Fastest time to say the alphabet

How To Teach Toddlers The Alphabet (9 Effective Ways)

It’s essential to know the alphabet, so toddlers/preschoolers can start recognizing letters and learning phonetics.

Trust me; I know first hand how challenging it can be! But I promise if you stick with it and work with your toddler every day, you will see progress!  Below you will see a video of my son working on his skills! 

#1.

Did you know that there are FOUR ways that people learn?  (Visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinesthetic)

When children are exposed to alphabet toys like puzzles, magnetic letters, or foam letters, it is an excellent opportunity to begin teaching them.

Children can look at the letters, hear you say the name of the letter, and physically touch them, which almost hits all of the ways that we learn best (reading and writing will come at a later date for these kiddos).

I have used a variety of different alphabet toys with my kids to help them learn their letters at such a young age.

A. Melissa and Doug See-Inside Alphabet Puzzle

I can honestly say that my son learned his ABC’s with this puzzle!

At the time this short video was taken, he was 16 months old. Below you will find a video of how you can play with this toy to help your toddler learn! 

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B. Melissa and Doug Alphabet Sound Puzzle

Do you have time to sit and play with your toddler all day?

Most likely, the answer is no, we all wish we could, but dishes need washing and laundry needs folded. This puzzle is fantastic because not only does it have the letters but it also makes the phonetic sound for each of the letters!

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They can still be learning even when you are not right next to them!

It’s suitable for toddlers and preschoolers so they can start connecting the sounds that each letter makes.

C. Sesame Street Elmo’s On the Go Letters

Who doesn’t love Elmo?

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This alphabet toy has the letters that children can manipulate and also includes some of their favorite Sesame Street characters inside once they lift the letter!

*TIP*  It is a little harder for younger ones to try to get the letters in and out, so you may need to be there to help them with this toy until they can pull them out themselves. 

D. LeapFrog Fridge Phonics Magnetic Letter Set

My husband collects magnets from everywhere we travel, and our kids can’t get enough of pulling them off of the refrigerator!

That’s why I knew this toy was going to be a hit for both my kids!

These magnets can stick to the refrigerator, which is fun and engaging for toddlers. It comes with a magnetic bus that kids can press the letter into, and it tells them what letter it is and the sound it makes.  

It also says words that begin with each letter and uses the word in a sentence, which is great for preschoolers or kindergartners, which makes this toy worthwhile since it can be used for a couple of years! 

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E. Leapfrog My Own LeapTop

My FAVORITE on the go toy! I had to get two because both my kids wanted their own. 

I keep both of them in the car because it’s a fun toy for them to play with for a few minutes while we are in the car, and they get to be learning at the same time! 

There are four functions on the computer for kids to interact with (letters, messages, animal games, and music). You can also personalize the computer by adding your child’s name in it! 

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#2. Repetition is Key!

Remember that time when you told your toddler something once, and they remembered it correctly, and you never had to say it to them again?

Yeah, me neither.

When you are trying to teach anyone something new, especially toddlers, repeating the information is crucial. Even though my son knows the alphabet, I still spend at least 10 minutes a day going over it with him, so he remembers the information.

It is engaging for your kids also to present the alphabet in different ways, so they don’t get bored with the same toy, which I will explain in the next section.

#3. Alphabet Learning Activities

There are so many creative and fun ways to help a child learn the alphabet! 

Does your child love blocks? Try writing the letters of the alphabet on the Mega Bloks to get them interested in learning them. Use a dry-erase marker, and it comes right off with a baby wipe! 

Does the child enjoy painting?  Paint letters on a piece of paper and ask the child which letter is which.  

Does the child like to play in the bathtub? Get foam letters that are made to go in the tub and review the letters when it’s bath time!

No matter what the child enjoys, you can use their interests as an opportunity to help them learn. 

In the meantime, here are THREE easy activities you can use today!

I think it’s easiest to do activities with supplies that you already have at home!

Write down an upper/lower case letter on each post-it note. Mix up the letters and ask your child to find a letter. Or, if they are really excited about pulling the post-it notes off the wall, when they pull them off, ask them what letter they have in their hands!

B. Do-A-Dot Painters

Who doesn’t love paint that doesn’t cause a mess?

Do-A-Dot Painters are so much fun, and the clean-up is so much easier than traditional painting.

All you need to do this activity is Do-A-Dot Painters and my FREE Do-A-Dot Letters

How to help your kids learn with this activity:

1.  For early learners, identify the letter to them. Have them try to look around the worksheet to see if they can see at least one or two matches to the letter you are working on. If they are struggling to use the Do-A-Dot painter on their own, try to help them by having them hold your hand while you both do it!

2. Older children should try to do this activity on their own. Ask them what letter it is that you are focusing on and have them try to use the Do-A-Dot painters on their own to see how many they can match correctly.

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C. Sand Letter Search

This activity was a hit! Both kids continued to do this activity for a half-hour after they found the first round of letters!

You need kinetic sand and magnetic letters to do this activity.

• The link for magnetic letters above has uppercase, lowercase, and numbers in the container, which I thought was the best deal because you could do this activity for each of these.

Ask your kids to search through the container of sand to find letters. They will love it because the sand feels SO cool! Once they find a letter, they can find it on the below worksheet that I created for you.

#4. Begin With Uppercase Letters

I have noticed that almost all alphabet toys, learning videos, and books use uppercase letters.

Because of this, starting with uppercase letters is the best way to teach your child the alphabet!

