Embedded Files
“Intentional and explicit instructional approaches are more effective than embedded ones and result in stronger learning outcomes for young children.” (LETRS manual, p. 147)
Articles & Links
Articles & Links
Alphabet Knowledge Google Drive folder
relevant notes from above link~
EMS: explicit, multi-sensory, systematic
small sets of items taught until mastery and automatic response (fluency)
Secret Stories: Better Alphabet Song (YouTube )
8 Must Have Preschool Alphabet Activities to Merge Instruction and Play
20+ Ways to Use Magnetic Letters
100+ Alphabet Activities that Kids Love
Jolly Phonics: Letter Sounds, Individual Songs & Motions
Learn the Alphabet & Actions with Coach Josh
Letter Land - Teaching letter sounds with movement & explicit letter formation
1st Focus: Own Name Advantage
Background/Research
Instructional Implementation
Alphabet Knowledge - LETRS- Session 9
“Own name advantage: For any group of young children, the first approach to letter learning is to teach the letters in their own name. This approach is highly motivating and responsive to young children’s developmental learning. This strategy is best in small groups with reinforcement and carryover to the whole group.” LETRS EC pg 145
Ways to Develop Alphabet Knowledge in Young Children (LETRS EC pg. 127-151)
2022-2023 Sequence of Alphabet Knowledge
Google Slides for Letter Recognition: Teaching with Technology
Google Slides for Letter Recognition: Teaching with Technology
ODL 16a - Identifies and Names letters folder
Own Name Advantage - Transition Activity
exposure to letter names
explicit teaching point: "The letters in this order make the name________."
(name, name) jump up and down, jump up and down, turn all around; (name, name) jump up and down, now...
...sit back down
...go wash your hands for lunch
...go line up
ex of intentional teaching - Letter Names transition.MOVTIPS -
Highlight phoneme articulation using mirrors (if available) or Turn & Talk if no mirrors are available.
(How does my mouth make that sound? Where are my lips? My tongue?, etc…)Articulation videos for teacher reference can be found online. Here are a few examples:
one video example (Scroll down below article for videos…)
articulation photos example. (Credit: Louisiana Believes)
Articulating our Sounds: Important Information for Teachers and Parents
Follow the Science…Refining Our Beliefs
Follow the Science…Refining Our Beliefs
OLD IDEA
Teachers used to think…Alphabet knowledge develops through embedded opportunities like shared writing and alphabet puzzles.
NEW IDEA
But now we know…Children acquire alphabet knowledge more efficiently with systematic, direct instruction.
OLD IDEA
Teachers used to think…Rote memorization and repeated practice have to be “drill and kill.”
NEW IDEA
But now we know…“Practice can be done with “drill and skill” activities. These activities can absolutely be fun, playful, engaging and developmentally appropriate” (LETRS p. 147)
Enhanced Alphabet Knowledge Instructional Plan
Enhanced Alphabet Knowledge Instructional Plan
Considerations on Letter Sound Pronunciation
Considerations on Letter Sound Pronunciation
Letter B represents the sound…. Buhhhh?? Remove the schwa sound (“uhhhh”) because if children hear and repeat the schwa, it may be reflected in later reading and writing
Sounds of the Alphabet with mouth placement - Video explanation
EL curriculum (K) Letter Cards and Lessons
EL curriculum (K) Small Letter Cards
EL curriculum (K) Alphabet Sheet (1 page)
EL curriculum (K) small for each Interest Area
EL curriculum (K) Letter Formation Guidance
AK Patterns of Instruction
AK Patterns of Instruction
“By taking advantage of letter characteristics and what is known about young children’s learning patterns (Purinak et al., 2013), instructional sequences or cycles can be created that may be effective for the structure and planning of letter learning instruction." (LETRS manual, p. 145)
Is NOT a letter of the week model
4 to 5 letters per week should be taught
Own Name Advantage based on frequency of initial letters in class members’ names
“The more connections children are able to make for the alphabet letters they are learning, the deeper their understanding becomes.” (LETRS manual, p.144)
-the first approach to letter learning
-aligned to children’s developmental learning
-more effective to teach in small groups
-reinforcement should occur in large group (PAC Time)
Alphabet Order
“With this pattern established, the order of the alphabet becomes more obvious and perceptible to young children.” (LETRS manual, p.146)
Elements of Alphabet Order:
- A high priority of early childhood settings
- The order of the alphabet becomes more obvious and perceptible to children
- Is NOT a letter of the week model
- 4 to 5 letters per week should be taught
Distinctive Visual Features in Writing
-Influences young children’s visual letter recognition
-Distinctions in letter shapes exist, making some letters easier to learn than others
-Students learn to print letters by imitating geometric shapes
