Most preschoolers love playing memory, so make it even more educational by playing with letter sounds. Start by writing each letter onto an index card or a piece of card stock cut to size. Scour old magazines with your child to find pictures that represent each letter, such as of a pig for "P," and cut and paste the pictures onto another set of index cards, one per letter. Turn all of the cards face down. Each player gets to turn over two cards on his turn to make a match between the letter and the pictures that represent the letter sound. Make sure you and your preschooler make the letter sounds for every card and picture you turn over to reinforce all of the letters.
Create a river out of a long piece of fabric or two squiggly yarn lines. Have children sit on one side of the river while you call out letter sounds. Your preschoolers must cross the river by using the letter stepping stone that matches the sound you call, being careful not to "splash" into the river if they try to use the wrong letter. Once children are older, you can even adapt this favorite game to spell short words by jumping on multiple letters to cross the river.
This fishing game can be played a variety of ways, so your preschooler will never get bored. Start by making "fish" out of cardboard and painting or coloring them as desired. Add a magnet to one side and a letter to the other. Attach a long string to a stick or dowel rod and tie the string around a magnet to create your fishing pole. Fill a small baby pool or a large bowl with your fish and tell your little fisherman to get ready. Let her toss out her line and practice saying the letter sounds together when you see which fish she has caught.
Set up a digging station where your preschooler can really get his hands dirty. Fill a large plastic tub with sand, dry rice or dry beans. Purchase or make several three-dimensional copies of the letter you are studying out of wood, metal, plastic or foam, and bury them in your digging center. Choose several small objects that start with the letter and add them to your tub. Give preschoolers a wooden spoon or sand shovel, or just let them dig in to uncover letters and objects. As they pronounce the object names out loud while comparing them with the letter, they will be reinforcing letter sounds while they dig and play.