Alphabet ParkThis story is designed to teach children the basics of reading; so, they will learn to read, and then "read to learn". This storybook teaches: the alphabet; -what an alphabet lowercase letter sounds like (Capitals come later); -that sounds of letters make words and words are things; -nouns are names of something; -how to use imagination; -communication skills; -about feelings and values; -developmental movement activities; -starting to write the lowercase letter sounds (phonetic letter sounds); -starting to write Dolch pre-primer Sight Words (the whole-word approach). Each page has a story about a letter of the alphabet; then there is either a question about the story, or a movement activity; children are asked to write the sound of the alphabet letter, and finally pre-primer Dolch words. The Alphabet Park story teaches preschool children the sounds of the alphabet; that each letter has different sounds; those sounds make words; the beginning of phonetics; and the Whole Word method of reading. When reading the story to preschool children follow this method: -you can choose to just read the story, or read the story and choose to answer any, or all the questions for child/teacher interaction; -always do the developmental movement activities to stimulate the senses and keep preschool children focused; -after reading the story about six times and the children are familiar with the story, introduce the "Lesson" part of the story; -have children start pronouncing the lowercase alphabet sound first; then words from the Dolch list at the end of this book; -create a Word Wall with the lowercase alphabet letter sound and corresponding picture. letters should be in large print - 2 inches or larger; -label parts of your environment with words i.e. table, window, chair etc. Just imagine a child who is self-confident, has morals and values; good self-esteem; good thinking skills; well developed senses and awareness; artistic; creative; responsible; able to socialize; able to read, write and communicate ideas; what a fantastic foundation for the successful child to have. The author believes children should learn to read at an early preschool age, but in a fun, play based and interactive way.
