In early childhood grades, the alphabetic principle and phonological awareness set the stage for reading and writing. These are skills that students in preschool, kindergarten, and first grade cannot get enough of.
Without the ability to sound out words, read or write, students will essentially be behind in all other subject areas. It really is a big deal!
But I’m sure you’re wondering, “What exactly are these principles and how can I ensure that I am teaching my child what he or she needs to know?”
I’m so glad you asked!
Alphabetic Principle
This is such an important but also easy concept for parents to comprehend! The alphabetic principle in a nutshell is, the ability to recognize that written letters represent sounds! This is the understanding of knowing the sound that a written letter makes.
Alphabetic Principle Activities
There are several hands-on and engaging activities that promote and strengthen skills related to the Alphabetic Principle. One fun activity is for students to match a picture with the first letter. Or, early learners can play letter bingo or use letter stamps as a way to match the letter-sound correspondence.
Phonological Awareness
Simply put, phonological awareness is the ability to break apart words into their individual sounds. There are many activities to encourage this skill that take a hands-on and interactive approach.
Phonics Activities
Syllable sound sorts, bingo chips for word segmentation, and even using snap cubes are all great examples of how to incorporate phonics activities into your daily lessons. There are so many methods, and not every method works best for every child or classroom. Experiment to see what works best for your student.
Some students do their best work using paper and pencil assignments. I have created an Alphabet and Phonics binder that is sure to help your students meet all of their learning goals!
Students will practice a wide variety of skills, with over 150 pages of activities to choose from. Some activities include, letter introduction, finding the missing sound, and even engaging alphabet puzzles.
Did you realize the importance of phonics?! How do you teach it in your classroom? I would love to hear in the comments below.
Happy Homeschooling.
