Introduce alphabet letters as toys. Alphabet blocks and magnetic letters that can be stuck on a refrigerator or chalkboard are classic instructional tools that make learning fun. Other ideas for alphabet play include having a child press a letter on a keyboard and watch it display on the screen and using shaving cream or glue and glitter to make letters.
Write the letters of the alphabet on flash cards, starting with lowercase letters, as the majority of letters in books and other readings are written in lowercase.
Present one or two flash cards to the child at a time. Sound out the letters as you present them, and then have the child sound them out so he or she will be able to eventually sound out letters when reading words.
Teach writing skills by drawing letters on paper with a yellow highlighter or in a dotted line, and instruct the child to trace over them.
Play a writing game as the child becomes more comfortable with the alphabet. To do this, start writing a letter and challenge your child to guess which letter you're writing.
Introduce words after the child is comfortable recognizing, sounding out and writing all the letters of the alphabet. To do this, you can instruct him or her to use blocks or other toys to spell out familiar words, like their name, or use flash cards to introduce one or two short words at a time.