DIY Moveable Alphabet (part 2)

I finally finished my moveable alphabet and I am super happy with the results!

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Patterns and Phonics

Hello fellow homeschoolers!

Today is a bank holiday but Lady P still wanted to do some school.  Today we worked on patterns in her Gold Star Starting Maths workbook.  She is still working on patterns and since there is only one page in her book, we did a bit more with duplo blocks to practice her new skills.

We started with the simple pattern in her book that had a the pattern ABAB.  This was easy for Lady P so I got out the duplo and started making more complicated patterns for her.  She found them a bit tricky but seemed to understand the basic concept by the end of the lesson.  She did a ABBABBA pattern and then we tried a ABBBABBBA pattern.  I started the sequence for her and she finished it.  She really enjoyed the activity.   Obviously, this could be done using any blocks or counters you have available.  You could use dried beans, beads, fruit, whatever you have on hand!  The best time to do this activity is when they don’t know they are having a lesson.  You could do it during breakfast with dried cheerios and some other cereal.

Colouring in her pattern

Doing a sequence with duplo bricks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alphabet Sound Boxes Part 2

Today I tried the alphabet sound boxes with Lady P and she really enjoyed them.  I started with one box and played ‘I spy’ with her then, when she got the gist of the activity, I moved on to two boxes.  I chose ‘w’ and ‘l’ and she really struggled with this.  Then I realised that those two letters are quite similar in sound and she was getting very confused as to what started with ‘w’ and what started with ‘l’ so I switched the ‘w’ box with ‘b’.  She seemed to hear the difference between these two sounds and she was able to sort the items correctly.  Sometimes she would put them under the wrong one on purpose then look at me to see if I would correct her.  I didn’t at first.  I just moved the item under the correct letter after she went onto the next item and she stopped being silly on her own.  I used my sandpaper letters I made and started my lesson by tracing the letter and saying the sound.  She loved doing this!  Then I demonstrated an item by over-emphasising the letter sound and the word i.e. b…b…battery (yes I put a battery in there, but I don’t recommend it).  She quickly caught on and continued using the same technique.

She wanted to keep going with this activity so I’m happy I’ve found something she really enjoys! I do find that I’m constantly looking around the house for items to put in my sound boxes.  There are pieces missing from all sorts of things: puzzles, memory games…my husband’s keys…Anyways, have fun with this!  (P.S. don’t look at my non-Montessori inspired shelves…I find it impossible to have them neat and organised)

DIY Alphabet Sound Boxes

Alphabet sound boxes can be made from any containers you choose (I ordered 50 x Plastic 650ml Microwave Food Takeaway Containers from Amazon).  As long as there is one box for each letter of the alphabet.  I decided to put in my sandpaper letters, a magnetic letter and any items from the girls’ toy boxes I could find that started with each letter.  One important thing to remember is to put in items that start with the phonetic sound (like cat [hard c], not cinnamon [soft c which sounds like ‘s’]) to avoid confusion.  The letter ‘x’ can be tricky as words that make the phonetic sound usually end in x not start with it.  So I put in a picture of a fox and a box.

Activities to try:

1. Play ‘I spy’ with one box of items until your child understands that you want items that start with the sound you are making. eg. “I spy with my little eye, something that starts with ah ah ah”  Your child may pick up the apple.  Emphasise the starting sound. “ah ah apple.”  Once your child generally understands this concept you can move onto 2 or 3 letters and play ‘I spy’.

2.  Another activity you could try is a sorting activity.  Choose two boxes with sounds that are not alike (eg letter a and letter s).  Put the letters at the top of your mat; mix up the items; choose an item and say what it is, emphasising the beginning sound (eg. ah ah apple); trace the sandpaper ‘a’ and say the sound then place the item under the ‘a’; do the same for each item.

3.  A third task would be to use one letter box, trace the sandpaper letter, then draw the letter in a tray of sand or cornmeal.  Say the letter’s sound.  Say what each item is, emphasising the beginning sound and put the item underneath the sandpaper letter.

You can find some similar ideas for Alphabet Sound Boxes from:
The Free Child
Counting Coconuts
Wildflower Ramblings
Making Montessori Ours
Living Montessori Now