We have begun to work in our new program, Beginning to Read, Write, and Listen.  Your child will be bringing home letterbooks to share with you.  In these letterbooks, they will learn the names of the letters of the alphabet, how to write them, and what sound each letter represents.  They will also learn how to blend the letter sounds to form words.

This program is structured so that every concept is taught in sequence; each new skill that is introduced builds on skills already learned.  Each letterbook focuses on one letter and one sound that the letter stands for.  The letters are taught according to their formation.  The first letters introduced, for example, are based on the circle.

Learning to appreciate literature is an important part of our program.  In each letterbook, the children will listen to a story or a group of poems or songs while looking at illustrations in the book.  Please take time every day to read with your child.  Remember that he or she is just beginning to read, and it will take a while before independent reading is possible.

1)  Letterbook Cc -  The children learned the name and shape of the letter C and one sound that C stands for, the hard sound that you hear at the beginning of cat and cup.  When you talk to your child about "C", please try to avoid words such as cent and city.  The children also learned how to write uppercase C and lowercase c.

2)  Letterbook Oo - We have completed our second letterbook, having learned about the letter O.  The children learned about the short sound of O, such as at the beginning of octopus.  At this point, the children will not be learning about the long sound of O.  Please concentrate on "short O" words when you have your child practice at home.

3)  Letterbook Gg - The children have completed Letterbook G.  In this book, they learned one sound that G stands for, the hard sound that you hear at the beginning of game and goat.  They listened for the hard sound of G at both the beginning and end of words.  The children also learned to write uppercase G and lowercase g.

4)  Letterbook Aa - In this letterbook, the children learned to recognize and write uppercase A and lowercase a.  They also learned the short sound of A that is heard at the beginning of apple.  The long sound of A will not be taught at this point in time.  The children practiced listening for A at the beginning and in the middle of words.

5)  Letterbook Dd - We have completed our fifth letterbook. Letterbook D.  The children have learned the name and shape of the letter D, as well as how to write uppercase D and lowercase d.  Most importantly, the children are learning to blend letter sounds to read words.  Blending sounds is difficult, but the children are starting to read!

6)  Letterbook Ss - The children have completed Letterbook S.  They learned to recognize and write uppercase S and lowercase s.  They learned that S makes the sound that you hear at the beginning of snake.  The concept of singular and plural was introduced in this book.  At home, ask your child to read the words "dog" and "dogs" and tell you which one means "more than one dog."

7)  Letterbook Ll - We have completed Letterbook Ll.  The children learned the name, sound, and shape of the letter L.  They listened for the sound of L at the beginning and at the end of words.  They are continuing to learn how to blend letter sounds to read words.

8)  Letterbook Ii - The children have now completed their 8th letterbook.  In this book, they learned to write uppercase I and lowercase i and to recognize one sound that I stands for, the short vowel sound that is heard at the beginning of igloo.  When you talk about the letter and its sound with your child, please try to avoid words with the long I sound at this point.  The children also learned what a sentence is, and they have begun to read sentences now!

9)  Letterbook Tt - We have now completed Letterbook Tt. The children learned to identify, write, and blend words with the letter t.  They also read their first story!  Please have your child practice reading the story on pages 10 and 11 to you.  Since this is a new skill, your child may need some help.

10)  Letterbook Ff - In this letterbook, the children learned to recognize and write uppercase F and lowercase f, and the sound that F stands for at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end of words. They also learned their first memory word - the word a - and were taught to pronounce it in the same way as the first sound in the word about.

 11)  Letterbook Ee -  The children have now completed their 11th letterbook.  In this book, they learned that the short sound of E stands for the sound at the beginning of elephant and egg.  At this point, we will not be discussing the long sound of E with the children.  The children also learned what an apostrophe is and that it shows ownership.  Please have your child read the story "Ed's Sled" to you as that will help him or her practice the new words and sounds learned in class.

12)  Letterbook Hh - In this letterbook, the children practiced writing uppercase H and lowercase h and learned that H stands for the sound at the beginning of hat and heart.  They also learned their second memory word, the.  Please have your child practice reading short phrases beginning with the word "the" so that he or she will recognize it when reading stories in class.

13)  Letterbook Uu - The children have now completed Letterbook Uu.  They learned one of the sounds that U stands for, the short sound that is heard at the beginning of umbrella and uncle.  This is the only sound of U that they will be introduced to at this time.  The children have now learned the names, shapes, and short sounds of all the vowels.  They also learned that vowels are very important letters in our alphabet because they are part of every word we say, read, or write.

14)  Letterbook Bb - In this letterbook, the children learned that the letter B stands for the sound at the beginning of balloon and ball.  They practiced writing uppercase B and lowercase b, and they learned to distinguish between the letters b and d.  This is a difficult skill and takes some practice.

15)  Letterbook Rr - The children have now completed their fifteenth letterbook.  They learned to write uppercase R and lowercase r, and they listened for the sound of R at the beginning of words such as red and rabbit.  The children also listened for rhyming words and learned that they sound alike at the end.  They practiced finding the rhyming words from a word list that was read out loud.

16)  Letterbook Nn - The children have now completed Letterbook Nn.  They learned the sound that N stands for at the beginning of words such as nest and net.  They learned the memory word "and" and discussed what concept it represents.  At home, it would be good practice to give your child two words and connect them with the word "and" in order to reinforce this memory word.

17)  Letterbook Mm -  In this letterbook, the children practiced listening for the sound of M, which is heard at the beginning of words such as mitten and man.  They learned to tell the difference between M and N.  Please continue to practice the words that are sent home with each letterbook.

18)  Letterbook Pp - The children learned that the sound of P is heard at the beginning of pink and pig.  They also practiced writing uppercase P and lowercase p.  Another new skill learned was the concept of syllables, and they practiced reading words with two syllables, such as puppet.  The children also discussed words that have the same meaning, such as little and small.

19)  Letterbook Vv - In this letterbook, the children learned to write both uppercase V and lowercase v and listened for the sound of V heard at the beginning of words such as valentine and vest.  They practiced telling the difference between the sounds of V and F, which are formed in a similar way.  They listened for the difference between pairs of words, such as fan and van.

20)  Letterbook Ww - The children have now completed their 20th letterbook!  In this book, they learned how to write uppercase W and lowercase w, and they practiced listening for the sound that W makes at the beginning of words such as watermelon and window.  The letterbook stories are getting longer and longer at this point in the school year.  Please have your children read the stories to you, as this is good practice for them.

21)  Letterbook KQ - The children have now completed Letterbook KQ.  This is the first time that they have worked with two letters in one book.  They learned that the letter K stands for the sound heard at the beginning of king and that the letter Q is heard at the beginning of queen.  The children also learned that when the letters C and K are written side by side they stand for the sound heard at the end of duck and kick.