Enjoy fun ways to teach the alphabet. Learning the letter H can incorporate fun learning activities for preschoolers and kindergarteners.
The Waldorf method of introducing letters encourages children to make connections to the shape of each letter. This creates a fun way of learning each letter and a cue to help children remember how to write each one.
For instance, if a child goes to write the letter H and can't remember how, you can prompt them to remember their H houses from this lesson. The child now has connections to the form of the letter -- this builds as solid a foundation for letter writing as the third piggy's brick house!
Learning the Letter H
To begin: Tell a story
The key is to begin with a story that will feature your letter in some way. The Waldorf teaching method strongly encourages oral storytelling. The best part of this lesson is that I used a familiar story that my child loves (and one that I don't have to spend time memorizing!): "The Three Little Pigs."
My add-on: Choose a sound motif to feature your letter's sound within your story. For "The Three Little Pigs," I used the wolf's HUFF to emphasize the /h/ sound.
Lay on the H's throughout the story!
~Name the wolf and piggies Holden, Hank, Hans, Henry...
~Each piggy got HOT while working in the HEAT
~The pig builds with HEAVY bricks
~The HUNGRY wolf
Etc...
Illustrate the letter
To complement your story, create an illustration or picture of your letter. This can be a simple sketch or a fully developed illustration. I created my chalkboard image and then acted out the story using the board. I printed out little piggies and taped them to popsicle sticks for characters. (And I wrote their names on the back so I could keep each piggy straight!)
After your story, have children create their letter drawing. You can keep a blank notebook just for your child's letter drawings. I like to create mine next to my child so he can model what I'm doing.
What else?
For additional activities to promote sound awareness and build letter writing skills, take a look at my post on how to introduce the letters. This post includes more specific activities on building sound awareness for your letter, practice writing the letter, and using the letter to start building words.
Step 4: Cross-Curricular Connections
From here, I have added on my own ideas to enhance a curriculum around each letter. Please note that Amazon affiliate links are included in this post. These links include items I have used with my own child and highly recommend! (As you can see below, I can't resist a good book.)
Math
Shape Recognition: Introduce students to shapes that start with the letter "H," such as hexagons or heptagons. Have them identify and compare these shapes with others.
Science
Habitat Exploration: Introduce students to different habitats (e.g., forest, desert, ocean) and discuss the animals and plants that live in each habitat. Discuss how organisms adapt to their habitats and the interdependence between living organisms and their environment. You can study specific habitats more in depth like the rainforest or the ocean and learn about the unique species that inhabit them and more in depth qualities of that particular habitat.
Here's the lesson I created on habitats:
Guiding Question: What makes a habitat a home?
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Human Anatomy: Focus on the human body and its different systems. Focus on parts that start with the letter "H," such as the heart, hair, hands, or head. Discuss their functions and importance. For example, discuss the heart, which plays a crucial role in circulation, and how it pumps blood throughout the body. Explore the concept of homeostasis, the body's ability to maintain internal balance. For hair, have fun trying out new hairstyles!
Hibernation: Study the concept of hibernation in animals.
Discuss how certain animals adapt to survive harsh conditions by entering a state of reduced metabolic activity. Explore the physiological changes that occur during hibernation and the benefits it provides for these animals. We particularly enjoyed the picture book Winter Sleep: A Hibernation Story to introduce this topic. This text is my favorite from all books we explored in our focus on the letter H. A less technical, but silly and fun read was Hibernation Hotel. (Re-reads were requested for this one!)
Hydrogen: Discuss the first element on the periodic table. Discuss its properties, occurrence in nature, and its importance in various chemical reactions.
Hot air balloon & Heat: Learn how a hot air balloon works to explore the concept of heat and its effects. You could demonstrate conduction, convection, and radiation using various materials. For example, you can show how heat conducts through different metals or how convection occurs in liquids. For an older child, one of my own childhood favorite reads was The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene du Bois. (Letter-building bonus: each family in the story features a different letter of the alphabet!!)
Animals - Learn about animals that begin with the letter H:
Horse
Hippo
Hawk
Hummingbird
Hamster
Hare
Hyena
Hammerhead Shark
Hermit Crab
Hedgehog
Honey Bee
Literature
Introduce historical fiction, for instance by watching Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Hero's Journey: Introduce the story archetype of The Hero's Journey. Watch Disney's Hercules and then read a book about a hero.
