This is a new and very important addition to my gift guides this year. One of the things that I have noticed over the last few years is that a lot of the preschools that the kids I work with go to don’t necessarily work on letter and number recognition. While I appreciate how much they focus on play and social emotional skills, I worry that many of my kids will not be prepared for the kindergarten expectations. When picking out items for this gift guide, I made sure that there was a variety of different toys, games, etc.. I believe that using a multi-sensory approach when teaching kids, especially those that might have learning challenges, helps to make it more fun and meaningful for the kids. Multi-sensory learning is a teaching method that uses more than one sense at a time, such as sight, hearing, touch, and movement. This can help students connect with what they’re learning on a much deeper level. I also made sure to include things that could be done both individually or in pairs or small groups to work on improving social skills. I also find that it is very helpful for kids to learn from their peers so any time I can find some way to make learning more fun and organic, I jump on it. Below, you will learn more about some of my favorite multi-sensory alphabet games, toys and activity books. If you are looking for something more specific, please reach out to me at otmeghan@gmail.com because I have so many more suggestions but couldn’t fit them all in!
1. Alpha Catch-I love the idea of adding a gross motor aspect to learning letters, especially for my kids who have a hard time sitting down to learn. This set comes with 4 mitts, 26 alphabet balls and an instruction booklet with a variety of game ideas. Kids take turns throwing sticky balls and catching them with a mitt and saying the letters. The suggested games are:
1. Letter Line Up-Players take turns tossing balls to one another, naming the letters shown.
2. Ace the Sound-Players take turns tossing balls to one another, saying letter sounds, such as /b/, /c/, /d/, etc. Note: Play with consonant balls only.
3. Beginning Sounds Catch-Players take turns tossing balls to one another, naming words that begin with the sounds of the letters shown. Note: Play with consonant balls only.
4. Ending Sounds Catch-Players take turns tossing balls to one another, naming words that end with the sounds of the letters shown. Note: Play with consonant balls only. In addition, you may wish to remove letters such as c, h, j, q, v, w, y, and z.
5. Middle Sounds Catch-Play this game with vowel balls (red) only. Have children take turns throwing the balls to one another, saying words that have the target vowels in the middle. Short- and long-vowel words are permitted.
6. Round Robin-This game is best played with adult supervision. Have four children stand in a circle with an adult. Toss a ball to Player 1, who identifi es the letter shown. Player 1 throws the ball to Player 2, who identifi es the letter’s sound. Player 2 throws the ball to Player 3, who says a word that begins with the letter. Player 3 throws the ball to the last player, who says a word that ends with the letter, and then tosses the ball back to you. Play rounds until all letters have been used. Note: Play with consonant balls only.
7. Word Catch-This game is best played with adult supervision. Reinforce simple short-vowel word formation. Toss three letters, such as t, c, and a, to a student. Have the student make the correct word (cat), then throw the balls back to you
In addition to being a great way to learn letters, but encourages social skills such as turn taking and being flexible. Additionally, this is a great way to work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, works on increasing grasp and upper extremity strength, improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on improving motor planning, focus, attention and organizational skills.
2. Alphabet Giant Stampers-I am a big believer that kids learn quicker when a multi-sensory approach is utilized. One way to do this when it comes to learning letters is to use alphabet stamps. These oversized alphabet stamps from Lakeshore are one of my favorites because they are not only very well made, they are great for little hands. There are multiple ways to use these stamps including paint, inkpads or play dough. Using these stamps will also work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination and improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills.
3. Alphabet BubbleBrix-as I have mentioned, I am always a big fan of a multi-sensory learning toy and these BubbleBrix to that beautifully. Think fidget/pop-it toy meets learning the alphabet and you have a really great hands-on learning toy. This 42-piece BubbleBrix with uppercase letters on each of them has is not only a pop-it cube but has the ability to connect to each other. Kids can put the letters in alphabetical order, practice spelling sight words or try any of the early reading activities that are suggested in the activity guide that comes with the set. The best part is that kids can work on increasing grasp strength, improve fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, work on developing hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills, improve visual motor and visual perceptual skills and work on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention and planning skills.
4. Alphabet Jigsaw Puzzle-another fun way to learn the letters of the alphabet is through this jigsaw puzzle from Eeboo. This beautiful jigsaw puzzle has 36 durable puzzle pieces perfect for little hands. Once completed, the alphabet with upper and lowercase letters and an object that begins with that letter. While putting the puzzle together, kids can work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, works on improving hand-eye coordination, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages planning, organizational skills and critical thinking. Kids can put the puzzle together on their own or work with friends.
