Preschoolers and letter recognition

[hsbaby]

Okay, so my dd4 is very bright. She has a great vocabulary, is inquisitive, mature, etc. However, I can NOT get this child to learn her letters. She can say her ABC's (unless you count the l,m,n,o,p part). Last year we did a letter if the week type program. She was only 3, so it was mostly painting and coloring the letters and, if she felt like it, she had dry erase books she could trace letters in. After a year, she only recognizes the letters A and V.....the only two letters in her name:). This year we have been using pre-K Hooked on Phonics, leap frog videos, alphabet puzzles....everything. She just does not remember the letters at all! My son was reading by 5 and knew his letters and their sounds by age 4, so I'm at a loss here. Should she recognize letters by now? Am I way overthinking this (likely!). I had it so easy with ds......tell him once and it was committed to memory. Now, what to do with this one?!?! I should add that she is very motivated and really wants to learn to read. She asks to do school and enjoys it. Am I doing something wrong? Any tricks or tips to get this kiddo to learn her letters?

[Dobela]

Just give her time and more time for now. At age 4 learning letters and such is as much about brain development as it is method. Not all 4 year olds are ready to hold them in memory.

 

Just keep introducing them, make the activities very fun, and don't stress about it. Most kids seem to learn the letters in their name first because it has the most meaning.

[3peasinapod]

Nearly the same exact scenario here. DD8 was reading CVC words at 4.5. I don't even consider her an early reader, as she hit a wall and evened out.

 

Our last DD, who is 4.5 does not want to learn letters or their sounds. She has no letter recognition. She has many readiness skills that point toward being ready, but she will have none of it. She doesn't even know her colors after making a special effort to point them out in everyday life, sitting down nearly every day and talking about colors around he house for a months. :001_huh:

 

I think she's okay, though. I worried and got reassurance, then I worry, etc. She wants to read too and "reads" books. She loves to tell stories and have me write them out in a book form. We are going to try again in about a month or 2 with letters and their sounds. :grouphug:

[boscopup]

She can learn them in K. That's what K is for anyway. ;)

 

Just keep letting her watch the Letter Factory and play Starfall.com.

 

If you suspect any vision issues, you could get her checked out by a developmental optometrist, but really, at 4, not knowing letters is pretty normal, I think.

[Ellie]

She's too young. She has other things on her mind. Let it go until she's 5. :-)

[hsbaby]

Thanks ladies! I guess I'll stop tormenting her with flashcards and just give it time! It's crazy how different each child learns.

[jenbrdsly]

When I taught Kindergarten we always said to parents at the intro nights that it is not expected that Kinders enter knowing there letters. But gee... everything you are doing sounds spot on for teaching a young child letters. I'm not saying to worry, but I don't think you are crazy for being a little bit concerned. Your teaching practices so far seem terrific, and worked with your other child. So why aren't they working now? {Edited to say: That is worth of note.}

 

I would definitely get your child's vision checked. One of my K coworkers couldn't teach her daughter to read (which was very embarrassing for a Kindergarten teacher) and it turned out that her daughter had very limited sight and needed one of those eye patches.

 

Another idea would be to move everything you are doing to hands-on activities. Here's an example with beans. You could also try writing letters in sand, or using shaving cream.

 

I'm also wondering what your child's memory recall is like. For example, if you show daughter a picture of a cat and say "remember this picture", then a minute later show her a group of three different cat pictures. Could she show you the cat you first pointed out?

Edited August 3, 2011 by jenbrdsly

[parias1126]

I am in the same situation with my DS4. He can't say his ABCs except for the first part of it to "G". We have been practicing our letters, sounds, and recognition for the last few weeks. He can now tell me the sound of A, B, C, and D, but with some help for "C". I have been worried for some time now since he will be 5 in January. We will just keep plugging away at it. He does love the Leap Frog DVD and coloring though!

[8filltheheart]

Your teaching practices so far seem terrific, and worked with your other child. So why aren't they working now? That is odd.

 

 

I'm also wondering what your child's memory recall is like. For example, if you show daughter a picture of a cat and say "remember this picture", then a minute later show her a group of three different cat pictures. Could she show you the cat you first pointed out?

