I don't think it's ever too early to introduce your child to phonics. I try and take their interests and add in learning wherever I can. Here are two simple activities you can try with your toddler.
Sticker Phonics
This activity took under 5 minutes to set up. Evelyn loves playing with foam stickers (again, playing to their interest) I decided to use the Christmas stickers to aide a phonics game.
How I set it up
Using painters tape, I taped a large sheet of paper onto the wall. Then I wrote the letters "T""R""S""P" to match up with tree, Rudolph, Santa, and present. When Evelyn grabbed a sticker I told her the name of the sticker and what letter it started with. So when she picked up Santa I said "That is Santa. Santa starts with S. Can you find the letter S?" Then she would find the letter and stick the sticker to that letter. She found this very fun! You could also adapt this to an older child by asking them to find the letter sound instead of you telling them. It is what I had planned for my 4 year old but he had other plans that day!
Find the stickers here
2. Sensory Letter Search
This is another under 5 minute set up. I used some colored chickpeas and snowflakes as sensory base. I tossed some letters in and let her play.
Find the letters here
How to play
There really is no wrong way to play. Let your child explore. You can let them tell you the letters or you can ask. There letters are great with how colorful they are too. She would pick one up and sometimes say the letter and sometimes the color. Sensory play can really open up language opportunities. The best thing to do is play and have fun!
Want to know how I colored the chickpeas? Check out this linked blog post
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Be sure to save to your Pinterest to find later!
*always supervise with small pieces
The letter sensory game is a timeless and fun game. Even better, its so rewarding !