What's in a name?

 Name recognition is one of the first steps in letter awareness and literacy. It makes sense that kids would initially be interested in the letters that make up their names. I know my youngest daughter has taken extreme ownership of "her" letter Q. And for younger preschoolers and toddler's the first letter is a great place to start! With the first letter. You can change up the "C is for Cookie" song by adding in their names (and then other familiar names if you like). My daughters both love singing along as we name all of our family members and the first letters of their names.

After they master "their" letter, you can move to their whole name. One of my favorite easy activities is making a puzzle with letter magnets that you probably already have. Just trace the letters on a piece of paper and have them match them up (you can put the piece of paper on a cookie tin so the letters don't slip). If you have foam letters or stickers you could also just write the name and have them put the stickers or glue foam letters on to the top of the words.

Another simple DIY is to write their name on a Popsicle stick and then also on some clothespins. They will squeeze the clothespins to match the letters, and which is a practice of dexterity and fine motor control as well.

Another one of my favorite kids song's is Maya Angelou's name song!  It's the perfect song to go along with these activities and I love how it fosters a strong sense of self-esteem. I've even added the lyrics below for you to print off and sing whenever you want <3.