Learning the Alphabet before starting school

Children’s minds are like little sponges, soaking up anything and everything they are exposed to in the early years. There are so many ways to introduce them to the letters of the alphabet in their leading up to formal schooling. They will, of course do a lot of this in their first term of school, but being familiar with the alphabet will give them that little head start.

Now I’m not suggesting to bombard them with worksheets and make them write their letters ten times over – if you’ve been following me for a while you’ll know that I’m all about play based learning and I have done so many alphabet posts before (just search “alphabet”). I also want to advise you not to put pressure on your child or yourself that they “must know every letter before they start school”. Some children take longer than others, and some will be ready before others. These days there is also a huge age variation among Reception/Prep classes. Some children might be four and a half, some children might be approaching six years of age. Today’s post is more about proving a print rich environment using some of the fantastic products from Bright Star Kids.

This is a sponsored post as part of my Brand Ambassadorship with Bright Star Kids.

Alphabet Wall Stickers

It’s not hard to see why this is one of Bright Star Kids’ top sellers! I absolutely love these alphabet wall stickers and I think they would be fantastic in a child’s bedroom, play room or even in a classroom, kindergarten or child care centre. They are single individual stickers, so you can arrange them in any way you like. Just capitals, just lower case, both together as pictured here or make your child’s name. As you can see there is also a number caterpillar as well!

Image credit - click to shop

Speaking of learning names – this is usually your child’s first exposure to letters. Identifying the starting letter in particular, and then the remaining letters in their name. It’s often the first thing a child writes and recognises. So if nothing else, being familiar with their name is a great starting point rather than being overwhelmed with the 26 letters of the alphabet.

Better yet, many of the products from Bright Star Kids come personalised with your child’s name, like these alphabet posters with your child’s name at the bottom.

Alphabet Posters

Another great addition to your child’s bedroom or play room is this alphabet poster. Just put it on the back of their door or a prominent position where they will look at it regularly. An easier and smaller option if you didn’t want to go with the wall stickers.

Alphabet Flashcards

Oh my there are so so many ways to use these double sided alphabet flash cards in play based learning! Match them to objects, pebbles, alphabet blocks or magnets (anything really!). Hide them around the room for an “alphabet hunt”, older children could try putting them in alphabetical order, make their name or simple words… Plus they’re totally portable! Pop them in a busy bag and take them out and about with you.

Alphabet Puzzle

Puzzles are a must have for every child. Once again these alphabet puzzles are personalised with your child’s name. These puzzles are a great stepping stone between the simpler toddler puzzles with only a few pieces – to your traditional kind. It only has 12 interlocking pieces and would be suitable for 2-6 year olds. Whenever I’m doing puzzles like this with Miss M, we start with the corner pieces, followed by the edges and then fill in the middle. Just like I was taught when I was little!

Alphabet Tracing

If your child is anything like Miss M, and they enjoying sitting down and writing/drawing, they’ll love the alphabet tracing books from Bright Star Kids. It’s another personalised product with your child’s name proudly printed on the front cover which will give them a real sense of ownership of the product. They can trace both the capital and lower case letter and identify one word that begins with that letter. There is also a simpler colouring in book version.

With some of these resources in your home, there will be plenty of incidental opportunities to talk about and teach your child the letters of the alphabet.

Lauren