5. Brain Games Alphabet Paint By Sticker-I am obsessed with any and all Paint By Sticker books and love that there is such a variety in options now. I have been using paint by sticker books for ages and the kids feel so proud when they have completed them. When I discovered the alphabet paint by stickers by Brain Games, I was so excited to have found a new way to work on letter identification and matching. There are a bunch to choose from including silly monsters, dinosaurs, magical animals, vehicles and so many more. In addition to working on matching letters, it’s a great way to work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills and works on improving, focus, attention and organizational skills.
6. LeapFrog Phonics Fridge Magnet Set– LeapFrog has always been known for having exceptional educational products but this alphabet magnet set is one of my favorites and one that I recommend to so many families. If possible, I encourage all parents to have magnet letters on their fridge during the toddler/preschool stage because it is basically an open invitation to learn. This particular set, which comes in two colors, comes with an interactive bus shaped alphabet reader and 26 uppercase letters that fit into the bus. Kids can place the letters into the bus and press it to hear the letter, the letter sound and an object that begins with that letter. It’s not only a motivating way to learn about letters, but is great for working on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, works on hand-eye coordination and depending on where you put it on your fridge can work on increasing upper extremity strength because they will be working on a vertical surface. If you have a child who is struggling to learn letters, you might want to only put up a handful of letters and swap them out each week as to not overwhelm your child and really give them an opportunity to focus on a few at a time.
7. Dot & Learn Journal Alphabet– one of the activities that I have used throughout my whole occupational therapy career is dot art. It started with using the Dot Art Markers with their accompanying books which were always a hit because the kids could choose their own picture and colors and they always loved having something to take home at the end. I still use dot art, sometimes using stickers instead of the markers, and the kids still love them. When I saw this alphabet journal on Lakeshore, I got so excited. Very much like dot art, this adds a twist with kids completing the pictures by using the matching color paint marker (or dot stickers) to the letters. One of the things I like best about this is that there will be a lot of letters on each picture but only a few will be used to complete the picture. This is not only great for working on improving letter recognition and matching skills, but also works on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination, improves visual motor, visual perceptual and visual scanning skills and encourages executive functioning skills such as improved focus, attention and organizational skills.
8. Alphabet Bingo-I am a big supporter of using games for making learning more motivating for kids and Bingo is a good one because there aren’t many rules. This alphabet bingo game by Peaceable Kingdom is durable and super colorful. It comes with 6 double-sided bingo boards, 26 letter tokens and plastic chips. Depending on the age and skill set of the children playing the game, you can decide if you win by completing a row or filling the whole board and it can be played individually or kids can play in pairs. In addition to be a good way to learn and match letters, kids work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination and works on improving focus and attentional skills.
9. Match and Learn Cookies-I picked this up on a whim last year when I was in Target and it has turned into one of the most loved alphabet toys in the gym this year. Kids can “make” colorful alphabet cookies by matching them in the baking tray. There are 4 modes of play so this alphabet toy so kids don’t get bored quickly and you can shift your expectations based on where each child is at. The first mode is matching the letter to hear the letter name and the sound they make. The second mode works on learning colors so when you put the letter in the right place, you hear the color and the flavor of the cookie. The third mode is for kids who already have a baseline understanding of the letters and they have to find the letter that matches the sound. The last mode kids choose 3 letters and put them in the baking tray and it will play a song. In addition to being a great way to learn about letters, kids work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination and visual motor and visual perceptual skills.
10. Alphabet Soup Game-this game is meant for kids who already know their letters and are now working on early spelling skills. Kids take turns putting the three letter dice in the soup can, shake them up and roll them out onto the table and try to spell a word in three tries or less. If they can spell a work, they receive a word card. Alphabet Soup is great for working on fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improve hand-eye coordination and works on focus, attention and planning skills.
11. Snap-n-Learn Letter Llamas-I am a big fan of all of the alphabet and number animal toys from Learning Resources but the kids really seem to love the llama set the most. In this set, there are 13 different colored llamas with 2 upper and lowercase letters on each. Kids have to not only match the colors, but match the upper and lowercase letter. This is a fun and very hands-on way for kids to learn how to identify their letters while also working on improving grasping and manipulation skills, works on hand-eye and bilateral coordination and works improving focus and attention.
12. Trace and Write Alphabet Center-this is a great on-the-go activity center for learning how to write both upper and lowercase letters. The two sided board has a spot for you to slide a double sided letter card into the board so you can trace it and the right side is a magnetic writing surface so they can then use the attached stylus to practice writing the letter. All of the cards can be stored in the back of the case so you don’t have to worry about losing them. This is a great multi-sensory way for preschoolers to practice letter identification and writing skills. In addition to learning letters, kids can practice holding a writing instrument, works on fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination and work son visual motor and visual perceptual skills.