 

I disagree. It is not odd for a 4 yr old to not be able to recall letters or sounds. It also is not likely connected to a memory issue, but a brain maturity issue.

 

It is very common for immature (mentally, not emotionally) children to not master letter recognition or recall (with recall being a higher level skill than recognition.)

 

My 6 yod was very much like the OP described at the beginning of last yr as a just turned 5 yo. We could work on letters and she would appear to "know" them and then 5 mins later I could ask her what letter sound we had worked on and she would give me a blank stare. The same thing happened with most numbers......she could count, but she could not remember what number was a 7 and what number was 9 no matter how many ways we interacted with the information. We dropped K b/c mentally she was simply not ready.

 

By mid-yr she was recognizing numbers and letters simply through indirect interaction. Even her siblings have noted how much more mentally mature she is when she converses, plays board games, etc.

 

I haven't started school with her this yr, but simply playing alphabet go fish, etc like we simply do as part of our family life, I can tell she is already straddling K and 1st. I am wondering if she might end being like one of her older brothers that started 1st grade w/o ever having done any pre-school or K work but ended the yr a fluent reader.

[HSMother]

It is not odd for a 4 yr old to not be able to recall letters or sounds.

 

Agreed. When I went through this with my first I was positive that something was wrong with him. But then it happened again and again with each child. We can go over the same letter what feels like 100 times and then still, the child has no recollection of the letter's name or sound! But eventually it DOES come!

 

Michelle

[lovemykids]

Thanks ladies! I guess I'll stop tormenting her with flashcards and just give it time! It's crazy how different each child learns.

 

Good idea..

 

I would just keep trying, little by little. You may have to back off now and then. Remember that each child is different and will learn when they are ready. I have been trying to teach my very bright three year old his letters and sound since he was two. LOL. I thought since he had such a great vocabulary, surely he could learn a few letters, and maybe even learn to read extremely early. Well, he has his own time table. Now that he is almost four, he can say his ABCs for the most part, and he recently is able to spout off all of the sounds of the letters up to U. He still can’t recall the names of the letters, with the exception of a handful, and that’s just fine.

 

You are doing a great job and your child is perfectly normal, don’t despair!:tongue_smilie:

[mom_of_bree]

I agree that it isn't odd as well. My dd is 5 and we are starting K this month and she knows her ABC's, but she can't recognize many of the letters and only knows a few of the sounds. Same with numbers. She's great 1-10, but more than that and she's saying 13, 16, 20 etc. She also cannot write or spell her name, even though she has had practice.

 

My dd's vision is great, but I feel like she is a little immature. (hope people don't take that the wrong way! I just feel like compared to other 5 year olds on this board, she can't do most of what they are doing.) That is why I am starting her in K4 phonics and numbers instead of regular K.

 

I wouldn't worry at all! I worried for awhile, and then thought, you know what? She will be in school for 13 years, probably more after college, and I'm going to stop pushing her to learn until K.

 

I also have heard people who's children were late readers, and their children ended up reading much better than children who were early readers. Not sure if it is really true or not, but it helps me!

[johnandtinagilbert]

slow down. she's young. try other activities. take a look at my blog under "Letter a week." It shows some great ways to introduce letters. My student was 5 when we started. We had a great year, he's reading well, and not a single stumble or tear. Early isn't always better, just keep that in mind.

[jenbrdsly]

I just want to clarify that I'm not saying it's odd for a 4 year old to not know her letters and sounds! If you go back to my post you will see that I specifically say that it is not expected that entering Kindergartners know there letters and sounds. (Sorry, I don't mean to sound like I'm shouting.) :)

 

What I did say was that this mom was doing all of these wonderful teaching things with her younger child that had previously worked with her older child, but they weren't working. Maybe using the word "odd" to describe that situation wasn't the best word choice. But I still think it is worth double checking the child's vision. Honestly, we should be making sure our children can see properly anyway, right?

 

Figuring out if the memory-recall ability is there yet is also important, because without the memory recall function it could mean that developmentally, the child is not ready to master letter identification.

