Practicing Letter Recognition

Now that my daughter has begun recognizing more of her ABC's, I decided to have her practice "spelling" words. 

I have a set of animal flashcards we look at together.  I ask her what animal is pictured on each card; then ask her to "spell" the word.  She reads the letters to me.  If she doesn't recognize a letter, she will say, "I don't know this one."  Then I tell her, and ask her to look at the letter again while she says its name.  At the end of her "spelling" she repeats the word she just "spelled". 

I do this for a couple reasons. First, when my son spells words I have him say the word, spell the word then say the word again. I want her to be familiar with this process when the time comes for her to spell words too. I also hope that saying and hearing the pattern of sounds the letters make and then studying which letters make those sounds will prepare and teach her as she begins learning her letter sounds. And it gives me an opportunity to listen to how she pronounces words and correct or reaffirm her annunciation. It is critical for her to be able to hear and discern the difference between subtle sounds. I don't emphasize this to her, our focus is on naming the letters, but the other steps are practice and preparation for her, whether she realizes it or not.  

The deck of cards I have is illustrated with bright colored photos and bold letters.  I like it, but I came across this set and think I might like it better.  I don't really like some of the photos they used in the set I have...like the dog on the cover...it's just his head.  It's not a big deal, but I prefer a picture of a whole dog.  Plus, I think these illustrations are pretty.  You can also purchase these in an English/Spanish set.  The same company also sells Picture Word flash cards. 

But you really don't even need flash cards.  You can do the same thing with a simple board book.  Ideally you want to choose a book with only a word or two per page...like this one for example.

It is a DIY first words book.  How fun is THAT?!  I think I want to make one for my girls!  I just found it at Sara's Party Perfect.  I think it's a great idea.

Sara is a graphic designer, illustrator, mom and a former art director for Martha Stewart Baby and Kids magazines.  No wonder she has such great ideas...  You can find out more about her here.

 
ps...I'm just passing on info I found - I'm not gettin' paid to advertise her or anything...