- Between the Lions alphabet chart
- letter card “Nn”
- modeling clay
- pipe cleaners
- plastic straws cut into long and short pieces
- writing materials
- lowercase
- uppercase
MA Standards:
Foundational Skills/RF.PK.MA.1.d: Recognize and name some uppercase letters of the alphabet and the lowercase letters in one’s own name.
Head Start Outcomes:
Literacy Knowledge/Alphabet Knowledge: Recognizes that the letters of the alphabet are a special category of visual graphics that can be individually named.
PreK Learning Guidelines:
English Language Arts/Reading and Literature 7: Develop familiarity with the forms of alphabet letters, awareness of print, and letter forms.
Letter Shaping (“Nn”)
© Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Department of Early Education and Care (Jennifer Waddell photographer). All rights reserved.
Skill Focus: Fine Motor Skills, Letter Formation, Letter Recognition, Vocabulary
Educator Prep: Print out the Between the Lions alphabet chart or create an alphabet chart on chart paper.
Display the letter “Nn” card.
- Trace over both the lowercase “n” and the uppercase “N” to show children how to form the letters.
- Show children how to use the materials to shape the letters. Ask, How should I make the uppercase “N”? How should I make the lowercase “n”?
- Ask children to compare the uppercase and lowercase letters. Ask, How are they different? How are they the same? Tell children the lowercase “n” has a curved line, but the uppercase “N” does not.
Adaptation: Adapt the materials used for shaping if younger children will be working individually. Use dough in place of modeling clay and large pieces of straws and craft sticks in place of pipe cleaners and short straws.
English Language Learners: If children are having trouble understanding what is meant by straight and curved lines, draw examples for them, or guide their fingers as they draw the lines themselves. Have children trace the drawn lines with their fingers as you have them say the words straight and curved.