All About Letters Reproducible Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards Congratulations on your purchase of this Really Good Stuff® Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards — a fun and interactive way for students to learn lettersound correspondence and match letters to pictures. This Really Good Stuff® product includes: • 5 Alphabet Vests • 33 Picture Cards, two-sided • 26 Letter Cards, two-sided • 2 Blank Alphabet Cards • This Really Good Stuff® Activity Guide Assembling and Caring for Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards Before introducing Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards, make copies of this Really Good Stuff® Activity Guide and file the pages for future use. Or, download another copy of it from our Web site at www.reallygoodstuff.com. Cut the Picture Cards and Letter Cards apart and place them in alphabetical order or according to how you will introduce the letters. Store the Cards in a zippered plastic bag. Keep your Alphabet Vests in good condition by wiping them occasionally with a damp sponge. Fold the Alphabet Vests horizontally along the top of the pockets for easy storage. Introducing Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards Choose a student to be a model and show students how to put on a Vest by opening the hook-and-loop closure, placing the Vest around the neck, and pressing the hookand-loop closure shut. Explain to students that they are going to use Vests just like this one to learn about alphabet letters and their sounds. Use the Letter Cards to introduce students to the alphabet and to the order of the letters. Have five students don Vests and form a line at the front of the room. Starting with capital A, place the Letter Cards in order (two in each Vest) moving from left to right. Point to and say the name of each letter and have students repeat the letter after you. Remove the Cards from the Vests and place them in order on your marker tray. Allow each student to pass his or her Vest to another student. Place the next set of Letter Cards in the Vests, say the letters, and have students repeat them. Repeat these steps with the remaining six Letter Cards to complete the alphabet. After all of the letters are in the marker tray, choose a student to point to each letter as the class says the alphabet together. Repeat the process with the lowercase Letter Cards. Matching Uppercase Letters to Lowercase Letters Select five students to don Vests. Choose five uppercase Letter Cards or have students randomly choose Cards and place in their Vests. Place the matching lowercase Letter Cards on the marker tray in random order and include other letters as well. Point to the letter in a student’s Vest, say the name of the letter, and choose a student to select the matching lowercase Letter Card. If the student is correct, he or she hands the Card to the appropriate student who places it in the pocket beside the uppercase Letter Card. Continue choosing students until all of the letters have been matched. Then repeat this process starting with the lowercase Letter Cards in the Vests and matching uppercase Letter Cards to place in the marker tray. Play until all of the uppercase and lowercase letters have been matched. What Comes After? Place an uppercase Letter Card or a lowercase Letter Card in the left pocket of each of five Vests. Place the Cards of the letters that come after each of those letters in the marker tray. Have five students come forward and have each of them put on one of the Vests and stand in front of the class. Have one of the students wearing a Vest step forward and have the class say the letter that is in his or her Vest. Then ask students what letter that is on the board comes after this letter. Ask a volunteer to come forward, pick the Card he or she thinks comes after, and hand it to the student wearing the Vest so that he or she can it tuck into the right pocket. If the letter is correct, move onto the next student with a Vest. If that letter is incorrect, have students try again. Use this process also to practice letters that come before letters. Simply place the Letter Cards in the right pocket of the Vest and pull the letters that come before each of the letters. For an added challenge, do these activities using Picture Cards. Introducing the Picture Cards Select four Picture Cards, each for a different letter, and place one of the Cards in each of the left pockets of four Vests. (Note: Initially, be sure to include both consonant All activity guides can be found online: Helping Teachers Make A Difference® © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F-XXXX Helping Teachers Make A Difference® © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F Picture Card Templates Reproducible Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards and vowel Picture Cards so that you can show students that the vowel Cards have a yellow background and the consonant Cards have a blue background.) If you introduce letters alphabetically, start with the Cards for the letters A, B, C and D. Pull the Letter Cards, both uppercase and lowercase, that correspond to the Picture Cards you have selected, and line them up on your whiteboard marker tray or some other place where all students can see them easily. Have students put on the Vests. Point to the Picture Card in the first student’s Vest, and ask students to name the picture on the Card. After a student says the correct word, have all students say the word together. Ask students to say the sound that starts the word. If they have difficulty with this, say the sound and then have the students repeat it after you. Once you have repeated the initial sound and the word several times with students, point to the Letter Cards on the tray. Ask volunteers to point to the Letter Cards that have the same letters as the words and pictures in the Vest. Have the volunteers come forward, take the correct Letter Card off the board, and hand it to the student wearing the appropriate Vest. Point to the Letter Card, and say the name of that letter. Have students repeat the letter name. Then say the name of the picture again, and say that the word starts with the letter in the pocket. For example, indicate that apple starts with the letter A. Continue through the alphabet introducing Picture Cards for each letter. Introducing More Picture Cards Choose the letter you wish to work on and place all of the Picture Cards for that