Make sure before moving onto lower case letters that your child knows each uppercase letter. I promise it’ll make it easier for them to learn!

We have these uppercase and lowercase learning locks that are so much fun to play with and work on fine motor skills!

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It can be confusing for kids to hear that a lowercase letter is the same as an uppercase letter, especially if they look nothing alike. It’s essential to help them with this activity, so you can explain that they are the same letter!

#5. Read Letter Books

Each night, we have a routine to at least read 2-3 books with our kids before bedtime.

I don’t know about you, but I feel like each time I am at the pediatrician, they always ask me if I am reading to my kids. That shows me it’s pretty important!

There are SO MANY books to choose from out there that focus on the alphabet and letter recognition. It’s challenging to make a choice!

A. My Best Ever: ABC Alphabet Book

B. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

C. LMNO Peas

D. Sesame Street: Elmo’s Word Book

• This book is my favorite! It has flaps that kids can pick up to see pictures underneath, so it’s interactive, which makes it more memorable for them.

#6. Watch Educational Videos

Yes, I know you think I’m crazy for recommending screentime for toddlers!

We try to limit the amount of screen time that we have at our house.

But there are times when I have to change the laundry or clean up the giant mess created in the kitchen from painting. Utilizing an educational video for these times can be extremely helpful, and I don’t feel that guilty.

The current favorites at our house are Super Simple Songs, Bob the Train, or Little Baby Bum. These songs/shows are catchy, and they help aid in the learning process.

I’m not saying I allow my kids to watch hours of TV each day, but I do let them watch some.

#7. Focus On A Few Letters

Wow, I messed this step up when I was first teaching my kids the alphabet!

I started out showing them all the letters of the alphabet and trying to tell them all the letters at one time. I was wrong!

After realizing they weren’t picking up what I was trying to teach them, I tried focusing on only 2-3 letters a day.

This way, it wasn’t so overwhelming.

If you use one of the alphabet toys that I mentioned above or you have your own that works for you, start by showing them A, B, and C.

For a few days, go over just those letters then add two more to that list. Always go over the letters you began with as well to keep that repetition going!

#8. Don’t Overdo It

Have you ever tried to sit down and teach your toddler something, and all they want to do is play with other toys? 

This happens to all of us! Toddlers don’t have a very long attention span. There are times throughout the day that are better than others to try to teach them.

There will be times I attempt to work with both my son and daughter, and I can tell they are not interested whatsoever.

If you make them learn when they are not ready, they will not be eager to do it the next time. It’s better to wait until your kids are prepared to concentrate for a few minutes so you can get the most out of that time.

#9. Don’t Compare Your Child To Others.

Do you have friends on social media that brag about how their children are geniuses?

So many parents use social media as a place where they can brag how well their kids are doing at school and how smart they are!

It’s easy to compare what your child is doing with other children their age.

Every child has a unique learning process, and they will learn the information when they are ready!

There is no need to get frustrated or worried that the child is behind if they don’t know their alphabet at 16 months.

Take your time when you are teaching your child and stay positive with them! If you show them that you are frustrated, they will see your frustration and maybe not be as interested in learning.

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

My most important tips for teaching the alphabet are repetition and don’t get frustrated! If you follow these 9 ways to teach your child the alphabet, you are off to a great start on your child’s education!

I would love to help you on your journey to teaching your child the alphabet!

If you have any great ideas that you would like to share that helped you teach the letters of the alphabet to your child, please share them with us!

5 Easy ways to teach the alphabet to preschoolers | Daycare Blog

Teaching children the alphabet is foundational to learning how to read. Before children can put together sounds or draw together lines that make words, they need to know what they are. If you’ve never taught the alphabet before, the concept may sound abstract: how do you teach something that comes so naturally to you? Teaching letters can be really fun and simple. In this article, we’ll give you easy ways to teach the alphabet to preschoolers.

1) Sing alphabet songs

Obviously, we all know the English-language, “A-B-C-D, E-F-G,” song. That’s a great place to start. However, there are more alphabet songs, which can add variety to your tunes, and help kids learn the alphabet in different ways.

This article lists a whole bunch of alphabet songs to try. And, if you saw our article on YouTube channels for toddlers and preschoolers, you can find letter-related songs there too. The visuals in videos can show objects that start with each letter, and sometimes the songs also pronounce sounds too.

One important note brought up by this early childhood educator, is that kids should go from singing the song, to being able to say and point out the letters without a tune. So don’t stop at singing!

2) Play letter matching games

Letter matching games are easy to set up. You can have a poster board with the alphabet printed on it in large letters. Have separate letter magnets or paper letters cut out at the same size as the print letters. Ask the preschoolers to match their cut outs to the letters on the chart. Where does “A” go? Place the letter “A” cut out on top of the printed “A” on the poster board. Get them to practice doing this with all the other letters.

As the early childhood educator mentioned above noted, you can also have an alphabet ‘arc,’ where one end of a half-circle shows the letter “A”, and the other end the letter “Z”. In between you can have other letters in the alphabet shown, but not all of them. Ask the preschoolers to put down their block letters in the right sequence, using the pre-filled in letters as clues.

3) Open a new ‘alphabet box’ each week

You may have seen us post on Facebook that a certain week is brought to you by a letter we’re covering. It may be “C,” and you’ll see photos of us painting the letter C at daycare, or learning about animals that start with the letter “C.” Weekly letter themes are common in preschools.

You can take your weekly letter curriculum a step further by creating a box that children can open to discover objects that relate to that letter.

