How many times can one play Find your Name?
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner! Find your name is a Breakfast Invitation secret weapon.
Kids love seeing their name. Like, I really enjoy seeing their name.
And so do we! We use our names to mark our workout success, sign off on an email, and identify our Starbucks frappuccino. We find it especially funny when our name gets miswritten.
Let’s use names to help our children grasp a marker, identify letters, and hold their hand steady to design a circle as they find their name.
RELATED: Looking for a way to minimize morning television? You will love our Breakfast Invitations.
Let’s talk about letters and the alphabet.
Letters may have curved lines and also may have straight lines. Some letters even have slants, tunnels, and dots.
The point is, letters themselves can be talked about way more than we would initially think. It is tempting to move right onto reading. But allow yourself (and your child) some time to really dissect what they look like first.
Lines that Wiggle is a great book to continue this conversation. You and your child will begin to notice things in your every day that you may not have given much thought to before reading.
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We love these books that introduce lines and curves!
Find Your Name never gets old.
This can be your first or 76th Breakfast Invitation.
Put this idea on the table, and it will be a success. Better yet, find a long wall and hang it vertically. No matter what your preschooler’s plan of action, they are sure to dive right in.
RELATED: Best Tools to Boost Alphabet Recognition
So let’s get started with this name activity!
First, lay out your white paper. Write a variety of names on the white paper. Include your child’s name multiple times, in multiple colors.
Remember, you can tape this on a table, to the wall, or floor! Think about what your child enjoys or needs to change things up.
Write the names with an uppercase first letter and lowercase for the rest.
Level this up by writing the middle or last name for them to begin to practice with. Grab a marker for them and a cup of coffee for you.
We only use two supplies!
- White paper roll
- Markers – I keep a pack for myself as well!
What happens next?
Your children are now on the hunt to find their names! You can do this in a couple of different ways.
- Allow your child to find their name and circle it. This practice helps strengthen small hands and improve fine motor skills.
- Call a name from the other room, and they run to find it.
- Add their name on Post-it Notes. Place them around the kitchen. Rather than circling their names, they are now finding them and matching them to the white paper roll.
RELATED: This circling practice is also improving pencil grip!
Keep in mind:
Mention what you notice about the first letter in their name. Your name begins with the letter H. Look! H has all straight lines.
Move your finger down the lines and show how they are straight. I wonder if any other letters show straight lines. Let’s look!
You can follow up by searching for the opposite. Now, search and find a letter with curves.
Remember, there is no rush to reading. The more you explore the foundations of letters, the more you are helping your children become better thinkers. They are learning to step back and pay attention to details.
Next, be sure to head to this collection of name recognition activities!
