I’m a teacher and a flashcard lover. Wait, WHAT?! A teacher who loves flashcards!? You mean those very outdated, boring pieces of paper, that an adult flips in front of a child while they robotically spit out the letter name? Yes. I am a flashcard lover.
Although I do LOVE flashcards, I do NOT believe in them being these boring little pieces of paper that children grow to despise. They are so much more than little pieces of paper and have more value than some may be aware of—all it takes is a little innovation and creativity!
Flashcards can be a very useful tool for learning. I personally loved them growing up because I find myself to be a visual learner. Even in high school and college, I would find myself constructing flashcards on my own to study for exams. Now, while I may not have been playing games with them in college, my mom (a preschool teacher) did a great job doing so when I was little.
Alphabet flashcards, in particular, are a great early literacy tool. They allow children to recognize letters by sight and understand the correspondence between letters and their respective sounds. These are the basic building blocks of early literacy, or getting your child to READ.
Flashcards certainly do not have to be boring! I use these tools as a way to engage my students in a fun way while building their phonics and letter recognition skills. Check out some of my favorite alphabet flashcard games below.
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Find the Letter or Sound
- This activity is great for beginners. Kids love these “hunting” games. Spread out alphabet flashcards on the table (you can choose a few at a time, or place them all out at once if your child has a good grasp of most letters and sounds). You say a letter (or a sound) and kids have to find and point to the matching card.
Matching
(Lowercase and Uppercase)
- For this game, you will need two sets of flashcards (one uppercase and one lowercase). Lay out one set of cards (uppercase or lowercase) on the table. Shuffle the other set and hand it to the child, then have them match the uppercase letters to the lowercase counterparts.
- *Bonus- make it extra fun or challenging by setting a timer and seeing how fast they can complete the task. Write down their time and see if they can improve next time! (This also helps improve fluency for letter recognition—or how fast they can recognize the letters.)
Tracing
- Young children need to develop fine motor skills, so what better way to do that than by using their fingers to trace the letters on the flashcards! Lay a flashcard down and have your child trace it with their finger. This will not only help with fine motor skills, but also helps children remember the letter by using their body as they are practicing the letter!
Scavenger Hunt
- This is a great game for multiple kids! Hide the cards around the house or classroom. Have children find as many as they can. When they come back, have them see If they can identify all of their cards.
- *Bonus challenge– if they are still missing some letters, have them try to figure out which letters are missing before they try and find them again. You can also time this activity for an added thrill!
Swat It
- This game can be played with one child or a few! (You’ll need one fly swatter for each). Give each child a fly swatter. (I found this cute ladybug one at Dollar Tree!) Spread the flashcards out on the floor or table. (You can even adhere them to the wall!) Call out a letter or sound and have the children “swat it” with the fly swatter!
I hope you enjoyed these ideas for alphabet flashcard games! Place your email in the box below to get your FREE set of flashcards! I created this resource in 3 different sets (combined uppercase and lowercase, uppercase only and lowercase only) depending on your goals or game! All sets come in color or black and white. Just print on cardstock and laminate for durability! (I love my Scotch laminator! I have an older model that has been with me for about 10 years. You can find an updated model here. I use these laminating sheets as well.)
