My preschool class is currently deep in the throes of learning the names of the letters of the alphabet. They LOVE learning letters and love to participate in many alphabet activities.
However, what a toddler or preschool student loves most is THEIR letter, you know, the one that is the first letter in their name. I can’t blame them, I’m pretty partial to my letter “E”, too.
One day I decided to create an activity that would not only allow them to learn a letter name, but also be their initial. We all know how popular crayon resistant art is, and this is just a spin on that. We made Tie Dye Magic Alphabet Letters, and you should have heard the *squeals* when their initial magically appeared on their paper!
Tie Dye Magic Alphabet Letters
This post contains affiliate links to make it easier for you to recreate this fun at home. Please see my disclosure policy and as always, thanks for your support.
Materials:
- White construction paper
- Watercolors (various colors)
- Paintbrushes
- White Crayon
- Scissors
Instructions:
- Cut a piece of white construction paper in half. These are better sized for little painters.
- Draw your little one’s initial in uppercase or lowercase using your white crayon on the white construction paper. I drew over the line many times to make it bold. I recommend construction paper due to its thickness compared to regular white paper. It will hold the watercolors better.
- Mix the paint. In my classroom I used liquid watercolors, but regular watercolors will do also. Very little color is needed, so I used a teeny bit of paint with a lot of water to make the watercolors more watery so it doesn’t cover up the crayon letter.
- Paint! And watch your magic letters appear!
To make the colors of the paint look tie dye on the paper, I let the children use 3 different colors. Since the watercolors are so thin, they will run together, creating beautiful swirls of colors. This is also a great teaching opportunity to talk about what colors they are using, and what colors appear from mixing colors.
The kids shrieked in delight not only at the surprise letter on their paper, but that it was “MY LETTER!” Many preschoolers will just say, “That’s my letter!” or “It’s my name!”, so this is a great time to tell them the name of the letter and say, “You’re right! It’s the letter M for Megan!”
This is an easy activity to create at home, or in a classroom. It’s fun and the kids will love the surprise. Don’t try to do all the letters of the alphabet at once, the activity will seem daunting and ruin the fun of the activity.
This also makes a fun alphabet activity by writing your child’s whole name and reciting the letters with them as they appear. You can even write surprise words on the paper for them to reveal! Words like “Cat, The, And, and Go” are a great place to start!
Have fun trying this activity at home!
Looking for more alphabet activities?
Erica Leggiero, M.S. Ed.
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