Teacher’s Brain

Fun Alphabet Practice Activities For Kids

Alphabet writing practice is one of the most important parts of preschool or kindergarten instruction. Getting familiar and comfortable recognizing, writing, and using the alphabet is a foundational skill that students will use for the rest of their lives! That’s why it’s so important to make it as fun as possible! 

The more fun kids have, the more engaged in learning they will be! 

How can I make learning the alphabet fun? 

The sky is the limit when it comes to learning the alphabet. Here are some of my favorite alphabet activities for kids. 

  1. Stamp pads. Get some alphabet stamping supplies and let students have fun practicing letters with stamps
  2. Finger paint. Let students get their hands dirty and finger-paint the letters. 
  3. Sand tables. This one is great if you have the supplies. Simply have students write their letters in the sand. 
  4. Shaving cream. Simply spray some shaving cream on each desk, spread it out, and let students write letters in it! 
  5. Lego Letters. Get out some Lego blocks and have students build the letters with them.
  6. Pipe Cleaners. Twist pipe cleaners to make letters. 
  7. Dry Erase Boards. Practice writing and erasing letters with dry-erase markers and boards. 
  8. Sidewalk Chalk. Decorate the sidewalk with letters. 
  9. Have a letter scavenger hunt. 
  10. Play I Spy with the alphabet. 

There are so many ways to get creative with learning the alphabet. If you are looking for some traditional alphabet practice sheets or even alphabet tracing worksheets, I have you covered! 

This Alphabet Writing Practice Bundle comes with everything you need!

alphabet writing practice

It comes with alphabet worksheets, alphabet tracing, and alphabet crafts for every letter A-Z! 

These provide hands-on options as well as worksheets to help with busy mornings. Students will learn how to work independently after the first couple of letter sets are used because every unit follows the same pattern. There are plenty of things to choose from for the week if you are doing a letter a week. Students will practice fine motor skills with writing, cutting, and tracing.

alphabet writing practice

What is the download?

  • LETTER A: 16 printables which include 3 crafts, a spinning game, letter identification, forming letters, playdough letters, BINGO daubing, tracing letters (upper and lowercase), letter sounds, and beginning sounds of words.
  • LETTER B: 16 printables which include 3 crafts, a spinning game, letter identification, forming letters, playdough letters, BINGO daubing, tracing letters, letter sounds, and beginning sounds of words. 
  • LETTERS C-Z These will follow the same format as units for letters A & B, but with different crafts.
Alphabet practice
alphabet practice

Want to try it out for FREE? Check out my free Alphabet Worksheets and Crafts resource here! 

Let your students have a blast while they master identifying the upper and lowercase letters, reviewing the sound, writing letters, and creating crafts with these printable practice pages. These make morning work, literacy centers, small groups, or home reviews a breeze!

What’s in the download?

P. 1 Cover

p. 2 More Resources

P. 3 Letter Aa practice

P. 4 Letter B Mini Book

P. 5 Letter C Play-Doh Trace 

P. 6-7 Letter A Alligator Craft

P. 8-9 Letter T Tiger Craft

P. 10 Color by Code Letter L

P. 11 Answer Key

P. 12 CREDITS

What are your favorite alphabet practice activities? Let me know in the comments!

Are Virtual Field Trips Better Than Real Field Trips?

When it comes to field trips, many teachers find that they have a love-hate relationship with them. Are they fun? Of course! Do students love them? You betcha. Are they exhausting? Absolutely! Can they be stressful? Unfortunately, yes. 

We’ve all been there. We spend weeks preparing for a field trip. Plan the activity. Get it approved. Send out notices to parents and get permission forms signed. Collect any money necessary. Arrange transportation. Get parent volunteers. And that’s all before the field trip even starts! 

are virtual field trips better than real field trips?

During the pandemic, we were all forced to embrace digital-well- everything. We found ourselves figuring out online learning, Google Classroom, Boom Cards, distance learning activities, Zoom meetings, etc. It was a learning curve for sure, but it has changed so much about how we are able to teach, and that includes field trips! 

When it comes to field trips, many of us started doing virtual field trips for the first time and realized how much we loved them! 

So that begs the question: Are virtual field trips better than real field trips? 

They both have their pros and cons. In-person field trips are more immersive, but virtual field trips are great because they bring just as much fun and learning with way less stress, planning, and organizing on your part. 

How do you do a virtual field trip? 

Virtual field trips are so easy to do! You can find free virtual field trip tours on museum websites or you can go for a more interactive resource that includes the “tour” along with educational activities. For more on virtual field trips, check out my post on 5 Reasons To Take a Virtual Field Trip! 

What are some good virtual field trips? 

One of my favorite virtual field trips is my Virtual Zoo Trip! 

virtual field trip idea: zoo field trip

Use these interactive, editable Google Slides to easily have students copy and paste movable parts, learn about Zoo animals, facts, what to bring on a trip, and so much more! 

What is in this download?

28 Google Slides with titles, edit text boxes, directions, movable parts great for virtual or in-person teaching.

  • KWL Chart
  • Packing A Suitcase for the Trip
  • 1 Minute Take OFF Flight Video
  • 10-minute ZOO Field Trip Video (Car Ride to the Zoo, Animal Facts)
  • Sequencing Events, 3 Writing Prompts, Counting Objects (under 10), Labeling Parts, ZOO Counting Song, and Comprehension Questions
  • One extra slide for you to add anything you would like to the lesson. (videos or an assignment)
  • Home Connection Optional Assignment for students to build an animal habitat 
  • Black and white ink-saving Writing Pages and Home Connection Page for in-person teaching
virtual field trip resource preview

Your students will love this hands-on virtual field trip! Looking for more virtual fun? Check out my other virtual field trip resources here. 

