Are you searching for quality literacy resources to engage children in your literacy workstations or Daily 5 Word Work? Literacy centers are a great way for young learners to practice key literacy concepts introduced in class. One of my mentor teachers regularly used them with great success, and since then, I’ve incorporated them into every classroom I’ve worked in.
The activities vary based on the age, abilities, and needs of the children. Early in the school year, the focus is on building phonological skills, such as syllables, rhyming, letter recognition, beginning sounds, and short CVC word spelling and reading. Oral language development is also a key component in these early stages.
As the year progresses, the focus shifts to sight words, parts of speech, digraphs, storytelling, and vocabulary expansion. These literacy activities often incorporate other skills like fine motor development, cooperation, and physical engagement. Each activity is designed for small groups of 3-6 children, lasting 15-20 minutes.
In this blog post, I’ll share some of the literacy activities I’ve successfully used in class.
LETTER RECOGNITION + ALPHABETICAL ORDER
Many children already have some knowledge of the alphabet before starting school, so I like to find fun, hands-on ways to build on that foundation that all students can engage with.
One of my favorite tools is these alphabet rocks, which are simple to make yet highly effective and tactile. I just used a black Sharpie or permanent marker to write lowercase letters on smooth river rocks. I’ve chosen lowercase letters because, while we teach both upper- and lowercase letters, mastering lowercase is crucial for early reading. These rocks are a great resource that you’ll find yourself using again and again!
To start, I place a basket with all the alphabet rocks in the center of the group and give each child a lowercase alphabet card to match the rocks to. This activity helps build letter recognition and one-to-one letter matching skills. To extend the activity, once they’ve completed the lowercase matching, I give them an uppercase alphabet card and have them match the lowercase rocks to the uppercase letters.
For early finishers, I challenge them to identify which lowercase and uppercase letters look the same—such as Cc, Oo, Ss, Uu, Vv, Ww, Xx, and Zz. Another great activity for building letter recognition skills are these letter wheels. I love using them because you can easily swap between uppercase, lowercase, or even initial sounds to match the needs of individual children, making differentiation simple!
Plus, using pegs to match the letters adds an extra layer of fine motor skill development, making this both an engaging and practical activity.
COUNTING SYLLABLES
Recognizing that words can be broken into syllables is a key skill children typically develop by the end of preschool. It’s essential for them to continue practicing, as it becomes invaluable when spelling unfamiliar words.
A great starting point is activities that involve counting and sorting objects, pictures, or words based on their syllables. Years ago, I created syllable sorting mats, which we regularly use in our centers for sorting anything from objects to spelling words.
For older children, the focus can shift to spelling words, helping them practice counting syllables. We use a free printable I created to compare letters, sounds, and syllables.
Later in the year, I incorporate fun games like Syllable BINGO to reinforce their ability to count syllables in words.
LEARNING TO RHYME
Learning to recognize and produce rhyme is another key phonological skill that children are expected to master during their first year of school. However, rhyming can be challenging for many.
At the start of the school year, I use simple tools like Rhyming Word Cards, where children only have to identify a rhyming pair from a small set of words. For example, I might ask, “Does snake rhyme with egg? What about rake? Does snake rhyme with snake?” This helps children understand the concept and build confidence in recognizing rhymes.
To take it a step further, I use 3-part rhyming cards. These work like jigsaw puzzles, and the children enjoy cooperating to complete them. I usually divide the set into smaller trays to make matching easier. The 3-part puzzles not only help with rhyming but also introduce alternative spellings, showing children that while pear/bear/chair sound alike, they are spelled differently.
Producing rhymes is more difficult and often takes longer to develop. To support this, I incorporate SPY mats, which are always a hit in our literacy centers. These mats introduce word families, helping children recognize patterns in language, which makes it easier for them to produce rhyming words. Initially, we focus on identifying rhyming words, and later in the year, we practice spelling them.
Games like Rhyming Word Domino are also a fun way to practice rhyming towards the end of the year, allowing children to apply their knowledge of word families in a playful setting.
BEGINNING SOUNDS
A key aspect of phonological awareness is the ability to identify initial sounds in words and then blend and segment short words based on those beginning sounds.
When children start school, their knowledge of sounds can vary—some may only recognize the first sound in their name, while others might know all their beginning sounds. For those just starting to learn letters and their corresponding sounds, I use tools like Alphabet LEGO Mats. LEGO is always a hit with children, and this activity helps them build letters, practice writing, and connect the symbols to the sounds they make.
As we introduce different letters during spelling lessons, I add batches of Beginning Sound Clip Cards to our literacy centers. These cards allow children to practice independently what they’ve learned. Like our Rhyming Word Cards, they offer three picture choices, keeping it simple. I start with CVC words (e.g., c is for cat) and later introduce cards with blends (e.g., c is for clock).
When we have access to computers, I use interactive games like ABC Match and Picture Match to help reinforce the children’s practice. If we have an extra five minutes at the end of the day, we’ll often use these as a fun way to wrap up.
Another great resource I use are Initial Sound Match Cards. I created two sets—one following the order in which sounds are introduced, allowing children to practice independently after lessons, and a second set featuring all the sounds once they’ve been covered.
