Talking, singing, playing rhyme games, reading aloud, and experimenting with writing and drawing with your child are great ways to establish a good literacy foundation. During the spring months, try some of these seasonal, easy, and play-based literacy activities to support and encourage your preschooler’s curiosity and confidence with spelling.

Spring Spelling Activities

1) Water Words

On a warm spring day, take a bucket of water and a paint brush (a one-half or two-inch bristle-head brush works well) out to the sidewalk or driveway. Have your child paint letters and words with water on the concrete.

Variation: Take this activity a step further and create muddy messages: On a wet day, find a stick and some space in the soil and practice writing words in the mud. A sunny day? Fill the watering can or grab the hose and create your own muddy canvas.

2) Air Spelling

Take some time to explore outdoors and talk together about the new things you see now that spring has arrived. A tree, bug, bird, or the sky may be just a few topics your preschooler wants to explore and discuss. “Write” these spring-related words together in the air with your finger, hand, arm, or a small stick.

Variation: Have your child write their spelling words on your back with their finger. Try to guess the word they are spelling.

3) Rhyme Anytime

Use phrases like “snug as a bug in a rug” or make up nonsense rhymes together about things you are doing—for example, “see my feet walk to the beat” or “put your glass from your drink into the sink.” Sing nursery rhymes with your child such as “Jack and Jill,” “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” or the Alphabet Song when you’re at home, in the car, or out and about. By doing this, you are teaching your child about language, rhyme, repetition, and rhythm. These activities also will help them understand the meaning of words as well as how words are created.

4) Carrot Pencils

Dip the tip of a whole carrot into some paint and have your child trace over words you have written (or typed) or practice writing their own words on paper.

5) Waxy Words

On a piece of white paper, have your student trace over or write their own letters or words with a candle (a white or light-colored candle works best). Next, have them paint over the entire paper with watercolor paint. Let the paper dry completely and see the words appear.

6) Rainbow Spelling

Have your child trace over words in several different colors of chalk, crayons, markers, or colored pencils. This activity can also be taken outside and completed with sidewalk chalk or sidewalk paint (available online or at most craft stores).

7) Stick ‘n’ Spell

Gather some spring-related items such as seeds, dandelions, small sticks, small leaves, blades of grass, or feathers. Separate the objects into containers. Write words on cardstock, large enough for your child to trace over with a glue stick or some paste and a paintbrush. Next, have your child select an item to stick on to each letter, covering each as completely as possible. When the glue has dried, have your child trace over each letter with his finger and say each letter and then the word.

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