-In some cases, you will teach only the uppercase, or only the lowercase letter, depending on its visual features
Straight i/l
Curved C/c/J/j/O/o/S/s/U
Straight Intersections E/F/H/I/L/T/t
Curved Intersections a/B/b/D/d/e/f/G/g/h/m/n/P/p/Q/q/R/r/u
Diagonal Intersection A/K/k/M/N/(R)/V/v/W/w/X/x/Y/y/Z/z
Consonant Acquisition Order
(does not include all letters due to speech production: c,q,x,y)
N/M/P/H
T/K/Y/F
B/D/G/W/S
L/R/V/Z/J
Letter-Name and Letter-Sound Connection
B/D/J/K/P/T/V/Z (same letter sound at the beginning of the letter name)
F/L/M/N/R/X (same sound at the end of the letter’s name)
H/Q/W/Y (consonants with no association between the letter name and its sound)
C/G/S (consonants with more than 1 sound)
A/E/I/O/U (vowels)
Letter Frequency
R/T/N/S/I
L/C/D/P/A
M/B/F/V/E
G/H/H/K/W/O
X/Z/J/Q/Y/U
Sounds Chart FREE DOWNLOAD.pdf
Alphabet Knowledge~
Step 5: Recognizing the Letter in Text (RLT)
ODL 16a
Step 5 of the EAK process has been the most challenging to perfect. At the beginning of the year we appropriately utilized the student names as our text since the students were just learning to scan print. As our students needed more challenging texts to scan, we made a shift to utilizing short poems/stories. Many of you have access to the Lakeshore set of letter poems/stories and some of you have found our old OWL curriculum poems a useful resource.
Now that we’ve moved to the distinct features of letters pattern of instruction we’ve found we need more resources that allow students to easily locate capital letters in texts.
While we have provided you with several other comprehensive resources that include fun poems/short stories for each letter of the alphabet, few allow multiple opportunities to locate a particular capital letter embedded throughout the text. In this folder I started making my own alliterative stories with environmental print to support my RA2 instruction and I hope they will be helpful to you too.
I print and place the stories in a clear sleeve and give the student a dry erase marker. Students can scan the text for the letter or locate that letter in the environmental print. So far the students have loved them. The alliterative stories would make a great addition to your library or writing area for continued practice. ~Tina
NOTE RLT Best Practice: When students identify the letter in text, prompt them to say the letter name AND the sound the letter makes.
3 Tools to Teach the Alphabet That We Use EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. ~Moving Little Minds 5/27/2025
3 Tools to Teach the Alphabet That We Use EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. ~Moving Little Minds 5/27/2025
Whether you’re wrapping up the school year, diving into summer camp, or plugging away in your classroom, I wanted to share the three alphabet tools we use every single day in the classroom. These aren’t just favorites, they are essential for research-based learning. They keep our preschoolers engaged, moving, and building real letter knowledge in meaningful ways.
3 Go-To Tools for Alphabet Knowledge
1. Name Cards
Yes, just notecards with each child’s name written on a card. But we use them every day!
Here are a few ways we incorporate name cards:
Letter Recognition in Names: We highlight the letters in each child’s name to build letter familiarity and ownership. Whether it is in our first letter cycle where we are celebrating each name and letters individually, or when we are diving deeper into each letter in cycle three, name cards are the number one way to build meaning!
Transitions: Instead of calling names aloud, we simply hold up name cards silently. Children love recognizing their own names and transitioning with confidence.
Partner Work: We pass out the notecards randomly to each child. The children find the classmate who matches the card. It is an easy way to reinforce name recognition and encourage teamwork.
2. Alphabet Content for Each Letter
We make sure every letter has a variety of meaningful materials tied to it (objects that match the letter sounds, environmental print, alphabet books). We use these to build alphabet knowledge through familiarity. Here are a few ways we incorporate them:
ABC Books and Picture Cards: We dive deep into letter-sound correspondence and formation. We use books and picture cards to help make the connections. We use THIS book in our curriculum, which helps us practice letter formation, recognition and sounds. But beware, we don’t love all of the picture representations because the sounds aren’t quite right in many cases!
Mystery Box Game: We fill the mystery box with objects that bring with our target letter sound. For example, Ss - sock, soap, snake. Children pull out an object related to a specific letter sound and guess the letter based on clues. The children LOVE it!
Environmental Print Wall: Families send in logos, food labels, and signs from their homes. We discuss the letters in the print, hang on our alphabet print wall, and celebrate the alphabet with our home/cultural connections.
