments

Slowly but surely Little Brother is learning to recognize the letters of the alphabet. For those of you who might be astounded and severely disappointed at the fact that my 3-year old still doesn’t know all the letters of the alphabet, please keep in mind that he is a second-born who learns entirely differently than my firstborn (who just happens to be a people pleaser and overall lover of learning). Little Brother is very smart, but learns differently and displays it differently. He might not know all his letters, but he can say a word that Big Brother is struggling to read just by inferring. He is agile and as tough as a coconut. Different children = different strengths!

Activities with Little Brother must be engaging (and they often need to be his idea–which often takes some conniving on my part). Today was no exception. I knew if I said the word “paint” he would be uninterested (seriously, he is hard to please). So I opened up the bag of Easter Eggs and let him explore them for a while. After that, I got the paint out and suggested,

“Wow, wouldn’t it be fun if we opened these eggs and dipped them in the paint? Oh, lookee here…I have the letter “E” that we can stamp them on. That’s so neat! The letter “e” makes the /e/ sound and that’s what we here at the beginning of the word “egg”! What color do you want to paint first? Of course you picked orange, that’s your favorite color! Let’s keep stamping our eggs on our E with other colors too!”

(See what I mean? It’s wonderfully exhausting thinking of ways to engage and motivate this child.)

Sure enough, Little Brother took the bait and enjoyed stamping the eggs on his Letter E (and still remembers what letter it is). Success! :)

Here’s what you’ll need: Paint (which we received compliments of CraftProjectIdeas.com), plastic Easter eggs, a plate/tray, and cardstock (not pictured).

1. Cut the letter “E” out of card stock.

2. Let your little one explore the Easter eggs for a few minutes.

3. Squeeze some paint on a plate/tray…

…and then place the matching color of Easter egg on the plate.

4. Let your little begin stamping to his/her heart’s content (which happened to be about 2 minutes and 37 seconds for my guy). :)

And it’s done!

Check out the rest of our alphabet crafts here (and on our Pinterest page).

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Filed Under: 2-3 years, 3-5 years, Alphabet, Alphabet Crafts, Easter, Language Development

“H is for Heart” Alphabet Craft

February 11, 2013 by Jenae — 2 Comments

This “H is for Heart” alphabet craft was a collaborative effort for the boys–Big Brother (5) cut out the hearts (which he worked for about 20 minutes to accomplish) and Little Brother (3) glued the hearts on the Letter H. Using scissors to cut out the small hearts was excellent for Big Brother’s developing fine motor control. And allowing Little Brother to take some ownership of the craft by gluing the hearts on himself made for a successful craft project for both boys! Woo-hoo!

Here’s what you’ll need: Construction paper, a marker, scissors, and a glue stick. You can also add some embellishments like stickers or sparkly glitter glue (which we received compliments of CraftProjectIdeas.com).

1. Cut out the letter “H” from a piece of construction paper. I just folded the paper and in half and then cut out a rectangle on each side of the paper where the paper was folded.