Our Initial Sound Alphabet Mats can be used in the same way—either with batches of sounds or all together. Children can work through them to find words that start with the targeted sound and check their answers with the provided answer cards.
WORD WORK
SPELLING AND READING CVC WORDS
When first introducing word families, most literacy programs start with CVC words (consonant-vowel-consonant), as they are the simplest for children to isolate, segment, and blend together to form words.
Resources like CVC Word Family Mats are ideal for engaging children in multisensory activities where they can rhyme, build, and write words. Tools like the Jolly Phonics Alphabet Magnetic Letters are also a fantastic addition to literacy centers, as children enjoy manipulating the letters to create words.
For a more hands-on approach, activities like stamping CVC words in kinetic sand or molding them with playdough are popular with young learners. These Build A Word Mats (CVC, CCVC, CVCC, and CVCe variations) help keep the learning contained and structured while offering variety to the task.
Children benefit from segmenting sounds in words. Using CVC Vowel Clip Cards, they can focus on finding the medial vowel sound in CVC words. Clip cards are a versatile resource, helping build fine motor skills while reinforcing literacy skills.
To practice reading short vowel words, I Can Read CVC Word Cards are perfect. Children must match words to pictures using pegs or counters, which adds a tactile element to reading practice. For those ready for a bit more of a challenge, Crack The Code CVC Cards offer practice in blending individual sounds to form familiar words, particularly for children who know single letter sounds but struggle with blending.
SIGHT WORDS
Incorporating sight words into activities is essential for reinforcing tricky or high-frequency words. Say It, Make It, Write It Mats are a versatile resource for practicing sight words, spelling words, or even names. These mats can be adapted for different purposes, helping children practice writing and building words.
A simple yet effective activity involves using colored craft sticks to sort printed sight words, encouraging children to read and categorize them. For more active learners, Sight Word Splat offers a fun game where children slap sight words with fly swatters. This can also be adjusted for letter recognition for children just starting to learn to read.
For more advanced learners, Sight Word Mats (using playdough or magnetic letters) allow children to build words, trace them, and even form short sentences. These mats are color-coded to help differentiate groups of words, making it easier to target areas where children need more practice.
PARTS OF SPEECH
Literacy centers are a great opportunity to practice grammar concepts like parts of speech. For example, after introducing nouns in class, I might add a Noun Sorting Pack to the literacy center for follow-up practice. For more capable readers, a Parts of Speech Sort activity encourages children to sort words into verbs, nouns, or adjectives, fostering collaborative learning.
We also explore compound words using engaging activities like a Compound Word Sort with colorful paint chips, which help less confident readers match and form compound words. Younger children prefer Picture Compound Word Cards, as the visuals provide additional support. Another fun game we play is Pick A Partner Cards in a memory-style format, allowing children to flip cards and find matching compound word pairs.
DIGRAPHS
Once children have mastered single sounds, we move on to digraphs, which can be challenging for some learners. To introduce these, I use Digraph Picture Cards alongside Digraph Posters in class. Since digraphs can be tricky, I focus on playful learning approaches. For example, I SPY Mats are a fun, game-based activity that allows children to search for and identify digraphs.
As digraphs are often difficult to remember, especially those without clear spelling rules (e.g., /er/, /ir/, /ur/), targeted activities like Digraph Clip Cards offer valuable practice. These cards are particularly useful later in the year when children have been exposed to various digraphs and are ready to focus on spelling.
These activities foster a playful and engaging environment for children to develop their phonological awareness, spelling, and reading skills. By incorporating a variety of hands-on and game-based resources, I can offer differentiated learning opportunities that cater to the needs and abilities of each student.
STORY TELLING + WORK ON WRITING
Developing strong oral language skills is crucial during the early years of school, and literacy centers can effectively facilitate this growth.
Storytelling with puppets, toys, and props like story stones can inspire engaging narratives. I enjoy making my own story stones, as they are easy to create and serve as excellent prompts for writing activities. After students engage in imaginative play to create their own small worlds, they can share or write short stories based on their experiences.
Many of our activities focus on retelling familiar stories. Children can use sequence cards, story stones, and puppets to reenact these tales.
For example, in a center themed around Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson, students sort cards to put the story in order and can also use puppets to act out the narrative. I find puppets to be a wonderful tool for storytelling!
In another activity using the same text, children are encouraged to draw their ideas and label their illustrations, enhancing their understanding of storytelling through visual representation.
Retelling stories also provides a great opportunity to introduce early coding concepts. For instance, we used The Gingerbread Man to create a STEM-enhanced activity that invites students to retell the story in an interactive way.
Additionally, we have activities that encourage students to create their own stories. I love using Tell Me a Story Cards from eeBoo and Rory’s Story Cubes to spark creativity.
Many books serve as fantastic starting points for writing, and I frequently use them for this purpose.
Roll Me A Story Cards have been particularly effective in engaging some of our most reluctant writers, inspiring them to come up with the silliest stories they can imagine.
CONCLUSION
Literacy centers offer a dynamic and engaging approach to fostering literacy skills in learners of all ages. By creating dedicated spaces filled with a variety of activities, materials, and resources, educators can promote independent learning, critical thinking, and a love for reading and writing.