For example, on the week covering the letter “A,” your preschoolers can open (or even unlock) a box that contains an apple, a toy airplane, a toy alligator, an acorn, an arrow (a safe one!), and so on. In fact, don’t tell the children right away what letter the box of ‘treasures’ represents. Ask them if they can guess the letter they’ll cover that week by observing the objects in the box alone. This can be a fun and whimsical way to have your children get excited about the week ahead, and work together to come up with an answer.

3) Use interdisciplinary learning with each letter, to strengthen letter associations

Since repeating a letter over and over again can get boring, you can mix it up a little by bringing in related lessons. You can start with a week’s letter as your core subject. Then, throughout the day, teach interdisciplinary subjects that still relate.

For example, if you are on the letter “R,” you can learn about the colour “red” too, since it starts with “R.” Ask the children, ‘what things are red?’ If you are on the letter “A,” you can learn about apples. We’ve done this before, where we teach children about the types of apples there are, as well as explain that seeds are inside an apple, and so on.

This blogger lists a whole bunch of crafts you can you incorporate into your letter learning. For example, you can make holes with a hole punch for the letter “H.” This can then lead into learning about the circle shape. You get the idea…

4) If you use flashcards to teach the alphabet, use logical ones

Flashcards are a great memorization tool, and the alphabet is all about memorizing. However, this teacher warns that sometimes, pre-made flashcards can get really confusing. If you are teaching the letter “D” and there is an image of something that simply uses the sound of “D” somewhere in the word, but doesn’t start with “D”… well you can quickly see how even adults would be confused by that.

Remember, at this stage, you’re not teaching phonetics or complex vocabulary and pronunciation. First, children need to recognize and know the alphabet. Use the simplest flash cards, with the simplest pictures of the objects and animals that preschoolers can recognize.

That said, sometimes you want to use lowercase and uppercase letters in your flashcards…and yes, that can be confusing for the very young learners, especially when the upper and lowercase look so different, but are called the same thing. But if you’re using a set of magnets, for example, you can just use their uppercase versions, that’s ok (they may only come in that form). For very early learners, you can start really basic. Just don’t forget to start showing them the lowercase and uppercase letters together at some point in their alphabet learning journey.

5) Eat foods shaped like letters to help preschoolers learn their alphabet

Speaking of interdisciplinary alphabet learning, why not do a baking session with the kids at preschool? They can use letter-shaped cookie cutters to make a fun and yummy snack. Meanwhile, there is a host of lessons you can teach with the baking activity. Chemistry, cooking, nutrition…the list goes on.

If you want the easy route, try commercially-sold letter-shaped biscuits. IKEA has a version of these. Ask your toddler or preschooler to name the alphabet letter they’re about to eat. Eating it can be the reward for getting it right!

And of course, there is alphabet soup, or noodles shaped like letters. You can make mealtime fun, and educational, with these edible alphabet manipulatives.

So there you have it, 5 easy ways to teach the alphabet to preschoolers. They may even be fun for you, too! It is super cute to hear little ones pronounce letters, and guess what object goes with each letter. When your preschoolers are learning the alphabet, be sure to take every teachable opportunity you can to encourage them to recognize letters in the world around them. If you’re on a field trip, ask the children if they can spot their letter-of-the-week on a street or building sign. If you’re reading a book, see if they can spot the letters you’re reading to them. Keep pushing letter recognition throughout the day, so the lessons can really sink into their memory.

See more on our blog:

• How to teach digraphs to preschool children (6 ways)
• What is the best way to teach word recognition to early childhood readers?
• Why is literacy crucial in the early years? How can parents and preschools help with reading skills?
• How to teach toddlers and preschoolers to count, and learn their numbers
• Ideas for teaching shapes in preschool and daycare

When the time comes to send the baby to school, his life enters a completely new phase, with which carelessness ends and everything has to be answered in an adult way. But how the child will perceive the changes that have come: with joy or fear, depends on the mood that parents who have their own idea of ​​​​education can provide. Here it is very important not to let the novice student get confused, drown in the still unfamiliar sea of ​​classwork, homework and school requirements. The first step to solving the problems that have arisen will be a preliminary study of the alphabet. But how to do it right, so as not to completely discourage the desire to learn?

In this case, there are no recommendations that are equally effective for all cases of life. This requires an individual approach when you have to pay attention to the developmental features of each individual child. There are times when a baby is ahead of his peers in terms of mental development, and therefore masters the alphabet at 3 years old, or even earlier. If some kids cope with the task easily and quickly, then others may not be ready for the difficulties of learning. Only practice will help answer such questions.

Irrespective of the age at which education starts, there are a number of rules that must be observed:

1. study with pleasure;
2. activities that bring joy and good mood;
3. regularity of training.

Given the age of the baby, one can hardly count on a serious attitude to the process of learning the alphabet. You can’t combine a cheerful mood and joy with study if you rely on boring sitting at the ABC. Only a game can save the case, into which it is necessary to transform the lessons leading to the interest of the preschooler. In this case, it is important to touch on exactly the topic that is most interesting to a particular kid and in many ways resembles his hobby. In this task, there can be no restrictions on the imagination shown by parents who know all the nuances of the behavior and interests of their children.

Learning the alphabet through the game "Cards"

This approach to learning the alphabet will please not only simple, but also effective. The whole point of this method lies in the love of the kids for bright patterns that complement the letters and words placed on cards with an intricate and colorful design. Through the attractiveness of the picture, the preschooler shows the wonders of visual memory, along with which memorization by ear comes into play. It is this tandem that allows us to achieve the expected results.

