Teaching the Alphabet to Young Children

Create a context in which your child can understand how the alphabet works and how it relates to reading and writing. Alphabet books introduce the concept that the alphabet comprises a group of letters all with their own names and shapes. Your child can see the letters together and can hear that the letters have different names.

Using magazine or catalog pictures, help your child make an alphabet book in which the contents are related to plants and seeds (the A page features apples, the B page shows beans, etc.). This fun activity shows children the connections between concepts and letters, leading to understanding of the connections between ideas and words.