[8filltheheart]

I just want to clarify that I'm not saying it's odd for a 4 year old to not know her letters and sounds! If you go back to my post you will see that I specifically say that it is not expected that entering Kindergartners know there letters and sounds. (Sorry, I don't mean to sound like I'm shouting.) :)

 

What I did say was that this mom was doing all of these wonderful teaching things with her younger child that had previously worked with her older child, but they weren't working. Maybe using the word "odd" to describe that situation wasn't the best word choice. But I still think it is worth double checking the child's vision. Honestly, we should be making sure our children can see properly anyway, right?

 

Which is why I quoted exactly what you stated. Entering Kers not knowing their letters is perfectly normal. However, that was not what I was addressing in your post. Your post was suggesting that that if they were being taught correctly, which you believed they were, and she had been successful with another child, it was questionable (if you prefer that over the odd that you initially used) why she wasn't having success now.

 

I absolutely completely disagree with that assessment. Some kids just aren't ready. It doesn't matter how often or what approach you take, they simply aren't ready. It is irrelevant that another sibling could. The child is 4. Even at 5 it isn't necessarily a reason for concern.

 

Based on the activities she is describing......painting, coloring, tracing, puzzles.....it does not sound like a vision problem. It sounds like a developmental issue.

 

Figuring out if the memory-recall ability is there yet is also important, because without the memory recall function it could mean that developmentally, the child is not ready to master letter identification.

 

Memory recall can be a developmental issue. However being able to remember pictures does not necessarily equate with being able to recall letters. Also, recognition is a much lower mental skill than recall and it does not sound like her child recognizes letters either. It really sounds like her 4 yo is just not ready.

 

I wouldn't worry about it at all at this pt if it were my child.

[8filltheheart]

I agree that it isn't odd as well. My dd is 5 and we are starting K this month and she knows her ABC's, but she can't recognize many of the letters and only knows a few of the sounds. Same with numbers. She's great 1-10, but more than that and she's saying 13, 16, 20 etc. She also cannot write or spell her name, even though she has had practice.

 

My dd's vision is great, but I feel like she is a little immature. (hope people don't take that the wrong way! I just feel like compared to other 5 year olds on this board, she can't do most of what they are doing.) That is why I am starting her in K4 phonics and numbers instead of regular K.

 

I wouldn't worry at all! I worried for awhile, and then thought, you know what? She will be in school for 13 years, probably more after college, and I'm going to stop pushing her to learn until K.

 

I also have heard people who's children were late readers, and their children ended up reading much better than children who were early readers. Not sure if it is really true or not, but it helps me!

 

I just wanted to reassure you that you are correct in not stressing. The reality is that you could absolutely nothing and still end up in the exact same place as starting again when she is developmentally ready.

 

For kids that aren't ready to learn their letters, sequencing activities and pattern block puzzles are great pre-reading skills that do help develop how the brain processes reading.

[mom_of_bree]

Thanks! For awhile I did. Especially when we would be around children younger than her and they could write and spell their name. But I realized that she just learns differently and I need to go slower with her.

 

I just wanted to reassure you that you are correct in not stressing. The reality is that you could absolutely nothing and still end up in the exact same place as starting again when she is developmentally ready.

 

For kids that aren't ready to learn their letters, sequencing activities and pattern block puzzles are great pre-reading skills that do help develop how the brain processes reading.

[TracyR]

My sister's daughter was like this. She was older though , around the age of 5.5 and still didn't know her letters. What finally worked for her daughter was playing games. She made some file folder games ( you can google for free ones). You can play letter Go Fish. Just make double copies of the alphabet letters and play a good old fashioned game of Go Fish.

You can make Fish out of construction paper and write letters on them. Get a wooden spoon, some yarn or string and attach a magnet to the end of it for a fishing rod. Then have her go fishing for letters. If she tells you the right letter she gets to keep the fish. If not the fish goes back in the pond.

 

Online games like Starfall are okay. But it didn't really teach my daughter recognition though. But it may for your daughter. Right now Reading Eggs ( http://www.readingeggs.com ) has a 14 day free trial. You could try that and see if it helps. My 4 yr old is an advanced reader and she seems to like it.

[Ksol]

I can relate to you. My husband is irritated with me that I haven't taught my three year old her her letters yet. She has had very little interest until this point. She has really just started expressing an interest and we do some of the Starfall and Reading Eggs things together. He saw my teach our other kids to read by three and doesnt realize that is NOT the norm and kids are ready at different ages.

