Alphabet Knowledge
THE NEFEC REACH PROJECT
was funded by a grant through Early Reading First 2007-2011. The
information in this PowerPoint is provided by the NEFEC REACH
Workshop Series Website. The information is a consolidation of
professional learning presentations, current research and teacher
contributions.
The ERF REACH Lead Team
is providing this early literacy information for early learning
educators and professional leaders. We have provided the most
current research as well as practical application ideas and suggestions
for early learning educators to use in their classrooms. Please preview
and adjust the information as needed for the purposes of your
audience.
Why is Alphabet Knowledge Important ?
 A child’s ability to identify the letters of the
alphabet by name is one of the best
predictors of how readily he or she will
learn to read.
Treiman, Kessler, & Pollo (2006)
 Without firm knowledge of letters, children
will have difficulty with all other aspects of
early literacy.
Bradley & Stahl (2001)
Alphabet Knowledge is Important
What Does it Mean to “Know” a Letter?
a
 Letter-name knowledge
• What letter is this?
 Letter-shape recognition
• Point to the letter “a”.
 Letter-sound knowledge
• What sound does this letter make?
 Ability to print letters
• Write the letter “a”.
 Rapid letter naming
• Name these letters as quickly as you can.
Bradley & Stahl (2001)
Attending to Features of Print
Children need to know that . . .
 Letters have features such as sticks, curves,
circles, tails, and tunnels.
 Orientation of letters is important.
 There is a specific way to form each letter.
 Each letter has a name and two forms
(uppercase and lowercase).
 Each letter is connected to at least one sound.
Pinnell& Fountas (1998)
How Should the Alphabet be Taught?


Alphabet knowledge is one of the least studied areas of
literacy.
We know why it’s important, but there is limited agreement
about what constitutes effective alphabet instruction (Piasta &
Wagner, 2010).


Children can benefit from using their names as a
springboard for learning the letters of the alphabet . Children
recognize, read, and write their names earlier than other
words (Bloodgood, 1999).
Children are familiar with the letters that make up their own
name and are able to recognize the first letter of their name
more easily than other letters of the alphabet. This concept
has been termed own-name advantage (Treiman & Broderick,
1998).
How Should the Alphabet Be Taught?
 Children appear to use letter names to help learn
and remember letter sounds (Treiman, et al., 2006).
 Handwriting practice helps young children learn
and recall letter shapes (Ehri & Roberts, 2006; Beringer,
1999).
 Children learn alphabet letters most readily when
the letters appear in meaningful settings (Neuman et
al., 2000).
Writing Letters
 Learning to form a letter is great support in
learning the letter shape.
 Forming letters does not have to be a pencil and
paper task.
 Air writing
 Forming the letter in sand, rice, or shaving
cream
 Tracing sandpaper letters or outlined letters
 Sidewalk chalk may be easier for writing before
fine motor skills are ready for pencils
Writing Letters
 The point is learning the correct way to form a
letter—where to start, which direction to move,
and where to end.
 Instruction in letter formation should be about the
process, not about the product.
 Learning to form the letters correctly promotes
handwriting fluency, which is linked with the
quantity and quality of written expression.
 Handwriting vs. Penmanship
Pre-Writing Center
The goal of a pre-writing center is to
help children develop fine motor skills.
Letter Sounds
 Children need to learn the sounds of letters so they
can use them as they decode words.
 As they decode, they need to be able to blend the
sounds of letters.
 So, we need to be sure the letter sounds we are
teaching are blendable!
Embedding Alphabet Knowledge
Throughout the Day
Small Group: Shared Reading
Experience


