Conquering the Alphabet With
Kinesthetic Learners
Learning a visually oriented task such as the alphabet when you are more hands-on can be a challenge. Luckily, there are several wonderful ideas out there for helping your hands-on learner develop a "feel" for the alphabet — literally!
• Trace and cut out the letters of the alphabet from tactile materials such as fine grit sandpaper or textured cloth. Glue the letters to a board and help your child trace over the letters with their fingers while saying them out loud.
• Use string and glue to form the letters on a board, also for finger tracing. If your child is old enough, they can help with this project.
• Use a sand table, or create a mini sand table with a deep baking dish, and show them how to trace letters in the sand. This is especially good for children who haven't yet developed a good pencil grip.
• Make play-dough "snakes" and make the letters from pieces.
• For edible, educational fun, try the same thing with bread — use bread dough or pretzel dough to form the letters, then bake and eat.
• Have your child lay out the shapes of the letters with cereal pieces and reward them with getting to eat the cereal.
Brainstorm a little, and you're sure to come up with more exciting ideas of your own, so you can avoid the drag of, "This is A... This is B..." and so on!
