{"id":234,"date":"2022-06-06T14:21:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-06T18:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brightsprouts.com\/?p=234"},"modified":"2022-06-14T18:36:31","modified_gmt":"2022-06-14T22:36:31","slug":"how-to-teach-the-alphabet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.brightsprouts.com\/how-to-teach-the-alphabet\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Teach the Alphabet: The ABCs of Letter Sounds and Recognition"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Introducing the alphabet to your child can open up a world of learning and curiosity. Having an understanding of how to write letters, introduce letter names, and how to teach letters with hands-on learning can help make the process joyful and exciting. Being a part of your child’s learning journey is special and the right tools can empower both you and your child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have young children, then chances are they are getting curious about letters. Maybe you have noticed their interest in the words on the pages of your favorite read-aloud?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or perhaps you have spent hours playing shop with scribbled shopping lists? It is a wonderful time of learning and exploration, but it can also feel overwhelming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But don’t stress! This article will guide you through the alphabet learning process with hands-on activities and great resources to begin letter learning and teaching letter sounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 123s of ABCs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Teaching letters to preschoolers is so much more than singing the Alphabet Song. For your child to crack the reading code, they need to understand each letter’s sound and how that sound corresponds to each letter symbol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also need to start recognizing letters. Throw in the complexities of changing letter sounds and combined letter sounds, and you and your child are in for quite the learning adventure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"teaching<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

1. Letter Recognition<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Letter recognition is when your child can pick out a letter by its shape and size and match it to the corresponding sound that specific letter makes. Recognizing and naming uppercase and lowercase letters is a crucial step in reading comprehension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Phonemic Awareness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Understanding the sound that letters make is an integral part of learning to read, making it a vital step when teaching the alphabet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a Phoneme?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It is the smallest unit of sound and these are blended together to sound out words. There are 44 phonemes represented by the 26 letters of the alphabet. Helping your child recognize, understand, and manipulate these sounds is the key to unlocking the alphabet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"phonemes
Image: Phonics Hero<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Letters are magic when placed together to create words. But understanding that moving or changing those letters produces new words and meanings is the true joy of learning the alphabet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Learning First Alliance<\/a>, phonemic awareness is crucial in learning an alphabetic writing system. There are many songs, rhymes, and simple activities that you can do verbally to encourage phoneme awareness and explain phonetic sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When teaching the alphabet, you want to introduce phonemes from simplest to more complex and from common to less common. Avoid learning letters that look and sound alike at the same time e.g. ‘b’ and ‘d’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phoneme awareness is often the last skill to develop but is one of the most crucial. Recognizing and manipulating individual sounds and letter order is a core goal in teaching the alphabet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. The Alphabetic Principle<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In teaching the alphabet, the goal is to have our kids recognize all the letters and their sounds and help them blend those sounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Alphabetic Principle connects letters with their sounds, and it is a difficult principle for children to grasp. There is the whole alphabet to learn, and the sounds of these letters change depending on how you put them together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This can also make it frustrating to teach the alphabet as the individual letters are only the beginning of the reading journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But don’t feel disheartened! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teach your child the sound that each letter makes as a rule and help them identify that letter and sound in words. You can use the CVC method, consonant-vowel-consonant, to help them blend those sounds into words. Sight words can also be helpful with this method.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example: <\/strong>the sounds \/c\/ \/a\/ \/t\/ are represented by the letters “c”, “a”, and “t” and can be blended to form the word “cat”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"teaching
Image: National Center of Improving Literacy<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

4. Letter Order<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are a few theories on the best order to teach letters, and it doesn’t need to be in alphabetical order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teach Children their Name<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you feel confused about where to start, why not try your child’s name? Not only do most names contain one or two commonly used letters, but helping your child learn how to recognize and spell their name is a personal way for them to connect with their learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

High-Frequency Letter Sounds<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It is also crucial to allow your child enough time with verbal language before diving into letter recognition. There is no set timeline for when your child will start showing an interest in letters, but it is essential to wait until they are ready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When they are ready, there are a number of ways you can introduce letters. After learning the letters in their name, you can introduce your child to letters that often occur in simple words. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

a m t s i f d r o g l h u c b n k v e w j p y x q z<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
These sound combinations allow your child to build simple words and help them grow in confidence quickly. Introduce one letter at a time, adding other letters as your kids learn. You can start with all the other letters when they have can confidently recognize commonly-used letters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) and sight word approach is also a simple way for you and your child to dive into learning the alphabet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Do I Start with Uppercase or Lowercase letters?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Uppercase letter shapes are developmentally easier for preschoolers to recognize, and you can introduce lower case letters for kindergarteners. This helps avoid letter confusion in younger children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Capital letters are easier to draw and are the first letter in your child’s name, but lowercase letters are more common. Your child must learn at a young age that each alphabet letter has two forms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When matching upper and lowercase letters, start with ones that look similar, like ‘T’ and ‘t’ and “M’ and “m’. Also, explain when and how uppercase letters are used and use letter books to demonstrate.
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Is My Child Ready to Start Learning the Alphabet?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Learning to read should be a magical experience because it unlocks a whole world of freedom and opportunity for your child. This means that you want to make learning fun and introduce the alphabet in a way your child enjoys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reading aloud is a great way to gauge your child’s interest in words. Kids love stories, and you will be able to see them taking an interest in more than just the pictures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They will also start to name things around them, and this can be a playful learning opportunity to introduce the alphabet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Developmentally, kids are ready to learn the alphabet from ages 2 to 6<\/strong>. That is a vast range, and each child begins to learn on their own timeline. If your child has trouble remembering letters you have taught them, then they might not be ready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They also might not be interested. Curiosity is everything when it comes to learning. Without curiosity, no amount of meaningful activities or alphabet printables will help your child learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mistakes to Avoid When Teaching Alphabet Letters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Forcing your child to learn the alphabet before they are ready is the biggest mistake you can make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here are a few others that can make teaching the alphabet difficult:<\/p>\n\n\n\n