3. Alphabet Motion Flashcards by Moving Little Minds
These are a core part of our daily alphabet routine in classes 2-TK! Yes, they are one of our products, but we created them for the exact purpose of building alphabetic knowledge with research and PLAY in mind!
Here’s how we use them:
We use them to build letter name and sound power, allowing children to physically experience each letter-sound connection through body movement.
We use the visual mouth cues on the cards to help children see how each letter sound is formed and produced.
We move, groove, and have FUN learning the alphabet using Dr. Jean’s Who Let the Letters Out? song.
Reply with the one alphabet tool that you want to try!
No matter the season or setting, these three tools help create consistent, intentional alphabet instruction that works.
Be sure to head to the shop for our flashcards or curriculum!
AK - ODL 16ab
Letter Hunt
In this folder you will find alliterative stories to support your students in identifying upper and lowercase letters in text. Print and place the stories in a clear sleeve and give the student a dry erase marker.
I DO/WE DO: During your PAC time or small group lesson students can scan the text for the target letter or locate that letter in the environmental print.
YOU DO: Check for understanding by using the activity as an Exit Ticket. The alliterative stories would make a great addition to your library or writing area for continued practice after the lesson.
NOTE: When interacting with students as they locate the target letter in text, prompt them to say the letter name AND the sound the letter makes.
LID - ODL 16a
ABC Eye Chart
Alphabet Knowledge~
ALPHABET ORDER
ODL 16
Alphabet Arc
-ideal for interest areas
-could also include a lowercase arc
Note: add each letter to your arc(s) AFTER it is been taught in Read Aloud 2
Full lesson:
Letter Identification Teacher Resource (Table Book) p. 4
Alphabet Knowledge~
OWN NAME ADVANTAGE
ODL 16 level 2-4
Alphabet Tiles Name Sort
-ideal for a small group then interest area activity for students still learning the letters of their name
Full lesson:
Letter Identification Teacher Resource (Table Book) p. 11
RA2/PAC Time & small group resource: Letters Poems & Songs ~Thanks Rian Schill!
Alphabet Knowledge letter sort & Pick An Apple ~Thanks Tiffani Mattier
Write the students name on the folder or prepare a name card for the student to reference when choosing the next letter they want to learn.
During initial instruction:
The teacher and student review the known letters only. (After the initial instruction the teacher would ask the student to review their known letters and see if he/she can identify the letter they wanted to learn. If the student can quickly identify the letter name, the student/teacher can circle that letter on the page and choose a new letter to learn.)
The teacher references the name card and the student chooses the next letter in their name they want to learn.
The teacher then explicitly models the writing of the letter at the top of the second page. (I do/My turn)
The student practices writing the letter while saying the letter name. (We do/You do) NOTE: The teacher may prompt the student to write the letter big, write the letter small, write the letter in the corner, write the letter fast, write the letter slow, etc. so they have many opportunities to write & say the letter name out loud. Remember, EVERY time the student writes the letter they need to say the letter name.
After instruction:
Provide opportunities for the student to locate the letter in their environment and say the letter name out loud.
Send home pairs of letter cards with ONLY the letters they know and the letter they want to learn. Give parents directions how to play a memory game with their child using those letter cards. Continue to build the deck as the student adds new letters they want to learn.
Besides being a quick, intentional lesson, this strategy also allows students to be in charge of their own learning. This alone is a big motivator for many students.
Once students know the letters in their own name, they may choose any letter to learn next. You may want to encourage them to learn the letters in their friends names or letters in alphabetical order if they can’t decide on the next letter they want to learn.
BRIGANCE Connection ~
Uppercase Letters
Magnetic letters, letter cards, or stencils - reproducibles starting at page 109
Pieces of blank paper.
Procedure: Arrange a row of four letters on a table. Three letters should be the same and one letter should be very different. For example: C, C, N, C. Ask the child to indicate which of the four letters is different. Allow the child to pick up the letters. If the child has difficulty telling which letter is different, let him trace the shape of each letter with his finger, and explain how the letters differ.
TRANSITIONS: Use the reproducibles for additional practice. Print and cut lines apart. Ask the child to indicate which of the four letters in each row is different from the other three.
Brigance - 4B
Letter Detectives
Visual Discrimination Differentiation: Level of Difficulty
Task 1: Lowercase Letters—Very Different
Materials:
•Magnetic letters, letter cards, or stencils.
•Pieces of blank paper.
Group Size: Individual or small group.
Procedure: Do the following:
•Arrange a row of four letters on a table. (Three letters should be the same and one letter should be very different. For example: t, o, t, t.)
•Ask the child to indicate which of the four letters is different.
•Allow the child to pick up the letters. If the child has difficulty telling which letter is different, let him trace the shape of each letter with his finger, and explain how the letters differ.
