Names, Names, Names!

Children have been working on their names all year. Writing their names, identifying the letters and sounds, and learning their friends names! Please continue working with your child on their first and last name, the names of their family members, and the names of their friends!

Activities and lessons for continuing our Name Study:

• Sign-In: Have children sign-in every morning by writing their name on a piece of paper

• Letter Writing: Help your child write letters/draw pictures to their friends and/or family members every day. Use letter-writing language such as 'To' and 'From' or 'Dear' and 'Love'.

• Name Puzzles: Write the names of friends and family (your child can help too!) and then cut out each letter for your child to put back together.

• Starting with your child's name, clap letters, clap syllables, and say and count the letters in their name. Then move on to family and friends' names!

Letters and Letter Sounds

• Cut out pictures of things that start with the same letter or sound and make a collage or alphabet book.

• Do a scavenger hunt around your home to find things that all begin with the same letter or sound and make a collection of objects or take photos.

• I Spy: Play 'I Spy' in a book you are reading together or in print around your home with letters and sounds. For example, "I spy with my little eye the letter T" or "I spy a letter that makes a /t/ sound."

• Make your own alphabet chart with pictures for each letter.

• Label your child’s room. If your focus is just letters or initial letter sounds of words, then label each item with the letter it starts with, such as L for lamp. After the child knows L for lamp, add the rest of the letters to the label. You can label your whole house if desired, but your child’s bedroom is a good start!

• Assign a letter of the day! Eat foods that start with the letter, read stories that have that letter in the title, look for the letter in streets signs, on TV, in the subway, etc.

• Explore and sort magnetic letters, talking about the characteristics and shape of each letter while doing this. This should not be an independent activity, talk is important here!

Phonological Awareness

• Guess the Word - Separate sounds and have your child guess the word!

For example, say: "/c/ /â/ /t/"... cat!

• Game: La, La, La

1. Sing a simple song that is very familiar to your child, such as "Row, Row, Row Your Boat."

2. Then repeat the song, replacing each syllable in the words with la, eg., "la, la, la, la la..." for "Row, row, row, your boat..."

• Game: Clap the Beat

1. Line up several study-related objects or pictures in front of your child.

2. Create a rhythmic pattern by clapping each syllable as you name the item, e.g., "ham-mer (2 claps), ham-mer (2 claps), screw-driv-er (3 claps), nail (1 clap)."

3. Repeat the clapping syllable rhythm together.

4. Create a new rhythmic pattern by changing the order of the items.

• Game: Mr. Forgetful

1. Develop a list of compound words and write them on a piece of paper. (pancakes, rainbow, jellybean, bathtub, grasshopper, etc.)

2. Tell your child the following story: Once upon a time, there was a very forgetful man. He forgot everything: where he placed his keys, whether he brushed his teeth, and where he parked his car. Some people called him Mr. Forgetful. Sometimes Mr. Forgetful would forget to say the end of a word. Instead of saying "football" he would just say "foot."

3. Have your child guess how Mr. Forgetful might say each word on your list. (You can also modify the game so that Mr. Forgetful forgets the beginning of the word instead of the end, or you can use the syllables in words and names.)

• Alliteration and Rhyme Word Play

What else rhymes with _____?

What else starts with _____?

• Nursery Rhymes - Read and/or sing nursery rhymes together and play rhyming games as you go!

Humpty Dumpty

Little Miss Muffet

1, 2, Buckle My Shoe

Hickory Dickory Dock

Jack and Jill

Hey Diddle Diddle

Getting Ready for Kindergarten - New Paper Choices!

This special paper has a box for drawing and lines for writing to help children stay organized! Let your child choose which paper choice they would rather use. You can either print this paper out from the PDFs below or make your own using a black marker on regular paper.