Teaching ABCs should be simple and fun! It has been one of my greatest joys to teach my kids to read, and that started with the alphabet! I’m so thankful that I’ve had a bunch of simple games and activities to make it a fun and memorable experience for all of us.
When it comes to teaching ABCs to your children, don’t get all worked up! Keep it light, fun, and only spend a few minutes a day working on it (5-10 is surprisingly effective). If your child is especially interested, you can totally let them do ABC practice twice a day – but no matter what, keep it short! It’s amazing what kids will learn in 5-10 minute increments!
10 Activities for Teaching ABCs
These 10 activities are all you need for teaching the ABCs to your child – number 7 is my favorite!
1. Alphabet Matching Game Printable
This is a simple printable that is always a hit. Kids love matching! As they pick up a letter you can ask “do you know where ‘H’ is?” And practice making the correct sound too. Once they make a match, celebrate with some cheering, kisses, etc.!
Alphabet Matching Game Printable
2. 5-in-1 Alphabet Learning Game (Go Fish & Memory!)
Talk about multi-purpose! This printable game covers go-fish style letter recognition, letter sounds, and identifying the item name. It can also be played as a matching game (all cards on the table, sort and match) or as a memory game!
3. Mailing “Letters” ABC Teaching Game
It’s no secret that kids think the mail is fun! My kids want the junk mail so they can take the envelopes and play and pretend that it’s their very own.. that’s what makes this ABC teaching game so inviting – they get their very own mail and “stamps” to match!
Learning Letters: Mailing “Letters” Alphabet Game
4. Lemonade Letter Matching Game
This *adorable* lemonade letter matching game is for teaching uppercase & lowercase letters. Instead of matching an uppercase to an uppercase, children practice matching lowercase letters to their uppercase matches!
5. Slap Game Alphabet Practice
The slap game – because sometimes learning is best when you’re running around smacking stuff! I’ve yet to come across a kid who doesn’t enjoy learning their ABCs with the slap game.
The Slap Game: An Energetic Way to Learn!
6. Pop-a-Letter ABC Practice
Pop Its are FUN. They’re pretty trendy, but I am totally excited to teach my youngest her ABCs with the help of this alphabet Pop It! It’s going to be pretty simple “Can you pop the b-b-‘b’?” And she’s totally going to have a blast! Plus it provides us both with all the satisfaction of a perpetual piece of bubble wrap…
7. Tactile ABC Teaching (Hands-On Letters)
My absolute favorite ABC teaching activity!! At nap time, I use letters like the ones in this puzzle or even simple ones cut out of construction paper, and lay down next to my child and hold up one letter at a time. This activity is my favorite because it’s learning while snuggling!
Your child can can hold the letter or just look at it, but the goal is for them to identify it correctly. Early on they’ll get the letter wrong more often, and that’s okay. That’s a part of learning. It’s amazing when they start identifying them correctly! I started with only 3-4 new letters at a time and mixed in some of the previous letters each day.
8. Playdough Letter Mats
Once your child recognizes the letters, let’s help them learn how to form them! These simple printable playdough letter mats are perfect for starting kids on understanding what shapes make up each letter in their ABCs. Bonus fun if you use homemade no-cook playdough!
9. Trace Letters in the Sand
This is a classic Montessori activity! Don’t stress about handwriting with a pencil. It makes waaaaaay more sense to start your child off with a sand (or rice, or salt) tray for learning to write the ABCs with their finger!
Montessori Sand Tray Letters by Via-Montessori
10. Alphabetical Order Lacing Card
Once letter recognition is mastered, it’s fun to teach alphabetical order! Turn a paper plate into a fun lacing card for your child to practice A-B-C order. Even older kids enjoy the fine motor challenge of threading the string through the holes!
You might also enjoy:
- Classic Books for Early Readers
- 14 Rainy Day Toddler Activities
- Water Play for Preschoolers and Big Kids Too
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