Do you use a letter of the week strategy in your classroom? I found it a helpful way to teach letters and sounds in a self-contained setting. After years of tweaking, I came up with a lesson plan that not only was engaging and helped students make real world connections but greatly decreased my stress level. First, I knew repetition was going to an important part to my teaching. It was necessary for my students but had to have variation to keep their attention.
Note: if you are a more visual person, watch the YouTube video at the end of this post. It pretty much covers the same material.
So, I started each lesson the same way: with a song. Each student had an alphabet chart so they could follow along.
My favorite song to use was Dr. Jean’s I’ve Got the Whole Alphabet in my Mouth.
Next, we would read the letter of the week book. By the end of the week, the students could read it along with me.
After the story, we would start to fill a large circle map. I drew a large circle on poster board, added Velcro, and using a post-it note, placed the letter of the week in the middle. Students would then take turns bringing up pictures that started with that letter.
Next, I would choose a group activity based on the day of the week:
- Monday: Scavenger Hunt
- Tuesday: Pick up the Plates Game
- Wednesday: Art Activity
- Thursday: Cooking Activity
- Friday: Social Skills Activity
After the group activity, students would do an individual activity, again, depending on the day of the week.
- Monday: Circle map
- Tuesday: Letter collage
- Wednesday: Sorting activity
- Thursday: Sorting Activity
- Friday: Assessment
Finally, I would end the lesson with some technology. We loved using Youtube and Starfall.com. There are so many cute songs and videos you can quickly find about the letter of the week.
If you would like to see if this method works for you, click the picture below to download a FREE letter of the week unit to try from my store on teacherspayteachers. It includes all the above activities and lesson plans.
You can also watch this FREE 4 minute how to video on utilizing these materials:
