New Header

I've been reworking my header/logo and playing around with a new name for this blog.  It takes soooo much longer than you would think.  Still working with resolution issues on the top of the blog - it looks a little grainy.  But so far I'm liking it.  Here's my new button/logo:

Teaching the Alphabet - Learning My Letters: Ff

Here's the next in the series

Learning My Letters - C and H

Two more

TEACHING THE ALPHABET: Learning My Letters A, B, K

Uploaded 3 more letter books.  The collection is growing :)  When I have 7 finished, I will begin to offer a bundle.  Stay tuned.

 

  

 

 See this post for a free sample book.

TEACHING THE ALPHABET - Learning My Letters D

I've been SLOWLY updating my handwriting letter pages.  I really like the format of half sized pages - easier for the little ones to complete, and half as many papers to copy.  So I am reformatting and updating some of the images.

I am also compiling mini books for each letter to reinforce other important skills found in the common core including:

• Letter identification
• Phonics - initial sounds
• Isolating beginning, medial, and final sounds
• Directed drawing (geometry - using shapes to create simple drawings)
• TONS of handwriting practice

They are intended to be copied back to back, folded and put together to make a mini-book with 8 activities for each letter. Try out this freebie (click any of the pages below for a free download).  I would love feedback - please let me know what you think - and keep following me for the other letters to follow :) 

Font Happy!

I've been busy creating new fonts.  I am a big time fontaholic - are there meetings for this?  There are so many details involved in creating your own font - getting the letters balanced, adjusting the kerning so there are not awkward spaces (like after the letter q), tweaking and smoothing the curves, etc,.  But after hours of work, it is so satisfying to use the end result.  I am loving these new ones.  Grab them now while they are on sale!  Still tweaking a fun cursive font with lots of extra characters - cursive fonts are sooooo much more complicated.  I should have it available soon.

Teaching the Alphabet: Identify Initial Sounds

Woo hoo!  Finally got this packet compiled and ready to post.  This is a great set of worksheets to practice phonemic awareness and to recognize, isolate, and identify initial sound.  Kids can start by tracing the letter, or "rainbow writing" the letter.  Starting points are there to aid students with correct letter formation.  (Rainbow writing is where the student chooses 3 or more colors and traces the letter once with each color.)

Then practice making the sound.  Be sure when pronouncing the sound of each letter, that the sound is isolated - not blended with a vowel (i.e. /t/ /t/ not /tuh/).  Make sure that the students can correctly identify the pictures on the page.  It's funny how to the teacher, the pictures are obvious correlations, but occasionally a student will use a synonym.  The pictures in this set have been carefully chosen to avoid this kind of confusions, but some students just have a different level of vocabulary, and they will always surprise you.  The one I have encountered a couple of times is on the long "E" page - it is supposed to be an "eagle", but some will identify it as a bird.  It is your option to correct the interpretation, or just go with their words and just be sure they identify the sound correctly.  Have students draw a line to connect the letter with the pictures that start with it's sound.  It is also helpful to have them cross out the picture that doesn't correlate.  Of course coloring the pictures  is encouraged (anything to help further develop those small motor skills).

You can purchase the packet at TpT here

Here is a freebie for you - hope you enjoy the packet as much as we have in our class :)