As for buying these same cards, you can find them in any bookstore or outlet specializing in goods for children. If you wish and have some skills, you can start making cards with the alphabet on your own, or even with the participation of a child.

It can also be helpful when using the alphabet to use toys that a particular child especially likes. In this case, it is necessary to teach the child to substitute cards with letters for toys, focusing on their names. To arouse the increased interest of the baby, do not be afraid to diversify such activities.

A way of learning with the help of the alphabet

Due to the variety of equivalent variants of the same alphabet, you can always choose the analogue that is most suitable for a young individual. Is your child addicted to music? On sale there are a lot of offers with a musical bias, the diversity of which lies in the difference in the set of components of the corresponding direction. With an increased interest of your descendant in automotive or some other topic, you will also not have to experience special difficulties with searches.

In addition to preventing boredom, parents should avoid being too strict and serious. It would be more correct to play along with your child, which gives him the opportunity not only to feel comfortable, but also to see in the parent not a strict teacher, but his best friend. In order to avoid fatigue, adults need to learn the art of alternating study and rest. Do not want to tightly connect training with hatred for it? Do not force your children to study against their will.

Educational interest materials

There are many different ways to add interest to learning the alphabet. You just need to be ready to discard the hardened old methods and give free rein to the fantasy that diversifies the educational process. For example: the child will definitely like the composition of poems and songs. Or maybe he will be interested in playing all kinds of scenes?

Good results will also bring the game with the use of foreign objects. For example: the search for a particular thing, the name of which begins with the letter being studied. The external similarity of objects with the outlines of individual letters can also work on learning the alphabet.

Regardless of the effectiveness of the methods used or games that help achieve the desired results, the regularity of classes is put in the first place. The lack of consistency in lesson planning inevitably leads to a loss of interest and forgetting the wisdom already mastered.

10 tips to use when learning the alphabet

Skills such as reading and writing are used daily by most adults without thinking. But once each of us got acquainted with the wonderful world with a child of 5 years old and is it worth starting learning the alphabet at an earlier age?

When is it time to get acquainted with letters?

The topic of early development is incredibly popular these days. Many supporters of learning from the cradle advise introducing babies to the alphabet no later than the first birthday. Indeed, almost all children at an early age are real geniuses. With regular classes, by the age of 2, a child can be taught a lot. But remember that without regular repetition of the material covered, the baby will soon forget it.

At what age is it most useful to learn letters? The best option is to start studying at about 4-5 years old. It is at this age that the baby has a rich vocabulary and knows a lot about the world around him. After learning the alphabet with him, you can move on to the basics of reading and writing. Regularly using the acquired knowledge and deepening it, the child will definitely not forget the letters.

Secrets of successful learning of the alphabet

Any activities with a preschooler are productive only if the student is interested. Before introducing the baby to the world of letters, he should be interested in this topic. Try to read to your child more often. Talk about how, having learned the alphabet, he will be able to read any book or even his father's newspaper. It is also useful to remind from time to time that you can read not only exciting stories, but also useful encyclopedias. And most importantly - inspire the child by personal example. Almost always in families where adults read books, kids learn to write and read with great pleasure.

How to learn the alphabet with a 5 year old, you ask? Start with games that introduce letters. Do not try to organize classes like school lessons, most likely the child will be bored. Teachers also do not recommend forcing kids. If learning becomes a duty, interest in it is unlikely to continue.

Creating the right learning environment

It is useful to use to facilitate the process of assimilation of new information Add some letters to the interior of your own apartment and children's room. You should not turn the whole house into one continuous alphabet, the baby can get tired of an overabundance of information. Letter puzzle rug, decorative pillows with the name of the child, large clear inscriptions in the interior in moderation are incredibly good. Watching such details every day, the baby will begin to show interest in them on his own. And this is a great opportunity for parents to talk about the letters and name each of them.

Do you know the correct pronunciation of the Russian alphabet for children? Many modern experts advise learning not the names of letters, but sounds. This is necessary so that later it will be easier to teach the child to read. The simplest are vowels, consisting of one sound. And the most difficult are hissing consonants and vowels, consisting of two sounds. Don't try to learn the whole alphabet at once. It is much more productive to master 4-6 letters, and then move on to the next group.

Fast memory associations

Toddlers pay attention to objects and images in bright colors that they think are attractive. It is believed that the letters of the alphabet for children should be written in red. You can make them stylized, draw eyes or turn them into real animals. Learning such an alphabet will be much more interesting than the usual one.

One of the classic teaching aids for preschool children is letters with pictures. The task of parents, when using it, is to explain that the letter character denotes the first sound of the word depicted graphically. The alphabet in pictures should be in every kid who is just getting acquainted with the world of letters. Pick up an alphabet book in a similar design, cubes or cards. If desired, such a manual can be made by hand. Cut out cards of suitable size from thick cardboard and draw or paste letters and pictures on them.

Writing letters

The easiest way to help your child repeat and remember letters is to ask them to write them. At the beginning of the lesson, invite the child to repeat what the mother draws. As you memorize the letters, ask them to reproduce them from memory. You can draw with colored pencils, felt-tip pens or paints. Encourage your child to use chalk to write letters on a special board or outdoors. A fun alphabet can be drawn with special paints in the bathroom on the tiles while swimming. On a walk, offer to write with a twig in the snow or sand.

Despite their simplicity, these activities are incredibly effective. Alternate materials and techniques for writing letters, and then your baby will be happy to study every day.

