I remember an Open Court alphabet frieze that used a picture of a dog for the Hh card.
It represented the sound the dog made when it was breathing.
I never quite thought that was a good match.
Oh, then there's the frieze that had a train under the Tt.
It still makes me mad when I think about it!
Early literacy teachers know why.
Years ago, I walked into new teacher Paul's class
and noticed he made his own alphabet frieze.
What a simple, yet meaningful way to teach phonics and letters!
I've always tried to have one included in every classroom since.
I use the standard, mandated, reading program frieze, and...
the students and I build one together, so we usually ended up with 2 friezes.
When I became a mom, both my sons had personalized alphabet friezes too!
With more freedom in ETK this year, we are only using one alphabet frieze.
I start off with blank letter cards posted in sequence.
I color the vowels red.
When I teach K-2, I have 2 separate cards for each vowels, sometimes 3 for Aa, 2 for Gg and Cc.
For ETK, I just have one of each letter.
The first pictures that goes up on the alphabet frieze are the students.
As the year goes on, I add photos, pictures, drawings one at a time.
Each has to hold meaning for students.
Most are suggested by the students.
After 31 days of not drilling letter names or sounds,
most of my students recognize and know the sounds to the letters:
Aa, Bb, Dd, Ee, Jj, Nn, Uu, Vv, and Yy
Those are the letters that begin the names of the students in class.
"B for Brandon!" "J for Julian!"
and I have my power V's (Victoria, Vanessa, and Valentina)!
Hi Jane - in addition to teaching the initial letters in your students names at the start of the year, are you also doing other letter work? I noticed the "O" for octopus and the "M" for McDonald's on the Alphabet Freize
ReplyDeleteHi Heidi!
ReplyDeleteI'm informally introduce and practice with the initial sounds of the names. I use the plates with only their first name letters on them to excuse them to lunch, home, etc. the other students learn their friend's letters quite fast that way. I also have introduced the high frequency words/letters A, and I. Letter O was the first letter I "taught" at circle because we were working on circles and it was a natural extension. Then I did A last week because we have Abigail and it's also a word. M was just put up there, but I haven't "taught" it yet. They see it in environmental print, so it was added. Next week, we will do S, make snakes, and move like a snake. I will casually intro a letter a week (not in any specific order, just want I think kids could make a connection with). Right now, we sing the ABC daily, use rhythm sticks to sing them. I have a letter sound song we sing too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qy1Kmt9sMOA
When he sings A says a-a-a.... alligator (I replace it with words my students use) We just sing it. I don't drill them or anything. It's catchy and by the end of the year, we sing our own version with our frieze.
If I were teaching TK, I might use the same sequence as the K teachers... or not. the PFS is that our students learn some/about 1/2 the alphabet because they learn it in kinder. I think they can learn all of them, but I am not pushing if they are not ready. Some will, some won't.
Thanks Jane!
ReplyDelete