Have 5 minutes to fill in your classroom? These 7 quick, fun letter recognition activities are perfect for your transition times. The letter recognition activities:
- provide essential review
- keep student’s attention
- offer additional letter exposure for your struggling readers
It’s important to include these in your daily routine because:
“some children may need only 10-20 exposures to a letter to recognize it automatically, other children may need 20 times that amount of exposure to over learn the letters to the point of automaticity” (Berninger, 2000).
Choose a few of these letter recognition activities each day, and you’ll be able to provide lots of additional exposures in a small amount of time!
7 Quick Letter Recognition Activities
- Alphabet Letter Deck. Use a deck of letter cards containing all the letters of the alphabet. Flip through them quickly, having students call out the letter name. Students can complete this letter recognition activity in 60 seconds or less. See how fast they can complete the task. Your students will love trying to beat their latest time! Here are the ones I use:
- Alphabet Pathway. Create a path on your classroom floor using tape or a rug. As students leave the classroom, have them walk the path as they say the letter name. Do this letter recognition activity for a quick movement break, too!
- Alphabet Chart. Display a large alphabet chart in your room. Point to the letters in random order as the students say the letter name. Students can then find them on their own alphabet chart.
- Letter Card Line Up. Show a letter card to each student before lining up. The student must say the letter name. If you’d like to differentiate this letter recognition activity based on students’ needs, then have some students give letter name, others the sound, and the most advanced can provide the word beginning with that sound.
- Sing the Alphabet Song. Remember the classic alphabet song we all learned as kids? Have your students sing it during transitions. Want to vary it up a bit? Click here to find 3 more creative ways to use the alphabet song to increase letter recognition.
- Alphabet Arc Center. Set up an alphabet arc center or make this a small group letter recognition activity. Students should be able to complete this task in 3-5 minutes. Not sure how to use an alphabet arc? Click here to get your free guide and alphabet arc.
- Play Find It. Place an alphabet strip on each student’s desk at the beginning of the year. Ask students to find different letters on the strip, “Find B.” You can make it more difficult by asking them to find a different uppercase and lowercase letter. For example, “Find uppercase R and lowercase z.” You can even allow students to call out the letters for the class to find.
If you’d like to try out the alphabet arc I use, CLICK HERE to grab yours for FREE.
REFERENCES:
Berninger, V.B. (2000, Nov.). Language based reading and writing intervention: Findings of the University of Washington Multi-Disciplinary Disability Center. paper presented at the meeting os the International Dyslexia Association, Washington, DC.