letter in the marker tray along with other Picture Cards that do not match. (Note: There are four Picture Cards for each vowel [two for the short sound and 2 for the long sound], four Picture Cards for the letters C and G [two for the soft sound and two for the hard sound], and two Picture Cards for all of the other consonants.) Choose a student to wear a Vest and place the Letter Card in the pocket. Ask students if they see a Picture Card on the tray that starts with the letter that is in the Vest. If they are unable to identify a correct Card right away, say the word that names the picture on the Card and have students repeat it, emphasizing the initial sound in the word. Have another student choose a Picture Card that matches the letter. If the student is correct, tuck that Card into Helping Teachers Make A Difference® the other pocket on the Vest and have that student put on another Vest. Point to the Picture Card, the Letter Card, and indicate, for example, that ape starts with the letter A. Have students look for more Picture Cards to place in the second and third Vests until all of the Pictures Cards for that letter are displayed. Return the Picture Cards to the marker tray, choose another Letter Card to place in the first Vest, and repeat the process. Make Your Own Picture Cards Make more Picture Cards for the Alphabet Vests: Copy the Picture Card Templates Reproducible, cut them out, and write the word in the bottom section of the card. Either draw a picture or glue a photograph of the item in the top section of the card and laminate the cards for durability. Turn making new picture cards into a literacy center activity: Supply the card templates, crayons or markers for drawing, and magazines, scissors, and glue sticks for making picture cards in your literacy center. Write words on the cards and have students cut and paste pictures from magazines or draw their own pictures. Laminate the students’ picture cards to use in the Vests. Picture Card Challenge As students become more proficient at matching Letter Cards to Picture Cards, make the matching activities more challenging by cutting the words off the bottom of the Picture Cards. Then have students match the Picture Cards to the Letter Cards without the word clue at the bottom. To challenge students even further, place these word cards on a table and have students match the words to the Picture Cards in the Vests. All About Letters Use the All About Letters Reproducible to give students practice in writing upper- and lowercase letters and drawing pictures to match the letters: Make a copy of the All About Letters Reproducible and cut it in two. On one of the sheets, write the letter you want students to practice on the line under the words All About the Letter. If you want, write the letter in dotted form on each handwriting line for students to trace. Copy the completed reproducible and distribute them to students. Tell students to write the letters on the handwriting lines, then either draw or cut and paste pictures of objects that start with that letter in the space. © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F Helping Teachers Make A Difference® © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F All About Letters Reproducible Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards Congratulations on your purchase of this Really Good Stuff® Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards — a fun and interactive way for students to learn lettersound correspondence and match letters to pictures. This Really Good Stuff® product includes: • 5 Alphabet Vests • 33 Picture Cards, two-sided • 26 Letter Cards, two-sided • 2 Blank Alphabet Cards • This Really Good Stuff® Activity Guide Assembling and Caring for Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards Before introducing Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards, make copies of this Really Good Stuff® Activity Guide and file the pages for future use. Or, download another copy of it from our Web site at www.reallygoodstuff.com. Cut the Picture Cards and Letter Cards apart and place them in alphabetical order or according to how you will introduce the letters. Store the Cards in a zippered plastic bag. Keep your Alphabet Vests in good condition by wiping them occasionally with a damp sponge. Fold the Alphabet Vests horizontally along the top of the pockets for easy storage. Introducing Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards Choose a student to be a model and show students how to put on a Vest by opening the hook-and-loop closure, placing the Vest around the neck, and pressing the hookand-loop closure shut. Explain to students that they are going to use Vests just like this one to learn about alphabet letters and their sounds. Use the Letter Cards to introduce students to the alphabet and to the order of the letters. Have five students don Vests and form a line at the front of the room. Starting with capital A, place the Letter Cards in order (two in each Vest) moving from left to right. Point to and say the name of each letter and have students repeat the letter after you. Remove the Cards from the Vests and place them in order on your marker tray. Allow each student to pass his or her Vest to another student. Place the next set of Letter Cards in the Vests, say the letters, and have students repeat them. Repeat these steps with the remaining six Letter Cards to complete the alphabet. After all of the letters are in the marker tray, choose a student to point to each letter as the class says the alphabet together. Repeat the process with the lowercase Letter Cards. Matching Uppercase Letters to Lowercase Letters Select five students to don Vests. Choose five uppercase Letter Cards or have students randomly choose Cards and place in their Vests. Place the matching lowercase Letter Cards on the marker tray in random order and include other letters as well. Point to the letter in a student’s Vest, say the name of the letter, and choose a student to select the matching lowercase Letter Card. If the student is correct, he or she hands the Card to the appropriate student who places it in the pocket beside the uppercase Letter Card. Continue choosing students until all of the letters have been matched. Then repeat this process starting with the lowercase Letter Cards in the Vests and matching uppercase Letter Cards to place in the marker tray. Play until all of the uppercase and lowercase letters have