Homeschooling Activities for Preschoolers: The Letter Monster!

Nothing will get a preschooler engaged quite like a crazy, letter-eating monster.  🙂  There’s just something about a little heart-pounding, adrenalin-pumping fun that really makes the ABC’s interesting.

Throughout my homeschooling venture, I have realized that keeping the alphabet fun and creative is so critical!  It’s so interesting to me that a “boring” lesson is easily forgotten, but a high-energy, fun lesson seems to stick in their little brains forever!

If you’re anything like me, after weeks of alphabet games and activities, you start to run a little dry on ideas.  Panic sets in, because you’re only on letter M and already you’re completely tapped of all your creative juice.

Hopefully, the idea that I’m sharing with you today will ease your panic and buy you at least a week of coming up with the next new game.  🙂

I stumbled across this a few weeks ago.  Instantly I loved it, and with only a few of my own modifications, have come up with Rudy’s favorite (and most influential) ABC activity yet:

The Letter Monster!

With only a few materials that you probably already have around your house, you’re going to create a “monster” that begs for “letter crackers”!

I use a goofy “monster” voice to ask Rudy for a specific “letter cracker” that is lying on the floor.  If he doesn’t find it quickly enough, then the “letter monster” starts to get hungry and impatient and might start eyeing one of Rudy’s fingers for a snack!  🙂

It is absolutely hilarious!  Rudy loves the fast-paced action that the “letter monster” demands and the funny things that the monster says and does.  I love the quick decision-making skills and letter recognition that Rudy doesn’t even realize he is accomplishing!

How to make the letter monster:

1. Find an empty can of oats, grits, bread crumbs, etc… with the lid still on.
2. Cut out a large, happy-face mouth in the can.
3. Cut a piece of blank white paper to fit around the can.  Include the “mouth” that you have already cut into the can.
4. Decorate the can with googly eyes.  I also drew all the letters of the alphabet all over the monster.
   
5. Glue brightly colored yard/string onto the lid for hair.
   
6. For the “letter crackers”, cut out 52 circles out of cereal  box cardboard.  On the  blank side of the circle write on letter.  You will have 52 “crackers” because you want an uppercase and lowercase of each letter.  This is a great method for teaching the ability to recognize either the uppercase or lowercase of a letter.

How to play:

1. Scatter five to eight “crackers” on the floor at a time.
2. Introduce your child to the “letter monster”.  Make it fun and silly!  Using a goofy monster voice, explain to your child that the “letter monster” is hungry for some “letter crackers”.
3. Have the “letter monster” ask your child for one of the crackers that is lying on the floor. When he finds the correct one, have him feed it to the monster by stuffing it in the monster’s open mouth.  Rudy loves it when the “letter monster” makes funny gobbling noises, burps, and asks for more!

If Rudy doesn’t find one quickly enough, then sometimes the “letter monster” grows impatient and might start snacking on Rudy’s fingers or toes!  You can get really fun and creative with this, and all along, they are learning their letters! have had a blast with this game!

I hope it eases your stress for finding creative methods for teaching the alphabet…I know it did for me!

Lauren Souers

Hi, my name is Lauren. I am the wife of one fine man and the momma of four (huge) young children – three boys and one princess! I love all of them. I mostly clean up messes and feed people all day, and it’s really fun to write about it. Jesus is the rock of my family – we love and serve a mighty King! I hope you leave here full of hope that “tired” can be good.