Communication, Language, and Literacy (Alphabet Recognition)
An activity for preschoolers
Materials
-sensory bin material (sand, rice, beads, ect) -plastic magnetic letters
(Materials for modifiers) -magnetic wands -plastic magnetic numbers
Modifiers/Scaffold
For an easier challenge: -Include a magnetic wand to make the letter hunt easier
For most children: -Ask the children if they can find the letters of their name in the sensory bin
For a trickier challenge: -Include plastic magnetic numbers -Ask the children if they can make names or words with the letters they found
Follow-up Ideas
-For number recognition, you can also hide numbers and punctuation marks inside the sensory bin.
-Place paper and crayons by the sensory bin to allow the students to outline the letters and numbers they find in the sensory bin. You can even make it into a game to see which student finds the most letters and numbers!
Originating Idea
As with the Letter Hunt activity, this activity emerged after my students practice cutting letters out of magazines. They were determined to hunt down all the "sneaky, sneaky" letters and put them back in the alphabet, and this was just a fun way to do it!
How to Make It
Take the plastic magnetic letters and hide them underneath the sensory bin material (in our classroom, it's beads).
How to Implement It
During circle time, the teacher should sit with the students and say, "Today the letters are hiding in our sensory bin! I wonder if we can find all the letters today that are hiding in there! Who will play with the sensory bin during choice time and look for the different letters?" The teacher should make a note of who said they would look for the letters.
During free choice, students will go to the sensory bin and look for all the different letters they find. Most students will find the letters and talk about which letter they found. Later students will try to make words or names out of the letters they find, while earlier students will simply enjoy playing with the different objects in the sensory bin.
After choice time, the students wash their hands for snack. While they are sitting and eating snack, the teacher will talk with the students who played at the sensory bin about what letters they found and what words begin with those letters.