Fill the Rainbow :0) 2013

I gotta tell you I have the most amazing group of kids this year! They are perhaps the sweetest and most well-behaved kiddos I've ever had....I adore them....However, I must also admit that I have many who really struggle.....Even after lots of intense letter instruction, fun games, engaging songs and dances - kinesthetic everything.......I had some kiddos that just didn't get it.....It's like they don't understand (which they probably don't) how important letters are or their utility. I asked myself, "How can I convince them to be interested in learning those letters?"

So, I decided to come up with a way to motivate the kiddos to learn those letters. That is how I came up with my "Fill the Rainbow" incentive chart.

So, in order to keep myself from going off the deep-end (I gotta say I contemplated trying to hang myself by the fishing line clips hanging from my ceiling if I couldn't figure out a way to get those kids WANTING to learn their letters. :0) It drove me CU-RAZY!

 Instead of hanging myself :0), I decided to take the bull by the horns and use 5 year old enthusiasm to my advantage!

I began by making sure I had the most up-to-date data on them. I tested the kiddos' letter knowledge (upper and lowercase), sounds, and word wall knowledge. I highlighted each letter/sound they knew. That way when I retest, I can use the same sheets and continue highlighting as they learn more letters/sounds. Can anyone say terrific ongoing progress monitoring?

This is a super easy sheet I use to test letters. I use a set of super large letters to test. The letters I have have the uppercase letter on one side and the lowercase letter on the other side. I use them as flashcards. If a child gets the letter correct I place it in a pile in front of me to one side and if it is incorrect I carefully put it in another pile to the other side. I didn't want the kids to get too focused on whether they got it right or not. I just wanted them to try their best. For kiddos who knew very few letters - I simply slowly flashed the cards and told them to tell me if they saw a letter they knew. That way they felt successful for being able to tell me they knew a letter instead of constantly saying, "I don't know", "I don't know", I don't know".


This is where the fun began!!! I introduced the "Fill the Rainbow" incentive chart as something so cool and special. I promised them they would get to take it to show it off to the principal when it was full and they get to take it home to brag to mom and dad too.:0) THEY FELL HEAD OVER HEELS FOR IT!!!!

I used the black and white versions of the rainbow so my kids could color it (you know - take ownership of their rainbow). However, I also provide the beautiful colored versions too! :0)

Then, I showed them their rainbow  -- the good, the bad, and yes they ugly :0) I didn't call anyone out for not knowing letters of course, but I did let them see where they were. I gave them colored dot stickers to place on each letter that was highlighted (a letter they knew)..... Now, in the pack, I included printed letter coins, but I just loved them using stickers - EASY PEASY LEMON SQUEEZY!!

Next, we hung the rainbows on the same ceiling clips I thought about hanging myself from a couple weeks ago. :0) Each child knows exactly where their rainbow is and can always see the letters they still need to work on. So, it's kind of always in their face.....They love looking at the rainbows - love talking about the letters that they know......but get this......WAIT FOR IT.......They love noticing the letters they don't know! I even notice how attentive they are when we are singing letter songs or studying letters -- they have a FIRE lit under them now. They can't wait to come tell when they've learned a new letter. When I am satisfied they they know that letter - they can add a sticker to the rainbow for that letter. They are asking friends, "What's that letter again?" or "I saw that letter in the poem. I learned it!" They are proud of themselves and taking ownership of their own letter learning....Who could ask for anything more??!!!

Gosh, I wished I had thought of this years ago. Now, my kiddos are all on their way to knowing all the letters of the alphabet.....and I notice they take much more interest in reading and learning sight words now too...They have taken the first steps to taking ownership of their learning -- HOORAY!!


If you'd like to use the Letter ID/Sound testing sheet - you can GRAB it here!

You can check out the rest of my "Fill the Rainbow" Incentive Chart HERE!!

It also has programmable name BRAG TAGS included as a fun way to celebrate with parents!