been matched. What Comes After? Place an uppercase Letter Card or a lowercase Letter Card in the left pocket of each of five Vests. Place the Cards of the letters that come after each of those letters in the marker tray. Have five students come forward and have each of them put on one of the Vests and stand in front of the class. Have one of the students wearing a Vest step forward and have the class say the letter that is in his or her Vest. Then ask students what letter that is on the board comes after this letter. Ask a volunteer to come forward, pick the Card he or she thinks comes after, and hand it to the student wearing the Vest so that he or she can it tuck into the right pocket. If the letter is correct, move onto the next student with a Vest. If that letter is incorrect, have students try again. Use this process also to practice letters that come before letters. Simply place the Letter Cards in the right pocket of the Vest and pull the letters that come before each of the letters. For an added challenge, do these activities using Picture Cards. Introducing the Picture Cards Select four Picture Cards, each for a different letter, and place one of the Cards in each of the left pockets of four Vests. (Note: Initially, be sure to include both consonant All activity guides can be found online: Helping Teachers Make A Difference® © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F-XXXX Helping Teachers Make A Difference® © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F Picture Card Templates Reproducible Alphabet Vests with Picture and Letter Cards and vowel Picture Cards so that you can show students that the vowel Cards have a yellow background and the consonant Cards have a blue background.) If you introduce letters alphabetically, start with the Cards for the letters A, B, C and D. Pull the Letter Cards, both uppercase and lowercase, that correspond to the Picture Cards you have selected, and line them up on your whiteboard marker tray or some other place where all students can see them easily. Have students put on the Vests. Point to the Picture Card in the first student’s Vest, and ask students to name the picture on the Card. After a student says the correct word, have all students say the word together. Ask students to say the sound that starts the word. If they have difficulty with this, say the sound and then have the students repeat it after you. Once you have repeated the initial sound and the word several times with students, point to the Letter Cards on the tray. Ask volunteers to point to the Letter Cards that have the same letters as the words and pictures in the Vest. Have the volunteers come forward, take the correct Letter Card off the board, and hand it to the student wearing the appropriate Vest. Point to the Letter Card, and say the name of that letter. Have students repeat the letter name. Then say the name of the picture again, and say that the word starts with the letter in the pocket. For example, indicate that apple starts with the letter A. Continue through the alphabet introducing Picture Cards for each letter. Introducing More Picture Cards Choose the letter you wish to work on and place all of the Picture Cards for that letter in the marker tray along with other Picture Cards that do not match. (Note: There are four Picture Cards for each vowel [two for the short sound and 2 for the long sound], four Picture Cards for the letters C and G [two for the soft sound and two for the hard sound], and two Picture Cards for all of the other consonants.) Choose a student to wear a Vest and place the Letter Card in the pocket. Ask students if they see a Picture Card on the tray that starts with the letter that is in the Vest. If they are unable to identify a correct Card right away, say the word that names the picture on the Card and have students repeat it, emphasizing the initial sound in the word. Have another student choose a Picture Card that matches the letter. If the student is correct, tuck that Card into Helping Teachers Make A Difference® the other pocket on the Vest and have that student put on another Vest. Point to the Picture Card, the Letter Card, and indicate, for example, that ape starts with the letter A. Have students look for more Picture Cards to place in the second and third Vests until all of the Pictures Cards for that letter are displayed. Return the Picture Cards to the marker tray, choose another Letter Card to place in the first Vest, and repeat the process. Make Your Own Picture Cards Make more Picture Cards for the Alphabet Vests: Copy the Picture Card Templates Reproducible, cut them out, and write the word in the bottom section of the card. Either draw a picture or glue a photograph of the item in the top section of the card and laminate the cards for durability. Turn making new picture cards into a literacy center activity: Supply the card templates, crayons or markers for drawing, and magazines, scissors, and glue sticks for making picture cards in your literacy center. Write words on the cards and have students cut and paste pictures from magazines or draw their own pictures. Laminate the students’ picture cards to use in the Vests. Picture Card Challenge As students become more proficient at matching Letter Cards to Picture Cards, make the matching activities more challenging by cutting the words off the bottom of the Picture Cards. Then have students match the Picture Cards to the Letter Cards without the word clue at the bottom. To challenge students even further, place these word cards on a table and have students match the words to the Picture Cards in the Vests. All About Letters Use the All About Letters Reproducible to give students practice in writing upper- and lowercase letters and drawing pictures to match the letters: Make a copy of the All About Letters Reproducible and cut it in two. On one of the sheets, write the letter you want students to practice on the line under the words All About the Letter. If you want, write the letter in dotted form on each handwriting line for students to trace. Copy the completed reproducible and distribute them to students. Tell students to write the letters on the handwriting lines, then either draw or cut and paste pictures of objects that start with that letter in the space. © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F Helping Teachers Make A Difference® © 2010 Really Good Stuff® 1-800-366-1920 www.reallygoodstuff.com Made in USA #158883F