For a hero picture book, I recommend Joe Todd-Stanton's Brownstone's Mythical Collection series. These are longer picture books and very high quality. The first book in the series is a perfect pairing for the hero archetype: Arthur and the Golden Rope.
Social Studies
Hawaii: Teach students about the US state of Hawaii. For a movement activity, students can learn about and do a hula dance. By now, you may have caught on that I frequently introduce a new topic by...reading a book! If your child has started on The Magic Tree House series, use High Tide in Hawaii for this one! (I recommend reading this series to your child around 4-5 years old. We began with the ninja story and my 4-year-old was hooked on the series.)
Hieroglyphics: Explore ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Discuss the purpose and symbols used in hieroglyphics. Teach the students a few basic hieroglyphic symbols and have them create their own messages or names using these symbols. They can use pencils or markers on paper or even try carving their hieroglyphics into clay tablets made from playdough.
Holidays: Teach students about various holidays and why and how they are celebrated.
Art
Crafts - Make a mini book of letters featuring objects starting with your letter (color, cut, and paste pictures in).
Handprint Art: Have students create artwork using handprints. They can decorate their handprints with illustrations or designs related to "H" words.
Huichol Yarn Art: Introduce the traditional Huichol yarn art from Mexico. Discuss its history and cultural significance. Provide the students with cardboard, colorful yarn, and glue. They can create their own Huichol-inspired yarn art by applying glue in different patterns and placing the yarn on top to create vibrant and textured designs.
Hat Design: Encourage creativity by having the students design their own hats. Provide plain paper hats or hat templates, along with art supplies like markers, glitter, feathers, tissue paper, and other decorative materials. Discuss different types of hats and the purposes they serve. The students can then decorate their hats to reflect their personal style or a specific theme.
Music
Harmony: Teach the concept of harmony in music. Explain how multiple notes played or sung simultaneously create harmonies. Demonstrate simple harmonies by playing chords on a keyboard or singing in rounds. Encourage the students to listen for harmonies in songs they know and participate in group harmony activities.
Instruments: Introduce musical instruments that begin with the letter "H." Discuss their characteristics, how they are played, and the sounds they produce. Examples include the harmonica, harp, horn, and hand drums. Demonstrate the instruments or play recordings showcasing their unique sounds.
Health
Health: Discuss the salient factors that contribute to a healthy person such as hygiene, nutrition, exercise (enjoy hiking!).
Cooking
Meals - Make a special effort to eat foods beginning with the letter H. (And make them together, when possible!)
Hamburger
Honey (not to be given to babies)
Hummus
Hot dog
Honeydew melon
Hash browns
Hard-boiled eggs
Halibut or Haddock
Game Ideas
Engage the child in some interactive activities that help them associate the sound with the letter.
Make various sounds of different letters, and see if the child can identify your letter's sound.
Give the child pictures of objects/animals, and see if they can identify the ones beginning with your letter. As the child becomes more comfortable with the letter "H" sound, start to introduce words that have the "H" sound in the middle or at the end of the word.
Create a word search with simple words beginning with "H."
Play bingo or hangman with your letter.
Have the child act out a story related to the letter H/create a letter H puppet show.
Once you've studied a few letters: Play hopscotch! Tape pieces of paper with different letters into a hopscotch arrangement. Make the sound of each letter while the child jumps to it. (Or have them make the sound of each letter they jump to.)
Play hide & seek.
Play with hula hoops!
Once you've studied a few letters: Play the floor is lava. Instead of placing traditional color swatches on the ground, place swatches with different letters. Have students jump to each letter when you make its sound.
Writing Ideas
Have students practice writing the capital and lowercase letter on traditional lined paper.
Practice drawing the shapes in the air.
Have students walk the shape by taping the letter onto the floor.
Practice forming the letter using playdough, sand, shaving cream, or using any other materials.
Most importantly, create an environment where your child can explore and have fun learning! The list above is intended to spark ideas and help you pick activities that align with your child's own interests.
Happy letter learning!
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