 

I would just lay off the curriculum until she has an interest in it. I would continue pointing out letters in her environment and with books and stating letter sounds for things in her every day life. Try not to worry, at 4, I don't think this is a big deal. :)

[LillyMama]

I just wanted to add an odd-ball suggestion- have you tried Zoophonics? My son didn't want to learn his letters, but I borrowed the letter cards from a neighbor who was a K teacher. Because there are movements and sounds (and I'm the kind of mom who lets my kids act out animals for far longer than is probably appropriate) my son LOVED it. He knew all the letters, and their primary (read: short vowel sound) in just two weeks.

 

Some kids just don't learn, or demonstrate what they've learned, in ways that make sense to us. Once I realized that hopping down the hall, making the K sound (kangaroo, get it?) was just as good as anything else to demonstrate he knew the letter, I was happy. And he was, too. :glare:

[Aludlam]

I say relax let time do it's thing and just keep watching The Frog for "fun" ;).

[hsbaby]

So many awesome suggestions! Thank you! It's funny because she begs to do school, will happily sit there and do the work, but has no recall just 5 minutes later! So, last night she was "reading" a book, got frustrated and threw it down, and started crying because I'm not teaching her to read. I tried explaining that she had to remember all the letters, then their sounds, and then put them together to be able to read. My rationale made no sense to her. She kept crying and was so mad I haven't taught her to read:glare: Ahhhhh, reasoning with a four year old is not easy!!

[Ksol]

So many awesome suggestions! Thank you! It's funny because she begs to do school, will happily sit there and do the work, but has no recall just 5 minutes later! So, last night she was "reading" a book, got frustrated and threw it down, and started crying because I'm not teaching her to read. I tried explaining that she had to remember all the letters, then their sounds, and then put them together to be able to read. My rationale made no sense to her. She kept crying and was so mad I haven't taught her to read:glare: Ahhhhh, reasoning with a four year old is not easy!!

 

 

Poor kid!! will she "read" you a book making up her own story? My daughter LOVES to do this and even though she is not reading, she feels like she is because she is in control of the story. I would just let her know that her brain might not be ready for letters yet and when it is, she will know and will be able to read.

[Ellie]

Thanks ladies! I guess I'll stop tormenting her with flashcards and just give it time! It's crazy how different each child learns.

Yes. Please stop.

 

:001_smile:

[kubiac]

FWIW, I really like Curious George Learns the Alphabet because the author-illustrator H.A. Rey really emphasizes the shapes of the letters, and the associations could serve as mnemonic reminders.

 

"Big C is a big crab, little c is a little crab. It is cute. Big H is a house, little h is a horse."

[sewingmama]

I disagree. It is not odd for a 4 yr old to not be able to recall letters or sounds.

 

:iagree:

 

I took my DD for a well check just before she turned 5. Because of her age they also gave her a school readiness check (vision,hearing,colours etc).

 

None of it included testing for knowledge/recognition of letters or sounds. In fact the vision test was modified because they EXPECT children of that age to not know their letters. The tester was very suprised that my DD could reliably recognise all the letters and ended up giving her the regular vision test but she noted that it was very much out of the norm for a 5yo (who wasn't homeschooled) to be able to do this.

 

My DD went to public Pre-K (aged 4)and they do not teach letters there at all. It is not introduced until K.

 

Oh and my DD did not know her letters and sounds at 4 either - she was nearer to 5 when she finally learned them all reliably.

 

My DS is almost 4 - the only letters he can recognise is A and J (the start of his name). He has had a lot of preschool letter activities/training as well just as your DD has.

 

I wouldn't worry about it at all. You will find that once she is developmentally ready she will learn them quickly with ease due to all the early exposure she has had - imagine how much harder it would be to turn up at K after never having being read too or having the foggiest idea what a letter was -so much harder to learn.

 

After a year, she only recognizes the letters A and V.....the only two letters in her name:).

 

My DD only has 2 letters in her name as well - A and N. When she was 4 they were also the only letters she could recognise - your DD is developing perfectly normally :)

Edited August 5, 2011 by sewingmama