During our literacy blocks we are working on many skills including recognizing and producing rhymes, hearing the individual words in a sentence, and hearing the sounds in individual words, all important early literacy skills that help set the foundation for learning to read and write. One of the most important skills we have been working on is identifying letters and their sounds. We use a program called Fundations, which pairs each letter with a key word to help students learn the corresponding sounds. Perhaps you have heard your child saying "b, bat, /b/" or "f, fun /f/", connecting the letter to its typical sound.

As we learn the letter names and sounds, we are also learning how to write them with the correct formation. We use a variety of multisensory methods to learn and practice them, including sky writing  (writing them in the air using big motions), writing them on our promethean board, writing them in colorful sand, and writing them on white boards. Many students are beginning to apply this knowledge during writing, labeling pictures with first sounds they know or attempting sentences by writing sounds they hear. 

Some fun ways you can reinforce these skills at home include playing "I Spy" using letters or beginning sounds (I spy a letter m...I spy something that begins with /b/"),  playing ABC go fish with letter cards, and playing ABC matching games by matching upper case and lower case letters. A few years ago during kindergarten Zoom meetings children also enjoyed going on treasure hunts in their homes, finding 2-3 objects that started with a given sound.