Using hands-on activities to explore letters of the alphabet is one of the best ways to help introduce young children to the ABC’s. Here’s a collection of over 75 alphabet activities that will help kids learn letter recognition, letter sounds, letter formation, letter writing, and more! (This post contains affiliate links.)

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Letter Learning with Young Children

Introducing children to the alphabet is one of the topics I get most excited about both in the classroom and with my kids at home! It’s so exciting to help kids grow an interest in letters and develop a positive feeling towards reading.

One of the things I’ve learned as a parent is your child is never too young to be introduced to letter learning. There are so many fun ways to practice the alphabet with fun, hands-on activities.

 

Instilling a Positive Feeling in Your Child Towards Reading

My biggest piece of advice is to pay attention to your child’s interest and stress or anxiety level when doing any learning activity, especially activities related to reading. The last thing you want to do is hinder your child’s love of reading. (If you’re interested more on this topic, I invite you to check out my 5-part series on teaching your child how to read. It’s one of my earliest posts so the photos aren’t the best quality, but it’s full of all kinds of useful tips!)

 

Children are all different and respond to learning in different ways. Lucy (now 8) was always interested in letters. She was playing with her wooden alphabet puzzle from age 1 and, from playing it with me almost daily, she learned to recognize all the letters of the alphabet and almost all letter sounds by age 2. She was always interested in working with letters through play and wanted to know the letter sounds and practice them together often.

Theo, my preschooler, is very different from Lucy. If we try to sit and do the same activity Lucy enjoyed as child, he gets frustrated and loses interest quickly. I’ve had to work on integrating his interests into playing with letters- like driving his toy cars on letter-shaped roads (which you can find in the collection below) or doing more gross motor and active games with him. (Now they even now sell road tape! You can use it to make road letters for your child to drive his or her cars on.)

 

No matter what your child’s interest or learning style, you’ll find all kinds of creative ways to help your child with learning the letters of the alphabet through play in this collection. I’ve divided the letter learning activities up by subject and/or learning method to make it easier for you to find just what you’re looking for!

75+ Hands-On Ways to Explore the Letters of the Alphabet

Fun Ways to Practice Letter Recognition

ABC Flower Garden from Buggy and Buddy

DIY Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Play Set from Buggy and Buddy

Alphabet Construction Site from My Nearest and Dearest

 

Seek-N-Find Alphabet Tube from Mama Miss

Sticky Alphabet Tree from Sugar Aunts

Alphabet I Spy Game from I Heart Crafty Things

 

Feed the Alphabet Monster from I Can Teach My Child

Alphabet Flower Hunt from Learn Play Imagine

Clay Alphabet from Sugar Aunts

 

Shark Alphabet Game from I Heart Crafty Things

Alphabet Squish from I Can Teach My Child

Alphabet Maze from Hands On As We Grow

 

Alphabet Ball from Playdough to Plato

Alphabet Running Game from Frugal Fun for Boys

Fishing for Letters Game from No Time for Flashcards

 

 

Fun Ways to Practice Letter Sounds

Alphabet Photo Scavenger Hunt from Fun at Home with Kids

Egg Carton Letter Sound Sorting from Mama. Papa. Bubba. for CBC Parents

Letter Sound Alphabet Game from Mom Inspired Life

 

Fingerprint Alphabet Art from Easy Peasy and Fun

DIY Alphabet Box from Living Montessori Now

Lego Beginning Sounds Activity from Growing Book by Book

 

Alphabet Flashlight Hunt from Parenting Chaos

Letter Sounds Race from Inspiration Laboratories

Rainbow Hop Letter Sounds Game from Mom Inspired Life

 

Building the Letters of the Alphabet

Building Letters of the Alphabet with Pretzels from Buggy and Buddy

Alphabet Lego Cards from Wildflower Ramblings

Building Letters of the Alphabet with Pipe Cleaners from Kids Play Box

 

Building Letters with Licorice from Kids Play Box

Printable Alphabet Puzzle from This Reading Mama

Letter Constellations from No Time for Flashcards

 

Window Streamer Letters from No Time for Flashcards

Build a Letter with Junk Materials from Growing Book by Book

Letter Construction with Straws and Pipe Cleaners from Lemon Lime Adventures

 

Building Letters with Foam Blocks from Gift of Curiosity

Letter Formation with Baked Cotton Swabs from Sugar Aunts

Build Giant Letters Outdoors from And Next Comes L

 

 

Writing the Letters of the Alphabet

Beginning Name Writing Practice from Buggy and Buddy

Tracing Letters of the Alphabet with Cars from Buggy and Buddy

Free Printable ABC Cards from Mama Miss

 

Writing Letters of the Alphabet with Chalk and Water from Playdough to Plato for I Can Teach My Child

Find and Write Scavenger Hunt from Coffee Cups and Crayons

Writing with Squishy Bags from Learning 4 Kids

 

 

Alphabet Sensory Exploration

Playing with Letter Stones from Buggy and Buddy

DIY Felt Letters of the Alphabet from Buggy and Buddy

Make Alphabet Soup from My Nearest and Dearest

 

Icy Fizzing Letters from Fun-A-Day!

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Sensory Bin from Mama Papa Bubba

Letter and Playdough Activity from Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails

 

Alphabet Learning Sensory Table from Teaching 2 & 3 Year Olds

Sensory Letters Using Puffy Paint from Learn Play Imagine

ABC Eruptions from Learn Play Imagine

 

ABC Seed Sensory Bin from Growing Book by Book

Alphabet Hide & Seek Tray from Learning 4 Kids

Alphabet Rocks Construction Site from The Imagination Tree

 

 

Sorting the Letters of the Alphabet

Sorting Magnetic Letters from Fun-A-Day

Sort Letters of the Alphabet by Lines (Using Rocks) from You Clever Monkey

Letter Sort: Curvy or Straight? from Playdough to Plato

 

Letter Sorts Inspired by The Very Hungry Caterpillar from Growing Book by Book

Alphabet Sorting on the Light Table from And Next Comes L

Rainbow Letters Sorting Game from Still Playing School for NurtureStore

 

 

Comparing Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

Bubble Wrap Letter Matching from Kids Play Box

Alphabet Match with Clothespins from Learn Play Imagine

Memory Match Letter Game from Kids Play Box

 

Big Letter, Little Letter, What Do You See? from Growing Book by Book

Alphabet Road: Letter Sorting with Uppercase and Lowercase Letters from No Time for Flashcards

Exploring Capital and Lowercase Letters from Teach Preschool

 

 

More Fun Ways to Explore Letters of the Alphabet

30 Fun Alphabet Songs from Fun-A-Day!

Make a Magnetic Alphabet Board from Mama Miss

Homemade Watercolor Alphabet Chart from Homegrown Friends

 

Alphabet Bean Bag Toss from Meri Cherry

Alphabet Muffin Recipe from Willowday

Recipe for Homemade Alphabet Soup from Homegrown Friends

DIY Alphabet Bead Craft from Hello Wonderful

Create a Literacy Table from One Perfect Day

How to Make an Alphabet Letter Box from Fun with Mama