Educational creativity

Do you know that letters can not only be written? Try to make them using various techniques: sculpt from plasticine, cut out from paper. How to learn the alphabet with a child 5 years old yet? One of the most enjoyable and effective ways is to invite the baby to make his own alphabet. The smallest can simply color in large printed or drawn letters.

Another kind of creativity, loved by all children without exception, is appliqué. Invite your child to stick the letters cut out of colored paper on the background sheet or collect them from separate strips. You can also draw the desired shape on the base and glue it with small multi-colored pieces of paper.

Experiment and create with different techniques. Make all the letters, and hang the resulting cheerful alphabet in a conspicuous place and repeat from time to time.

Repetition is the mother of learning

No less effective than directed lessons is the repetition of the material covered between times. Try to read fairy tales to your child every day. Draw your child's attention to the highlighted capital letters and name them. Many children enjoy looking at magazines and catalogs. Offer to look for the most if desired, they can even be cut out and then used for applications or composing words. Find poems and songs about the alphabet and learn them with your baby. You can also come up with fairy tales together, the main characters of which will be letters. It is easy to repeat the alphabet while walking or shopping. We see bright signs and advertising posters at every step. Read them together or name individual letters.

Useful alphabet learning aids

Today you can find many aids and themed toys for teaching alphabets to kids. Which of them to choose? Be sure to get the alphabet in pictures - it can be cubes, cards or a book. It is important that all letters are arranged in the correct sequence and that there is a thematic drawing next to each of them.

Many moms love the interactive ABC posters. Such an educational toy is hung on the wall. The poster is convenient in that the baby can work with him at any time of his own free will. Interactive alphabets today can not only name letters when pressed, but usually have additional functions. For example, learning rhymes and tongue twisters. Traditional cubes or sets of magnets will also be useful when studying letters.

Now you know how to learn the alphabet with a 5-year-old child, we wish you productive learning!

Modern parents sometimes go to extremes in matters of development and education of the child. Some are engaged with the baby literally from the cradle, others believe that you need to leave the child alone and not deprive him of a happy and carefree childhood. But if you are thinking not only about how to teach a child the alphabet, but also about whether it is necessary to do this, we will answer unequivocally: it is necessary. After all, letters are all around us. And if you unobtrusively introduce your son or daughter to them from an early age, the child will know that this is such and such a letter as easily as knowing that this is a dog, this is a cat, and this is a dove.

In addition, some children themselves are interested in letters, and parents have no choice but to teach the child the alphabet as early as 2-3 years old. Remember the main rule: unobtrusiveness.

Why teach a child the alphabet

Of course, a 4-5 year old toddler will learn all the letters much faster than a two or three year old kid who quickly loses interest in classes and quickly forgets everything. This leads parents to think about the inappropriateness of such work. But with early learning, letters will come naturally into your child's life.

Remember that early development is not about praising your baby on the playground in front of other mothers. Some babies at the age of one and a half years know all the letters, by the age of two they begin to merge them into syllables, and by three they safely forget about this merger. There is simply no need for a two-year-old to read. Early acquaintance with the alphabet does not make children geniuses, but only contributes to the development of their natural abilities, being at the same time a useful and exciting way for children to spend time together with their parents.

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How to teach the alphabet to a child 1-3 years old

There are parents who guide the development of children with the motto "it's never too early to learn." They hang letters drawn on an A4 sheet in a baby's room up to a year old. There should be only one letter per sheet. When the child is awake, he is brought to the letters and called them. From time to time, you should change the location of the letters on the wall and replace one letter with another.

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For a child over one year old, you can buy a puzzle mat with letters, and after two years - a magnetic alphabet (just make sure that the magnets do not fall out of the letters - the child may accidentally swallow them).

Pay attention to the fact that the child needs to be taught sounds, not letters. That is, pronounce H, not EN, M, not EM. That is why electronic aids should be abandoned, in which the child clicks on the image, hears the letter and the word that begins with it, and sometimes also a song or tongue twister. The child is unlikely to understand why a football player is drawn under the letter EF, and cheese is drawn under the letter Y. It will be much easier for him if this letter is simply called F and Y.

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Delicious letters

You can make letters out of fruits or bake letters in the shape of letters. Offer such an alphabet to a child as early as 1.5-2 years old. After all, the little one explores the environment by touch and taste. Why not take advantage of this. An ordinary meal can be turned into a fun activity. It is better to start with vowels, because they are easier to sing. Fold the alphabet from straws, crackers, marmalades, green sprigs.

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Hand-made letters Hand-made

Make letters from plasticine or salt dough, cut them out of colored paper. You can attach legs to the letters, and they will visit each other. You can draw a letter on a piece of paper and ask your child to color it in. And you can “kill two birds with one stone” in one lesson. Having drawn any letter on A4 sheet, cut out many identical geometric shapes, for example, triangles. Having sealed the large letter A inside with small triangles, the child will remember both the letter and the figure.

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Letters-relatives and friends

An original way to teach a child the alphabet is to associate letters with photographs of relatives and friends. M - mom, P - dad, D - grandfather, V - Vova, I - Irina, etc. The game is exciting, the photo collection can be constantly replenished, as well as supplemented with a collection of drawings. For example, after going to the zoo, a tiger may appear next to the letter T, and a monkey may appear next to the letter O. You can take pictures and draw buses, cars, trees, a playground. Everything that surrounds the child can be reflected in your home alphabet.

