What’s the best way to teach the alphabet to K-5 children? Make them move their arms fast. Or hop over a piece of paper. Or pretend to push open a giant door.
Those are a few of the activities in Alphabet on the Move, a new literacy and activity curriculum from Learning ZoneXpress.
“We wanted to bring together movement and literacy,” explains Jennifer Bridges, co-creator of Alphabet on the Move. “They’re the foundation upon which everything else is built: playing, reading, and learning. And we knew from experience and studies that improved physical activity ties in directly with improved academic performance.”
Alphabet on the Move gives each letter a week’s worth of tracing, writing, and physical activities. On Monday of B is for Balance week, for example, a child will balance on her right foot for three seconds, then traces and writes a capital “B.” On Tuesday, it’s the left foot and a small “b.”
The curriculum also comes with tracing and coloring pages for the students, 26 colorful posters for the classroom, and helpful week-at-a-glace pages for the teacher.
Bridges designed Alphabet on the Move with fellow kinesiologist Karen Abels to meet the standards of the International Reading Association (IRA) and the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE).
Jennifer Bridges is a Professor of Kinesiology at Saginaw Valley State University in Michigan, and Karen Abels is an Associate Professor of Kinesiology at the University of North Texas. Both are busy developing more movement-centered learning activities for young children.
Brought to you by guest blogger, Michael Lotti.
