how to better to teach ABC's?

Question

I work at a daycare. we have a handfull of 3 and 4 year old's. We are teaching them their ABC's and how to count to 10, then 20. They can all sing the ABC's fine, but not recognize them on paper. right now we are useing flash cards with the letters written on them to help them learn. My question is do any of you have a better idea to help teach them these things ?? If you do i would love to hear it. thank you for any and all help. :)

Answer 1

I thought English in Japan to 5 year olds. I never focused on teaching the ABC song too much other than just to make it a fun song to sing. I used flash cards and stuck them all over the room. Then I would call a letter and let them run to touch it. The good thing about this is that even the ones that are not sure will eventually follow the others that know the right letters and they end up teaching the kids on a level you can never do.
Just don't use too many letters at once and don't make it competitive but tell them to hurry.
If you make it competitive you will discourage the slow learners like myself ;) but telling them to run or hurry keeps the competitive ones interested.
And clear the room, it can get a little rowdy lol but it is fun just make sure the environment is safe. Good luck

Answer 2

I had great sucess using the leap frog dvds (letter factory, word factory, math circus) and the corresponding fridge phonics for my 3 yo. If this isn't feasable due to the daycare setting, I would say competition would be a good way to get these kids eager to learn. Get a big magnadoodle or flashcards and gather the kids around, show them one letter or number at a time and whoever can shout out the name (or sound it makes for letters) first gets a star sticker or a point (kid with most points gets a special privelage or sticker or something), or the like. This method will also help identify if a certain child may need more help than others.
Good luck

Answer 3

My son goes to a Christian Academy and the have the letters drawn on a piece of paper with dotted lines in the center. They practice saying the letter and tracing it with there finger or gluing little cut up pieces of paper on the letter. They also have a song for every letter that has the sounds associated with that letter. Also Leap Frog has a magnet that goes on the fridge w/ different letters and when each letter is put in it tells what the letter is and also the sound.

My favorite letter song is Dexter Donkey. It is said like this:

Dexter donkey, Dexter donkey
D says Da, DA, DA ,DA
Dog, and duck and dentist, doll, daisy, dump truck
D says DA, DA, DA DA

This also helps them with their vocabulary.

Answer 4

I think that you should also use flash cards with pictures of animals or fruits beginning with the letter for them to better recognize it also. The reason is because kids often like food or animals more and will tend to recognize it more then just words and letters.

Answer 5

Only focus on one or two letters a week. Drill it everyday, all day with the letters posted all around the room. Have them go around a find all the A's, then go around and find all the B's, etc....Teach them songs and poems that are about the letters. Then at the end of each week, have a little party featuring snacks and drinks beginning with the letters that you drilled all week.

Answer 6

Sounds like you have some kids that are going to learn better hands on

Get out the Shaving Cream and have them trace their letters in shaving cream or a sand box

Even molding letters out of play dough will help them out.

Answer 7

I would have all the letters and numbers all around the classroom. This way they see them pretty often and can familiarize themselves with the numbers and letters. But actually teaching, I'm not too sure cause I only had to deal with one and she was rather easy to work with!

Answer 8

you can teach them how to use letter from their body.
for example the letter x would be hands spread out and trying to reach the ceiling, and feet apart.
to count to 20 problem, when i went to preschool i learned the number song which goes like this.

You: 1 , 2
kids: ( they repeat..) 1 , 2
You: 3, 4
kids: ( they repeat ) 3, 4
You: 5, 6, 7 ,8
kids:( they repeat) 5 ,6 ,7 , 8
You: 8,9,10
kids: ( they repeat ) 8, 9, 10
You: 11,12
kids:( they repeat )11,12
You : 13, 14
kids:( they repeat )13,14
You: 15,16,17
kids: ( they repeat ) 15,16,17
You: 18,19,20
kids: ( they repeat ) 18,19,20
Together: let's go, singing the number one!
( a gap in between - where drums are beating)
Together : i said let's go, singing the number one!
( drumbs beating again )
(repeat the numbers again)

Answer 9

We used numer songs at our daycare- with flashcards that went with them.

"5 little monkey's swinging in a tree,
Teasing mr. alligator, 'can't catch me'
Along came Mr. Alligator...
(whipser) quiet as can be (Pause)
(Yell) And snapped that monkey right outta that tree!

4 little monkeys... etc"

Also, try cutting the numbers and letters out of felt.. the kids like the feeling of it... We also played color association games you can convert into letter/numer association games:

Cut little circles and paint them all the colors (blue red green yellow purple orange black white grey etc)
then cut out larger ones that the children can sit on...

You pass out every child one color to sit on... and you hold the little circles...

Make a little song out of it and Ask :
"I have red, I have red, as bright as an apple, who has RED?"
The child with red should then stand up and say "I have red"

Make it letters:

"I have A, I have A... A is for Apple, who has A?"
child stands up and says "I have A"

Sometimes it works better like this:
(If a chil's name is Ashley for example)
Give Ashley the 'A'
"I have A, I have A... A is for apple who has A"
child- I have a
Teacher- What else is A for?
Child- ASHLEY!!
(name recognition)

Numbers...
Try toys (this also teaches sharing)
Like legos, or connecting toys... things that attach together work best.

Give each child a different number of toys. (this will cause some fighting, be ready)

Say "Ashley has 4 legos, Eric has 2."
Count ashleys legos. (all together-kids & teacher)
Now count eric. (all together)
now count them together. (all together)
"Eric and Ashley have 6 legos!"

Hope this helps.

Answer 10

i learned by haveing flash cards and the teahcer pointed to the letter and we would say it..and there is a song to it...it goes Block a block a a a a, beatin hearts beating hearts, bbb, cracking nuts cracking nuts.....cccc, and it would have the pics. on it of what it was saying...

and we have work sheet with the letters on it and we would write down the letter a lot..
hoped i helped