NOTES This pack of double-sided flashcards features the alphabet in both small and capital letters, aA-zZ. It also includes cards for both the long and short vowel sounds. Use the picture-coded side to introduce the characters and the sound each Letterlander makes. Use the picture side for practising the character names and the plain sides for practice in saying the letter sound. Use either side for building words. The Letterlanders a-z (small letters) and A-Z (capital letters) Annie Apple
Noisy Nick
Bouncy Ben
Oscar Orange
Clever Cat
Peter Puppy
Dippy Duck
Quarrelsome Queen
Eddy Elephant
Red Robot
Firefighter Fred
Sammy Snake
Golden Girl
Talking Tess
Harry Hat Man
Uppy Umbrella
Impy Ink
Vicky Violet
Jumping Jim
Walter Walrus
Kicking King
Fix-it Max
Lucy Lamp Light
Yellow Yo-yo Man
Munching Mike
Zig Zag Zebra
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Letter sounds At this stage it is best to put aside the usual alphabet names, ‘aee, bee, cee, dee’, because most of them start or end with another letter’s sound! If you start by using the Letterland names instead, you will have a reliable way to pronounce all the letter sounds correctly. This is the Letterland sound trick. Just start to say the Letterlander’s name, e.g. Bouncy Ben, ‘b…’ (not ‘bee’ or ‘buh’). Further help with pronunciation is provided on the plain letter side of all the lowercase letter cards. Short vowel sounds are indicated with a little ‘smile’, as in ha˘ t, be˘d, bi˘g, ho˘t and ru˘n. A straight line indicates a long vowel, as in apron, eat, ice, old and use. The Letterland Alphabet Songs CD will also help you pronounce the sounds correctly, and make learning all 31 sounds both easy and more fun. Capital letters Child-friendly explanations on the plain sides of the capital letter cards create an ideational link between small and capital letter shapes.
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Ideas for using these cards Learning small letters First focus on the small letter shapes. Look at the pictogram sides of the cards and become familiar with the character names. Then try this activity. • Show the pictogram side of a small letter card and ask, ‘Who is this?’ • Encourage your child to answer with the character name and sound (e.g. ‘Clever Cat, c…’). The sound is always exactly the same sound that starts each character’s name. • Repeat with three or four more cards. Then add a few more each time until you have covered a-z. • The next step is to really learn the sounds. First explain that when the Letterlanders go into words they hide behind their letter shapes. Then hold up the plain letter side, asking only for the sound, not the Letterland names. That way, we don’t give away their hiding places!
c
can, cap and Clever Cat starts words like can cup with her whispered ‘c…’ c sound.
• If help is needed, cue the correct answer by turning to the pictogram side, or show a child that he or she has got it right.
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Gradually build up the number of cards taught with the child or children giving the sound only, until you have covered a-z. (You may like to introduce the five long vowels, the Vowel Men, a little later.) Then have some fun and see how fast you can go through all the letters. The faster the answers come the better. When you can flash all 26 plain letter sides and the child or children can quickly give you just the correct sound for each one, you will have provided a firm foundation for learning to read and spell. Learning capital letters Once your child has mastered the small letters, try pairing a few small and capital letters. On each capital letter card you will find a Letterland explanation for the new shape. Explain that capital letters are used to start important words. ‘Important’ words are, in this case, ones which begin sentences or people’s names. All the Letterlanders make their usual sounds in both their small and capital letter shapes.
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e
Eddy Elephant starts words like end, elbow and EXIT with his ‘‰…’ sound.
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Game ideas Guess who? Pick a card at random and hold it behind your back. The child guesses from your clues which Letterlander you have hidden. For example, if you are holding h, you could say, “He makes this sound: ‘hhh…’,” or “He wears a green hat,” or “He starts words like house”. Matching small and capital letters Use the story-like reasons on the backs of the capital letter cards to create an ideational link between the small and capital letter pictograms. Try pairing them using the pictogram sides. When this becomes easy, try the plain side for one of the letters in the pair. Soon pairing aA – zZ will be easy using only plain letters. Alphabetical order Set out the letters (either small or capital) in a big arc in front of you in alphabetical order. Talk about who is next to who to make the sequence easier to remember. Introduce the long vowel cards (the Vowel Men) by placing them above the matching short vowels and point out how the vowels are spread out across the alphabet. The Vowel Men are the only Letterlanders that say their alphabet names in words, so simply call them ‘long vowels’ or ‘The Vowel Men’ instead of ‘long vowel sounds’.
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Building words Build simple 3-letter words for to read, using the words given on the backs of the cards. Say them together, stretching the word so that the child sees and hears how each sound helps to make the word. At this stage avoid words with irregular sounds (where one or more letters are not making their usual sounds). Next try two letters, e.g. a t, and give your child or group c, m, p and h. Try making words together, starting with any of them. Later, try helping your child to complete words, e.g. h a‌ with t, m or d. Later still, try some regular four-letter words. Or, put two words you have made side by side and try reading them both, e.g. ‘can swim’. When you set out the cards, ready for building words, it is a good idea to put them all in an a-z arc again. As a child reaches for specific cards, he or she gradually improves knowledge of alphabetic order. When children are confident doing these activities, you are ready to move on to Second Reading Flashcards and the chance to play with 75 new words and to build simple sentences. Above all, keep learning with the Letterland flashcards and have fun!
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Annie Apple starts words like and, ant Å…’ sound. and animal with her ‘Å
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Bouncy Ben starts words like bag, bed b…’ sound. and big with his ‘b
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Clever Cat starts words like can, cap and cup with her whispered ‘cc…’ sound.
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Annie Apple and her friends love to sit on Å…’ whenever their Applestand and say ‘Å they can start a name or a sentence.
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Bouncy Ben loves to balance his best ball on his head whenever he is at the start of a name or a sentence.
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C Clever Cat takes a deep breath and gets bigger whenever she can start a name or a sentence.
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