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How to teach the alphabet to a child over 4 years old

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Sandbox at home

In children of this age, fine motor skills are already better developed, so children can be offered to put letters from twigs, constructor, pebbles and cereals. Pour various cereals into a large tray, draw a letter on a piece of cardboard and coat it with glue. Let the baby sprinkle small cereals on top - buckwheat, rice, corn. This will develop both fine motor skills and imagination.

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Board games with letters

Pay attention to the loto and dice with letters: the simpler the image of the letter, the better. After all, drawings can come across unfamiliar, which will only confuse the baby. By the way, the cubes can be made together with the child from colored cardboard. Repeat the sound of the letters during the game. On sale you can find dominoes with the alphabet and other rpg games with letters.

You will know that your baby has learned all the letters when he confidently shows them everywhere, and not in one alphabet. These are signs on shops, the route of transport, advertising on TV. Then you can begin to teach the child to merge letters into syllables. But this is a topic for a separate discussion.

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Author's methods for teaching children letters

There are many methods to help parents. Choose the one that is closer to you and the child. Consider the most popular of them.

Elena Bakhtina's method is based on associations. The main learning tool is the ABC book for toddlers from two to five. On each page - one letter and explanations for parents in small print. In addition, there are pages with the same letters that need to be cut out and pasted onto thick cardboard. It turns out that you can play with letters. They become friends. The letter G has a beak and red paws, the letter Z has soft fluffy bunny ears, the D is made in the form of a house, and the letter I is covered in sweets (what kid doesn’t love sweets?).

Nikolai Zaitsev's method involves teaching not letters, but warehouses right away, although there are letters here too. The main set is cubes (Zaitsev's cubes), which parents must glue on their own, filling them with metal and wooden elements strictly according to the instructions, as well as tables with warehouses that will occupy half the wall. But the child will see all the warehouses in the system, and the content, size and color of the cubes will help him distinguish between deaf and voiced, soft and hard warehouses.

Having taught the child the alphabet and teaching him to read, parents will only have to support their child's interest in reading by acquiring fascinating children's literature. Then he will love books no less than cartoons. And a child who has read a couple of hundred books before school is noticeably ahead of his non-reading peers in development. In the future, the baby will be provided with leading places everywhere - at school, gymnasium, university. After all, reading is the foundation of any learning.

To this day, disputes about the benefits and harms of early education for children do not stop. Some parents begin to teach the baby letters and numbers even before the baby speaks coherently. Others completely rely on children's educational institutions and believe that it is not necessary to deprive a child of childhood. Meanwhile, a child can learn a lot easily and with interest, if you approach the teaching of a preschooler creatively and with knowledge of the characteristics of the development of children of this age.

When is the best time to start learning letters

Some time ago the idea of ​​early childhood development was very popular. Teachers developed various methods of early learning, many experts stated that the earlier a child begins to purposefully teach, the better, the more he can achieve.

As time went on, this statement began to be questioned more and more. Long-term observations have shown that neither early genius nor earlier training guarantees higher achievements in the future. On the contrary, a significant part of the children who began to be taught early and who showed great promise did not live up to these hopes. Parts of the brain in babies are formed gradually, and attempts to force events can lead to such unpleasant consequences as logoneuroses, tics, or impaired coordination. Therefore, neuropsychologists advise starting a child's acquaintance with letters and numbers at the age of 4-5 years.

Parents should be aware that learning to read begins much earlier than learning the alphabet. When parents talk to the baby, encourage the child to speak correctly, read books to him and teach him poetry, they thereby develop speech and lay an interest in reading and a desire to be able to read.

This is a very important, so to speak, "pre-letter" period. It begins from the moment when the child learns onomatopoeia and repeats the simplest sound combinations after the adult: the cow says "mu-mu", the dog - "woof-woof", the mouse - "wee-wee-wee". The repetition of sounds and syllables develops the phonemic hearing of the child, without which it is impossible to learn to read in the future.

Somewhat later, the child repeats simple nursery rhymes after the adult and retells small fairy tales. During this period, it is especially important to encourage and maintain a child's interest in reading and storytelling. It is also important to develop graphic skills in the baby, because learning letters implies that the child will draw them right away.

The main activity of a preschool child is play. It is with the help of the game that the preschooler learns the world and learns. Therefore, all preschool education should be carried out in an entertaining way. The child very quickly remembers what is entertaining and interesting.

So, it is better to start learning letters with a child from the age of 4 - 4.5 years, and before that, fully go through the pre-letter period: talk a lot with the baby, read to him, encourage him to tell stories himself, retell or compose fairy tales on his own.

How to learn letters with a child

If the child was fully engaged in the "pre-letter" period, then by the age of 4-4.5 he already wants to learn to read. You can increase the motivation to learn to read with the help of fairy tales, cartoons and poems. For example, read the following lines to a child:

How good it is to be able to read!
No need to pester your mother,
No need to shake your grandmother:
“Read, please! Read!"
No need to beg your sister:
"Well, read another page!"
Do not call,
No need to wait, but you can take
And read.

(V. Berestov)

And then one day a colorful poster with letters appears on the wall in the nursery. Now you can buy "talking" posters for learning the alphabet. With such a poster, the child can study on his own, because it is enough to touch one or another letter and the magic poster will name it and pronounce the corresponding word.

