Most children learn the alphabet first, and then are taught to read and write.
Our Alphabetti method takes a different approach: we teach the alphabet one letter at a time, and then immediately immerse a child in the USE of that letter by having the child read and write words using the letter. And as a child learns more and more letters, he/she is able to read and write more and more words.
This system virtually eliminates the letter-sound confusions that many children experience after learning the alphabet.
Another important feature of our Alphabetti system is SHAPE RECOGNITION.
Some children are confused by fonts. They try to memorize the various squiggles and bumps that are inherent in a font, and become lost when confronted with a different font.
Our Alphabetti books concentrate on the basic shape of a letter, independent of font characteristics. In this fashion, children don't become font-dependent when learning to read.
And by teaching the shapes, we can also teach the DIFFERENCES between letters that are easily confused: “d” versus “b,” “p” versus “g,” and so on. Our system also teaches children little tricks they can use to remember which confusing letter is which.
(And for those of you who want to know how we divided up the different alphabet shapes, read this article.)
Another feature of the Alphabetti system is teaching lowercase and uppercase separately. First we teach the lowercase letters, then we teach the uppercase letters.
This has two advantages:
- Easier learning curve: less things to memorize before starting to read and write.
- Easier memorization: we teach uppercase letters by shape and by their relation to the lowercase letters, along with little tricks to help a child remember what is what. We also teach HOW the uppercase letters are used, which gives context to the lessons.
We also teach the alternate forms of lowercase letters "a." "g" and "q." This way, children are able to read books and work materials without font limitations (different fonts use different forms of these letters).
