As a kindergarten teacher, I am often asked for suggestions on how to make learning letters fun, engaging and rewarding. In my own experience, I have found that students who have a strong understanding of their letters prior to entering kindergarten, are often more prepared and more successful in the classroom. Check out these five fun and engaging activities to establish a strong foundation in letter recognition and to get your child off to a great start in kindergarten!
1. Learning Letters from A to Z: Letter & Name Bracelets
Learning letters can be a positive and a rewarding experience with these Pony Bead Bracelets and Black Square Neon Alphabet Beads. These bracelets are the perfect size for your students, and they are a great way to reward students as they learn each letter. The bracelets and beads can also be used if a child is struggling with specific letters. Provide the child with a bracelet with the series of letters and have him/her practice the letters throughout the day. Is a child having a difficult time identifying the letters in his/her name? No problem! Use the alphabet beads and pony bead bracelets to spell out their name. Your students will know the letters in their name in no time!
2. Shake and Find: Letter Recognition Activity 
These shake and find jars are an inexpensive way to make learning your letters fun, too! Fill your Round Favor Jars with an assortment of beads and Black Square Neon Alphabet Beads. Another alternative for filling your jars is to dye rice in various colors using food coloring and white vinegar. When filling your jars, be sure not to completely fill the jars to the top as your students will need room in the jars to shake the beads around. As students identify the letters in their jars, they must find the letter and color it in on the FREE "Shake and Find!" recording sheet! 
My students love using these Crayola® Erasable Colored Pencils - 12 Count as they fill out their letter recognition recording sheet. If they make a mistake, no problem! These colored pencils are erasable! This activity is bound to be one of your child's favorite activities.
3. Building Letter Automaticity 
These Wonderful Wood Alphabet Lacing Beads are a great way to improve letter recognition and to build automaticity. Tie a knot on one end of the provided shoelace. Decide which letters your students are struggling with or need extra practice with. String the letters onto your shoelace in random order and tie a knot on the other end. Be sure to leave some extra room so your students can move the letter cubes from one end of the string to the other. 
The nice thing about these letter cubes is that it has both uppercase and lowercase on each cube. You can also easily untie each knot and change the order of the cubes or add/remove cubes as students master those letters.
4.Create Large Letter Posters 
Every child loves to draw and color! Why not let your child express their artistic side with these DIY Jumbo Alphabet Letters. These poster board weight letters are huge, too! This allows enough space for your child to draw objects that start with the same letter sound. 
After drawing each object, use a permanent marker to label each object while underlining the beginning sound. This will help your child make the connection between pictures, words, and letters.
5. LetterTreasure Dig: Sensory Bin 
Sensory bins are one of my favorite things to use in the classroom because my students absolutely love them! This pirate themed sensory bin will have your students saying, "Shiver me letters" before you know it. The Treasure Chest Inflatable Cooler was very fitting for this themed sensory bin, and it helped when transporting the sensory bin easy and mess-free. I filled the bottom of my treasure chest with Bulk Black Sand. Bury Magnetic Lower Case Letters and Poker Chips (with both uppercase and lowercase letters on them) throughout the treasure chest. 
I wanted to add some treasure to my treasure chest as well. I spray painted some Lump of Coal Stress Balls with glitter spray paint to make it look like real gold. After you have assembled your sensory bin, it is time for your students to enjoy! Have children pick out a letter, identify the letter, and practice the formation of the letter by writing it down on a piece of paper or whiteboard. These fun activities are a great way to ensure that your child has a smooth transition into kindergarten and a positive, successful, and rewarding year, too! Be sure to also check out these other blog posts on ways to prepare your child for kindergarten: 5 Reading Activities to Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten and 5 Math Activities to Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten.
