Perfect for reading on a snowy day, The Story of Snow offers tidbits of information in simple sentences alongside large, beautiful photographs of snow crystals.  Instructions on how to catch your own snow crystals will inspire you to go outside and give it a try. 

"A snow crystal is a letter from the sky"  -Ukichiro Nakaya, Japanese scientist

The National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) Report (2009) identified six variables that correlate with later literacy development. One of these variables is alphabet knowledge (knowledge of the names and sounds associated with printed letters).  Among the indicators found in the Ohio Early Learning Content Standards are (1) the ability to recognize some upper and lower case letters, and (2) child identification of the letters in their name.  The Turn-around Upside-down Alphabet Book is a fun book to assist your child to learn these skills. Find the letters of your child's name.  Moving the book around to study the letter shapes is a built-in way to interact with the book and helps to focus on the specific differences between letters.  You could use this book with the activity of writing letters in flour or making play-dough letters.  Leave a comment and tell us your good ideas for activities that support children learning the names of letters.

Alphabet recognition online game: Boowa and Kwala Club

Expecting preschool children to learn through passive listening doesn't really work.  They need hands-on, interactive experiences to think and talk about.  As a result, I'm always on the lookout for alphabet books with an interesting twist that might make a book about letters interactive. 

In itself, Discovering Nature's Alphabet is not interactive, but if you use this book as a springboard to go outside and get your own photographs of shapes that look like letters, it is inspiring. Put an inexpensive digital camera into the hands of your preschooler and together go on a letter hunt! Rather than looking for the whole alphabet, start by looking for the letters of your child's name. In Picture science : using digital photography to teach young children by Carla Neumann-Hinds, 2007, Hinds assures us that four-year-old children can use a camera safely and responsibly. For some photography "tips and tricks," check out this website: Discovering Nature's Alphabet website

Can you suggest an alphabet book that preschoolers enjoy?

A preschool child who has letter knowledge has learned that letters are different from each other, and that they have different names and sounds. The Ohio Department of Education would like to see 5-year-olds entering kindergarten able to identify their own name in print, as well as recognize and label the letters in their name.  They should also be able to identify some other upper and lower case letters.  Caregivers can take advantage of the interest and eagerness children have to learn to write their names, to teach letter names and sounds.  After children learn their own name, they become interested in writing the names of family and friends. School systems teach different writing styles (Zaner-Bloser, D'Nealian, etc.) so find out which one your child will be using in kindergarten and teach him or her to write their name using these letter formations.

Recipe for "kid-made sidewalk chalk"