Begin to acquaint your child with letters from vowels. These letters in all alphabets, including magnetic ones, are made in red. Of course, we will not tell the child that there are vowels and consonants in the alphabet. We tell the kid that we will introduce him to magic letters, each of which has its own song. We show the child a letter, call it and sing the sound together with the baby. After the child has mastered the vowels, you can move on to the consonants. There is one small but very important secret here. When showing a letter to a child, we pronounce the sound, not the name of the letter. That is, "b", not "be"; "v", not "ve" and so on. This is necessary so that the baby does not get confused when it comes to reading syllables.

You need to master the letters gradually, three or four in a few days. We show the letters to the child, and then we show creativity: we sculpt the letters from plasticine and dough (then we bake them in the oven, sprinkle with powdered sugar and eat tea with pleasure), draw the letters while bathing on the tile in the bathroom with special paints, spread them with peas or beans (at the same time and fine motor skills will be trained). For teaching young children, it is very important to use all sensory channels, then it will be more interesting and memorization is faster and more reliable.

It is convenient to use the magnetic alphabet for various educational games. To learn the letters, you will need two or three sets. First, the letters can be viewed, touched, playing the game "What does the letter look like?". Then you can play with the letters of the magnetic alphabet like this: the child closes his eyes, the adult puts a letter in his hand, and the baby needs to determine by touch what kind of letter it is. Then the task can be complicated: you need not only to find out what kind of letter you have in your hand, but also to name the word that begins with this letter. It will be much more fun to play if there are three or four players. You can also play with magnetic letters like this: report that the letters “a”, “o” and “y” are hidden in the room, for example, and ask the child to look for them. Again, it is more interesting to play such a game in a company.

On the Internet you can find good educational videos with your favorite children's characters that teach letters (for example, "Luntik learns letters", "Aunt Owl's lessons") and show them to your child.

It's best to start reading syllables as soon as you start learning consonants. For example, we got acquainted with the letter "p". Further, we say that this letter itself cannot sing, it can only sing a song together with magical red letters (vowels). Then we show the child the cards and read the syllables “pa”, “po”, “pu” together. Immediately after the syllables, you can show the child simple three-letter words and start reading them: “poppy”, “juice”, “catfish”, “cap”. To work with syllables and simple words, you can make cards, as well as use the magnetic alphabet.

We use didactic games to reinforce our skills. They are sold online and in physical stores. And you can make such games yourself. For example, to consolidate the skill of reading simple words, you need to prepare cards with words and cards with their corresponding pictures (pictures can be found in magazines or on the Internet), cards with words and pictures should be placed face down on the table. Each player turns over a word card and a picture card. If they match, the player takes the cards for himself.

Learning the alphabet should be combined with drawing the letters that you and your child are learning. You can write letters on sand, snow or jam on porridge (using a confectionery syringe). Letters can be colored and, finally, learn to write them in special copybooks for preschoolers.

Another very interesting idea: as you learn the alphabet, create your own alphabet book with your child. To do this, you need a thick album with dense sheets on a spring. In the album, the child can color the letters that he masters, paste pictures and photographs there. Such creativity will give the kid a lot of pleasure and then he himself will be happy to deal with his alphabet.

The final step in teaching a child to letters can be the acquisition of a children's computer with games and quizzes like the "speaking alphabet". It is better to go to the store for such a purchase with the child, having discussed the future purchase in advance. Let the kid take part in choosing his first computer, because for him it is very serious.

Teaching a child letters can turn into an exciting adventure if parents get creative with this task. Then, in addition to the fact that the letters will be learned, and the first steps towards reading have been taken, you will get one more, no less, and maybe even more important result - the kid will come to the conclusion that learning is very cool and interesting!

Good afternoon, dear parents! How often we, wanting to give our children all the best, consider it our duty to instill a love of reading from the very cradle. The idea is good, but you should not escalate the situation around it and turn it into a "fad". It is more important to turn reading into a pleasant pastime. And for this, let's find out how to teach a child the alphabet easily and naturally?

It makes sense to start learning the alphabet when the child is interested in himself or needs to be prepared for school. This should not be dictated by the personal ambitions of the parents: “My Petya is 2 years old, and he already knows the alphabet!”

How old do you have to be to learn letters? “At 3-4 years old, a child should not memorize letters,” says Maryana Bezrukikh, director of the Institute of Developmental Physiology of the Russian Academy of Education. “At this age, the structures responsible for distinguishing between letters have not yet been formed in the brain.” At best, it will only work out a conditioned reflex.

If parents do not rush the natural course of events, give at each stage what is needed at the moment, then interest in reading will be a harmonious continuation of its development. The main way of knowing the world for a preschooler is a game, so classes should be held in a fun way, and not in the form of an educational process.

On the contrary, attempts to force events backfire. They develop tics, logoneuroses, and incoordination. You have probably heard about Doman cards and other early development methods. Experience shows that early learning does not guarantee high performance in the future. By the age of 5-6, sometimes by 4, children themselves are interested in signs and inscriptions on the street, which is a sign of the physiological maturity of the brain, its readiness to perceive this information.

Reading first

It is important for parents to remember that learning to read begins before memorizing the alphabet. It is important to lay interest so that the baby wants to learn to read. To do this, we talk a lot with him, learn nursery rhymes, broaden our horizons.

At the first stage, when “woof-woof”, “mu-mu”, the foundations of his phonemic hearing are laid. Then he repeats the rhymes and retells the tales.

We start learning letters from vowels. Then you can move on to consonants, but do not forget about an important rule: we learn sounds, not names. As soon as you learned the vowels and proceeded to the consonants, start learning the syllables. We explain to the baby that the letter “k” cannot sing, but only with friends - vowels: “ka”, “ko”, “ku”. Then we add another one and begin to read simple words - “cat”, “juice”, “kar”.

