Letter Learning

from the Hummingbirds

There are many different aspects to letter learning. Children often begin by developing their letter recognition skills (seeing an A and stating, "That's an A") before moving on to letter-sound correspondence ("M makes the /m/ sound like in Mercy"), and letter formation ("This is how you make an L.") 

This week, students in the Hummingbirds examined uppercase letters that are made up of straight lines, like E, F, X, and H. Some children practiced identifying newly learned letters. Others made letters and stated or rehearsed the sounds. Still others challenged themselves to write all or parts of their names with the sticks.

While making the letters from the popsicle sticks, the students strengthened their awareness of the letters' orientations and where parts of the letters connected. For example, making the letter K required students to place two adjoining sticks at the middle of the vertical stick.

This fun, play-based literacy activity not only helps in letter identification and association, it also helps work on the fine motor skills of those little hands.