Phonics Letter Hunt Bin

Objective: Dig up the objects and letters hidden in each respective bin to build letter recognition and sound identification.

Basic Materials:

For this bin you’ll need a mat (highly encouraged for mess sake). Having a mat or sheet down makes it easier to sweep up later, keeps it out of carpets, and scattering all over wooden floors. A base of some sort for hiding the items. Here we’ve used our DIY rainbow rice. Beans, split peas, popcorn kernels, and/or pasta shells are also good fun options. Sensory bin tools, spoons and scoops. ABC flash cards or blocks with the letters on them and a variety of toys from their room starting with the letters being used to hide in the rice.

How I Interact:

First, I hid the toys and items I pulled from her room that started with an A or B in each bin. Second, gave a quick demonstration by uncovering an object, naming what it was, and hiding it again right after. Then I let her take over. My main interaction here is repeatedly naming the items she’s finding and the letters they start with, while also making sure majority of the rice stays in the bin.

Benefits:

A great low stress opportunity for strengthening vocabulary, building letter recognition, and sound identification. Additionally, it offers a good fine motor opportunity, grasping and digging in the rice with little hands and scooping with sensory tools. Because sensory play is so beneficial for toddlers it served as an excellent vessel for introducing letters of the alphabet in a fun way.

Yumi was immediately interested in digging up the objects, instantly naming what she found. So to follow I chimed in with “Yes, butterfly! Butterfly starts with B, buh, buh, butterfly! B!” “Let’s see what else we can find that starts with the letter B!” After finding all the items hidden in each bin she spent lots of time pouring and scooping the rice, and even hiding the toys again herself. This activity kept her entertained for no less than 30 minutes, which is always a major plus when engagement is high.

Using only two letters reduces confusion to start, but when you recognize that your child is ready, adding 3-4 letters can be implemented as an additional challenge to the exercise.