Alphabet on Display

Today I want to talk about the alphabet.  More importantly how the alphabet looks to your students.

Displaying the alphabet
Students need to see the alphabet in your classroom.  For many kindergarten students, they are great at singing the ABC song, but they need practice being able to recognize letters and learn their sounds.  When you display the alphabet through posters, word walls, and classroom labels...students learning is reinforced and letters are easily accessible.

Posters
Alphabet posters are a great way for students to see the alphabet stretched out into a long line of posters.  Placement of alphabet posters should be in a spot where students can see the posters easily.  I catch many of my students using these posters as a reference when playing a word work game, during writing, and other classroom activities where they need to find a letter or sound.

 

Click on the examples above!

Word Wall
Word walls are a great resource in your classroom if students know the purpose, you add words with your students throughout the year, and you model how to use the word wall during your writing minilesssons. Since the word wall is a great reference for young writers, it should be be easy to read and easy to identify the letters.  Check and make sure that students can see the word wall from where they work at their table or in a flexible seating spot.

I like word wall headers that have the letter (upper and lower case) and a graphic that matches the letter.  Word walls are great with cute graphics that match your classroom theme, but if the graphic doesn't match the letter displayed, it is not helpful for young readers and writers.

These word wall headers show clearly the letter and a large graphic that matches the sound of the letter.  These are new headers I just posted this week!  There is also a D'Nealian set too.

Cohesive
I believe alphabet posters and word wall cards should be cohesive in your classroom.  If we want our students who are learning letters and sounds to remember, it helps to have alphabet posters and word wall headers that match.  Let's not make it harder on our little writers and readers who are making sense of the alphabet.  Matching alphabet posters and word wall headers are an easy way to reinforce letter knowledge.