What’s your favorite thing about virtual field trips? Let me know in the comments!

Memorial Day Activities For Kids


Memorial Day 2022 is quickly approaching. For many people, this is a way to kick off the summer season. But it is important to teach students that on this holiday we honor those who have lost their lives fighting for our country. 

If you are here to find some Memorial Day activities for elementary students, you’re in the right place. First, let’s dive into why we celebrate it and how to teach it. 

Memorial Day Activities for kids pin image

Why is it important to celebrate Memorial Day? 

This isn’t just a day with cookouts and get-togethers. For many, it is a day to honor lost family members and celebrate their memory. Celebrating shows your appreciation for their service to our country and helps us remember the names of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for us. 

How do you teach Memorial Day? 

To teach students about this important day, there are some great Memorial Day activities that you can add to your lesson plans. Here are some ideas to get you started. 

  • Read books about Memorial Day. Books are always a great way to help students understand subjects like this. Head over to your school library to see what books are available on the topic or shop around like this one here. 
  • Write a letter to a hero. If your students have any friends or family members that served they can write a letter to them. For other students, you can have them write a letter to a hero you select for them. This is a great way to give students perspective and a chance to express their gratitude. 
  • Watch some Memorial Day videos on YouTube like this one here. 
  • Do some patriotic crafts. You can have students create American Flags and decorate the classroom or hall with them, or you can create other crafts that are red, white, and blue. 
  • Get some colored chalk and decorate the blacktop or sidewalks outside your school with patriotic decorations. 
  • Encourage students to wear their favorite patriotic clothes. 
  • Watch a Memorial Day Parade on YouTube like this one here. 

If you are looking for more Memorial Day education activities, check out my Memorial Day resource here. 

Memorial Day Activities for Elementary: Writing Unit Preview

Perfect for students in first through fifth grade, you’ll get a variety of writing activities that will teach students about this important holiday. 

Included with this resource, you’ll get 

  • an informational sheet about the holiday
  • acrostic poems with self-rating systems
  • Home of the Free Because of the Brave printable
  • Informational writing planning page
  • Informational writing page
  • Thank you, Hero Letter
  • Thank You Letter
  • Posters for students to fill out
  • Poster about informative writing
  • Transitional words and phrases list
  • Word wall words
  • Rubric

Since they are writing activities, they can be adapted to be Memorial Day virtual activities if needed, just explain the assignment to students and have them use their paper at home! 

Looking for more information for teaching Memorial Day? Check out my post here. 

How do you teach about Memorial Day?

Everything You Need To Know To Teach Community Helpers

Let’s talk about community helpers! This is one of my favorite topics to teach because you can tell it just opens up a whole new world to little learners. They learn about all of these professions and sometimes they decide what they want to be when they grow up. If you are looking for some community helpers crafts and activities, you’re in the right place! 

Community Helpers worksheets

This is an important lesson because, among many other reasons, it helps students learn how a community works and the importance of working together. 

So what is the role of community helpers? 

Generally, this is anyone who helps our community function. They perform the day-to-day activities that we need in order to live our lives. They are incredibly important! 

What are some examples of community helpers? 

When making your community helpers list, think about professions like police officers, firefighters, teachers, doctors, nurses, grocery store clerks, and mailmen. 

Here are some lesson ideas, community helpers activities, and community helpers printables to get you started! 

  1. Bring in guest speakers. This is an easy and fun one! Reach out to parents to see if they are a community helper. If so, invite them into your classroom to talk to your students about what it’s like. If not, you can reach out to local police officers, or fire stations and see if anyone would be interested in talking to the class. 
  2. Keep a journal. As students are learning about the different types of helpers, encourage them to keep a journal. They can write down what they have learned, draw pictures, store any community helpers crafts, etc. 
  3. Find places that help the community. You can sit with your students and brainstorm places where these helpers might work and take a virtual field trip! Search online for a video tour of one of these places for students to explore. 
  4. Discuss long ago vs. today. This is a great opportunity to explain to students how things have evolved and changed in our community. 
  5. Read some books about helpers in the community. This can be any book about doctors, teachers, police, mailmen, etc. 

Don’t have time to plan? I have you covered. Check out my Community Helpers Worksheets resource! This download is nine weeks of lessons designed to easily create a journal for students to use, interactive notebook pages, posters, and so much more!

Community Helpers interactive notebook

Here’s everything included

  • Weekly Detailed Lesson Plans for 9 Weeks
  • Home connection parent letter
  • Journal cover
  • Word Bank for the Journal
  • KWL
  • Printables to insert as a journal or use individually covering different helpers, tools and equipment, and today & long ago
  • Rubric for the journal
  • Nine interactive notebook pages (suggested to do once a week on Fridays)
  • Classroom posters

EXTRAS:

  • Poem/songs
  • Dial 911
  • Cut and label the police officer
  • Cut and label the firefighter
  • Volunteer art handprint gift
  • Sample of how to make the gift
  • Police officer hat/headband craft
  • Police badges
  • Firefighter hat

activities and posters

My biggest tip for teaching community helpers for kindergarten or first grade is to have fun! Students love exploring and learning about these different professions. For more tips on teaching this unit, check out my post here! 

What are your favorite ways to teach this unit? Let me know in the comments!