Sand Tray Letters

One tactile way of developing letter-sound correspondance skills is by using sand trays to trace letters.  I usually use this in one-on-one situations or small groups.  I hold up a card (Fundations or Orton-Gillingham cards are ideal), but any letter card works and say the name of the letter and then the sound while they repeat the sound and trace the letter.  For younger children we work on one a few letters at a time until they have built a knowledge bank and than add additional letters.

Eventually we move into using the cards to create cvc words that they trace in the sand.  A gentle shake of the tray with erase/reset the sand for the next letter, and eventually it is a quick process.  The kids love the tactile input and some kids truly excel when learning is "hands-on."

Sand Letters

Some reading programs use tactile or sensory experiences for students to learn letters or letter sounds.  Montessori schools for example, use sandpaper letters as students develop literacy skills.  The Orton-Gillingham reading intervention program also uses sensory experiences, such as students tracing letters in sand or rice.

Materials:  index cards or oak tag (if using oak tag- scissors or a paper cutter), pencils,  liquid glue such as Elmer's glue, colored sand from a craft store, measuring spoons/small scoop, a container to hold the sand
- you may want newspaper or paper on the table & probably a dust pan and brush for afterwards!

 Process:

This activity can be made with the students and used in a variety of ways.

 1.)  On  an index card or pre-cut piece of oak tag and write the letters in pencil.

2.)  Students go over the letter in glue (either by squeezing the glue bottle or going over it with a Q-tip and glue). 







3.)  Students take a scoop of sand and sprinkle it over the letters.  Shake off the excess sand and leave it to dry for a couple of hours.

Uses:

I often just make the vowels with the students to take home, but have a set of the whole alphabet.

•  in reading groups
•  students say the letter name and sound and trace over them with their fingers
•  the students can hold up a letter when they hear the letter sound in a word
• creating a short vowel word
• doing a crayon rubbing over the top of the letter

Vegetable Tray Letters

To work on more tactile letter formation and pencil pressure, vegetable packaging trays are a great resource.

Using a pencil, I model a letter and then have the child or student try to write the same letter.  They can trace over the modeled letter with their finger, then their pencil, and then try to write it.  A good reason to save a stack of trays!

Tactile Letter Formation

Another fun way to form letters (straight line letters), is with objects such as toothpicks or popsicle sticks.  I do this with my three year old son.  Sometimes he just likes to create designs or play with the toothpicks, setting them side-by-side.  Either way, it's a great way to develop fine motor skills.  Popsicle sticks are a lot easier to manipulate and don't roll, but toothpicks work well also.