Yes, this household is in major summer mode. In addition to all the moving chaos, laundry is piling up and floors aren’t as tidy as we spend our free time taking our riding toys for a spin, splashing at the water table, and exploring the new parks in the area. But my two year old is heading to preschool in the fall and I am starting to work hard to teach him the letters of the alphabet. A lot of our learning happens in our everyday life; through play, observation, and asking questions and I know that eventually he will know all his letters naturally. But I also want to share a quick list of some of our “tried and true” favorite products and books that have helped aid in teaching the ABC’s!
- Foam Floor Alphabet Puzzle Mat: We have used this mat over and over again. Ours was actually purchased at Michael’s using one of their store coupons, but it is just like this one on Amazon. Not only do we put the puzzle together often, but we call this our gymnastics mat. As soon as the puzzle gets put together, the kids love to do flips and rolls. A fun way to learn and burn off some energy!
- Melissa & Doug Alphabet Train Floor Puzzle
: This puzzle has been done over and over at our house! For the price, it is a MUST for any train loving boy.
- LeapFrog Letter Factory Phonics
: Both of my boys have been using this magnet set since right around 18 months. The tune is catchy and does a great job at teaching the letter sound. I find myself singing this silly tune all the time…the joys of being a mom!
- Melissa & Doug Alphabet Art
: Any wooden alphabet puzzle would work, but we love this one! The kids like the pictures associated with the letters and is a great activity for any little one.
- Bananagrams
: You may recognize this game as an adult game! It’s one of my own FAVORITE games, if you don’t have this…go buy! It’s a must for any game collection. Why do I love it for the kids? Because it is just a big collection of letter tiles that kids can use to match, practice saying the letter, and as they get older then they can use it to spell words. It’s a win-win item when both adults and kids can use!
- LeapFrog: Letter Factory
: LOVE this DVD—I swear it really helped teach my children the ABC’s and for less than ten dollars, it is another must for any kid collection! My four year old never seems to tire from this video and we also have a few other videos from this fun collection that the kids enjoy: Talking Words Factory
and Let’s Go to School.
I love how you can find the LeapFrog: Learning DVD Set
that includes all three of these movies for less than twenty dollars!
There are SO many great books out there to help teach the ABC’s to your children. Most of the ones we have I found at a library sale, was passed down in the family, or was purchased in the Scholastic book orders (one of my favorite things about having my children in school now!). The books that I am sharing with you are just a couple of the “best of the best” at our house:
- The Alphabet Book: My kids like the silly pictures in this one! It’s a classic book—I think the copy that we have in our house is the one that I had growing up!
- I Stink!
: This is another boy MUST HAVE! Not only does it go through the entire alphabet, but it is just a funny, silly book for any garbage truck lover. I read this book at least three times a week to the boys and they never get tired of it!
- Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
: Another MUST HAVE for any little kid library. We also have this book on cd so the kids can read and listen to it.
- Clifford’s ABC: We have some Clifford lovers in this house and for less than four dollars, this is a great addition to any Clifford collection.
Hope this list helps you and we would love to hear what other products and books that you have successfully used to help teach the alphabet!
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thanks for the tips! i need to get on this soon!
Thanks for this! We have been working on letters and have a leap frog game that you press the letters and it announces the letter and sound. My 20 month old has started making the sounds. So FUN to see them learn!
Great list! We have quite a few of those products and books!
PLEASE READ THIS ABOUT KIDS TOXIC FOAM MATS
http://www.safbaby.com/the-latest-updates-on-toxic-formamide-in-foam-puzzle-play-mats-plus-chart-of-manufacturers