Why flashcards? That is a question that many parents ask themselves when they are trying to teach their children letters. You may think that flashcards sound too boring, but they have been successfully used for centuries as a way of teaching and practicing language, math, spelling, and other subjects. In this blog post we will be discussing five fun activities that will engage your child’s mind and allow them not only to practice letters but also first letter sounds in common words. As a special bonus, we have made FREE printable letter flashcards for you to download and have fun teaching your children.
Line Them Up!
Have your child line the left-hand mitten cards (uppercase letters) in a line on a table or a floor from A to Z. If your child knows the alphabet song, have them sing the song while lining up the cards. If they do not know the song yet, tell them which letter comes next; when the alphabet is completed, teach them the song.
Variation: Have your child do the same activity with the right-hand mittens (lowercase letters).
Match Those Mittens!
Have your child match the uppercase and lowercase letter cards by placing the right mittens together.
Find Me!
Scatter the letter cards face up on the floor. Mark a startup line. Name a letter and have your child run, pick the right card and bring it to you. When all the letters are picked up, the game is over. (Because of the number of the letter cards available, please consider using only either uppercase or lowercase letter card at a time.)
Match up Game
Pick 20 matching flashcards and place them face down on a table or a floor in a grid. Take turns flipping two cards over at the same time. If they match, your child gets to keep the pair and take another turn. If not, put the cards back in their original position face down. Play until all the cards are matched.
Simon Says…
Select several letter cards with both uppercase and lowercase letters. Scatter them on the floor a step away from each other. Begin by saying, “Simon says, Jump on letter A with your right foot.” Or, “Simon says, touch letter e with your right hand.”
Variation: Have your child keep their foot on the previous letter while reaching for the next. For example, “Simon says, Jump on letter A with your right foot.” Your child will balance on one foot when you say, “Simon says, touch letter e with your right hand.” They will still keep their foot on letter A but their hand will now be on letter e. Then you can have them put their foot on letter… and get them tangled. (I highly suggest you use laminated cards for this game.)
Can You Find That Sound?
Scatter the picture cards on the table or on the floor. Shuffle the letter cards (either uppercase or lowercase letters) and place them in a stack. Have your child pick one card from the stack at a time and place it over the picture that starts with the same letter sound. When all the pictures are covered, the game is over.
Variation: Reverse the game by scattering the letter cards (or lining them up from A-Z) and have your child cover them with picture cards.
The list of activities you can do with flashcards is endless. We hope that the information we have provided has been helpful to your teaching endeavors! Feel free to download our printable letter flashcards.
Do you have other ideas or tips for teaching children with flashcards? Let us know in the comments below. We would love to hear from you!
You Might Also Like