7 ways to learn the alphabet

Electronic poster "Speaking alphabet"

As soon as the baby touches the letter, he will pronounce it. There is one secret here. To hear the sound, click not on the letter, but on the button number. For example, to hear "K", presses the number "12". The magic poster will also sing a song and recite poems.

Fridge magnets

Purchase several magnetic alphabet sets. Start learning with the most important word for the baby - his name. If the name is Timothy, at first he can only pay attention to "T". After that, he can move on to other words that are important to him, like “mother”, “dad”, the names of brothers and sisters. There is no need to rush to master the letters, 3-4 in a few days is enough.

Russian alphabet puzzle mat

It will become a pleasant playground, it is soft to crawl and fall on it. Due to the thermal insulation properties of the material, the baby will be warm and comfortable on it, regardless of the season.

Treats

What child doesn't like cookies sometimes? Your baby can learn while he eats. Bake a batch of letter shaped cookies using the alphabet cutters and your favorite recipe. It can help mix the ingredients and apply the frosting to the treat.

Discuss the alphabet while you bake: “We put butter in the cookies, Anja. What letter does oil begin with? Make "P" cookies for dad, "M" for mom, and for each relative's name. Don't forget about your budding little baker!

Online training

On the Internet you can find many educational videos for learning the alphabet with cartoon characters, such as "Luntik learns letters", "Funny alphabet for children" or "ABC for kids".

Spoken alphabet application

It can be downloaded from the Google Play Market or from the App Store. An interactive way to learn letters, where each letter is represented by a cheerful plasticine-style animal. Only 6 games aimed at developing memory and reading skills.

Children's learning computer

It will help you learn not only the alphabet, but also contains many other educational games. Their screens are black and white and small in size, so they are safer for babies.

Don't worry too early about whether your little one can read. Better show him how many interesting things there are in books, stories, songs and ditties. Discuss the fairy tales and stories you read. Use different voices and intonations to make him want to repeat after you. At the end, ask which episode he liked the most. Rely not on your expectations, but on his capabilities, and then in the future he will not have difficulties with reading.

If you liked the suggested tips, share the information with your friends!

All the best to you, dear readers!

The simplest shorthand method.

Many are scared off by the word “shorthand” and there is something for it, since this means a complex system that not only needs to be studied for a long time, but also constantly applied in order to make sense of it. I suggest that you familiarize yourself with the simplest method of recording Russian spoken language using simplified icons, which of course will not increase the recording speed by 2-4 times as in shorthand, but it will definitely make this recording easier.

It takes 30 minutes to learn the alphabet (yes, this is accurate and tested on a 2nd grade student of a regular school), it is advisable to read something in this alphabet for about an hour, and the letter itself will have to be worked out at speed during the day.

Unlike shorthand, where the emphasis is on writing speed and the icons can differ in size and occupy two cells in height, in this method we can write short characters on each cell of the notebook, which not only saves 2 times the outline, but saves ink and our strength to draw complex signs or connections between them.

I think that many have already guessed and figured out what is written in the picture above. The cryptographic strength of this record is almost zero, although it will allow you to write something in the subway that the person sitting next to you cannot read (you can also print if you set a temporarily defined font in the document). But it will be easy, fast to learn this method, and reading such a text is not difficult.

Icons can be changed to suit you if something seems wrong or wrong to you. I picked them up taking into account the similarity to the already known Russian or English ones, and the more often a letter occurs in Russian words (oeaitnsrvlkm ...), the easier it was, and therefore faster, to draw it. Pay attention to the spelling of numbers, as they should be drawn differently so as not to be confused with letters.

The font here is not made perfectly well, but more for an example, so that you can understand the method, and you could read something with this font. You can download it here:
font "Arial Unicode MS_ST"

It is not difficult to remember the alphabet in this form, since there is a similarity in partial drawing (a), w - half of the character, like o, t. Somewhere this is familiar you from English (b, d, i), transcription (w). For the symbol n, the hook L was chosen, since n is a very common symbol, but for the symbol m, the hook looks back, we usually start writing handwritten m with it. The letter p seems to have fallen forward and this is also easy to remember.

You can try to write capital characters a little larger or underline such characters, as is customary in shorthand. The characters may be slightly different on the letter, if you find it easier there. Let's say m and n can be written with rounding, but r, on the contrary, exactly like a printed Russian r (although I admit not to change r, if it's more convenient and faster for you. The same applies to the letter e). To distinguish r and ch, it would be necessary to write the rarely used ch with a rounding in the upper part (although they wrote similarly all their lives and parsed such handwriting). Write the letter l as a very long unit to distinguish it from both the i and the number and the letter t (for this, the t has a straight top, and not at an angle). The letters b and d can also be written like English b and d with a clear circle at the bottom.

Try to draw clear, straight lines straight, and a semicircle like y o is distinguishable from a straight line like y and. To check the handwriting distortion from speed, you can conduct a test: write one letter from the alphabet on each line as quickly as possible, increasing the speed to the end of the line. Then compare the similarity of the letters with each other. If there is a similarity, then consider what needs to be done to draw such characters distinctly and quickly.

I would like to inform critics from shorthand society that the method was developed on the basis of the tasks set and the speed indicator is far from important. It was important to obtain a method of abbreviated designation of letters that allows writing in one cell (this is not the case in shorthand), since the simpler and smaller the written, the less effort students spend when writing.

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