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Chanting story refrains
Reading keywords
Filling in predictable parts and phrases
Echo reading
Morrow, Freitag, & Gambrell (2009)
Welcome
Daily News
Sign-In
Transitions: Center Song
Tune: "Where is Thumbkin?”
Teacher: Where is __________? Where is ________?
Child : Here I am. Here I am.
Teacher: How are you today, _________?
Child : Very well, I thank you.
Teacher: Choose a center. Choose a center
Recess
Without firm knowledge of letters, children will have
difficulty with all other aspects of literacy (Bradley & Stahl,
2001).
Whole Group: Shared Writing
Experience
Turns into……
Centers: Dramatic Play
Alphabet Center
Children need multiple opportunities “to
manipulate and practice letters” (NCFL,
2009, 19).
Child Made Alphabet Books
References
Adams, M. J. (1990). Beginning to read: Thinking and ;earning about
print. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Bloodgood, J. W. (1999). What's in a name? Children's name writing and
literacy acquisition. Reading Research Quarterly, 34(3), 342–367.
Bradley, B. A., & Stahl, S. A. (2001). Learning the alphabet. Presented at
the National Reading Conference.
http://www.ciera.org/library/presos/2001/2001nrc/01nrcstahl/01nrc
sta.pdf
Gibson, E. P., Gibson, J. J., Pick, A. D., & Osser, H. (1962). A
Developmental study of the discrimination of letter-like forms.
Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 55, 897-906.
Justice, L. M., Pence, K., Bowles, R. B., & Wiggins, A. (2006). An
investigation of four hypotheses concerning the order by which 4year-old children learn the alphabet letters. Early Childhood
Research Quarterly, 21(3), 374-389.
References
Lane, H. B., Pullen, P. C., Hudson, R. F., & Konold, T. R. (2009).
Identifying essential instructional components of literacy tutoring
for struggling beginning readers. Literacy Research and
Instruction, 48, 277-297.
Lonigan, C. (2004). Emergent literacy skills and family literacy. In
Handbook of Family Literacy, edited by Barbara H. Wasik, 57-81.
Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
McGee, L. M. (2007). Transforming literacy practices in preschool:
Research-based practices that give all children the opportunity to
reach their potential as learners. NY, NY: Scholastic.
McGee, L. M., & D. J. Richgels. (1990). Literacy’s beginnings:
Supporting young readers and writers. Boston, MA: Allyn and
Bacon.
References
National Research Council. (1998). Preventing reading difficulties in young
children. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
Neuman, S. B. (2006). N is for nonsensical. Educational Leadership, 64(2),
28-31.
Phillips, B. M., Clancy-Menchetti, J., & Lonigan, C. J. (2008). Successful
phonological awareness instruction with preschool children: Lessons
from the classroom. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 28(1),
3-17.
Piasta, S. B., & Wagner, R. K. (2010). Developing early literacy skills: A
meta‐analysis of alphabet learning and instruction. Reading Research
Quarterly, 45(1), 8–38.
Pinnell, G., & Fountas, I. (1998). Word matters. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Schickedanz, J. A., & Casbergue, R. M. (2004). Writing in preschool:
Learning to orchestrate meaning and marks. Newark, DE: International
Reading Association.
References
Morrow, L. M., Freitag, E., & Gambrell, L. B. (2009). Using children’s literature in
preschool to develop comprehension. Newark, DE: International Reading
Association.
Stahl, S. A., & Murray, B. A. (1994). Defining phonological awareness and Its
relationship to early reading. Journal of Educational Psychology, 86(2), 221234.
Treiman, R., & Broderick, V. (1998). What’s in a name: Children’s knowledge
about the letters in their own names. Journal of Experimental Child
Psychology, 70, 97–116.
Treiman, R., Kessler, B., & Pollo, T. C. (2006). Learning about the letter name
subset of the vocabulary: Evidence from U.S. and Brazilian preschoolers.
Applied Psycholinguistics, 27, 211‐227.
Whitehurst, G. J., & Lonigan, C. (1998). Child development and emergent
Literacy. Child Development, 69(3), 848-872.
Whitehurst, G.J., & Lonigan, C.J. (2001). Emergent literacy: Development from
prereaders to readers. In S. B. Neuman & D. K. Dickenson (Eds.), Handbook
of Early Literacy Research (pp. 11 - 29). New York: Guilford Press.