Task 2: Lowercase Letters—Somewhat Different
Materials:
•Magnetic letters, letter cards, or stencils.
•Pieces of blank paper.
Group Size: Individual or small group.
Procedure: Do the following:
•Arrange a row of four letters on a table. Three letters should be the same and one letter should be somewhat different. For example: d, d, b, d.
•Ask the child to indicate which of the four letters is different. Allow the child to pick up the letters. If the child has difficulty telling which letter is different, let him trace the shape of each letter with his finger, and explain how the letters differ.
AK transtion activities.png
Alphabet Knowledge~ LETRS Science of Reading Brain Break
ODL 16a, 16b
Activity: lowercase alphabet eye chart abc dance
Directions: When singing the alphabet song, put your hands on your waist for half-line lowercase letters, raise your hands above your head for top-line letters, and put your hands on the floor (or as low as you want to go) for lowercase letters that go below the bottom line. This may be done during transitions, as a part of your Read Aloud 2, or even during indoor recess. After some practice, children could do this in your Music Area at Choice Time!
Developmental Domains reinforced with this activity:
Approaches to Learning: participating in the activity
Health and Physical: matching the movement to the letter shape and positioning body to not interfere with others
Cognitive: spatial concepts, alphabet sequence, rhythm of the song
Social/Emotional: recognizing what others are doing
Executive Functioning: memory, planning, self-regulation
AK - ODL 16a
Pattern Block Printable Puzzles
Teacher-Child Interactions:
Ask the child the name of the letters they are building. Discuss the difference between the upper and lowercase versions of the letters.
Alphabet Knowledge:
Letter Name- Letter Sound Connection
TSG 16a and 16b
The final Alphabet Knowledge Pattern of Instruction is Letter Name - Letter Sound Connection. Teaching these patterns of instruction in a predictable format through different cycles across the year is a LETRS Science of Reading best practice that supports repeated daily practice and nightly consolidation.
We will teach the easier letters first (where the letter name is the letter’s sound plus a vowel: Bb, Dd, Jj, Kk, Pp, Tt, Vv, and Zz). Integrate initial sound isolation during your Bb - Zz lessons by bouncing the initial sound with a kineme. The LETRS- recommended kineme is to tap your pointer finger to your thumb while saying the initial sound:
“This is letter Bb. Bb says /b/. You can hear /b/ when you say this letter’s name!
/b/, /b/, B [with kineme]. Do it with me. /b/, /b/, B [with kineme].
What is this letter? Yes! What is its sound? Yes!”
PA - ODL 15c (ODL 16b)
differentiate the lesson using Alphabet Sound Knowledge data
Differentiation Strategy - content
Tier 1 -
choose 2 letters with corresponding picture cards
one letter/sound should be one they know well and the other is one they need more practice identifying (ex. 4- s cards with 4 - /s/ picture cards; 4 - m cards with 4 /m/ picture cards for a total of 16 cards)
limit the number of cards in game (3 sets = 12 cards)
provide a memory board template for students to place the cards in an organized fashion
EASY - put letters on one side and pictures on the other
Tier 2 -
choose 3-4 letters with corresponding picture cards
Two letter/sounds should be ones they know well, one should be a letter/sound they need more practice identifying, the final should be a new letter/sound you want them to learn
Limit the number of cards in the game to 2 letter/picture cards for each - Add more cards once they become proficient (12-16 cards total)
Tier 3 -
Use 5-6 letters with corresponding picture cards
Have one match per letter (10-12 cards total)
Add new sets as the students become more proficient.
Before playing as a ‘Memory’ game, teach/review the activity by matching sound to letter with all the cards face up.
I do - Model/Think Aloud as you show them how to match the picture to a letter card. Go through several cards modeling how to isolate the first sound, identifying the letter, and matching the sound to the letter card.
We do - Have a student pick a picture card, say the word, isolate the first sound, and find the letter card that matches. The student needs to do ALL the work. Teacher can prompt “What is it? What is the first sound? What letter makes that sound?
ALPHABET KNOWLEDGE INSTRUCTION: In this video, you will see two examples of brief, clear, explicit instruction in letter names and letter sounds, and how letters are shaped and formed. One teacher is using an interactive experience with an alphabet book and the other is using a hands-on activity called Fishing for Letters.
ALPHABET KNOWLEDGE INSTRUCTION: In this video, you will see two examples of brief, clear, explicit instruction in letter names and letter sounds, and how letters are shaped and formed. One teacher is using an interactive experience with an alphabet book and the other is using a hands-on activity called Fishing for Letters.
Resource-Savvas ~ 50 Fun Phonics Activities
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