Magnetic ABC Ocean

There's just something about magnets. Kids love 'em. My boys are no exception.

I made a fun way for my 5-year-old to practice letter recognition using two magnets. This is an easy, low- or no-cost activity that's great for working on the alphabet or even spelling.

Supplies

Disposable dinner-sized paper plate

Ocean scene (download the one I made as a free PDF here)

Sticker paper (or regular office paper and a glue stick)

Two magnets (one decorated with a fish button, sticker, etc.)

Scissors

Assembly

Print the ocean scene and cut it along the circle guideline. Attach to your paper plate.

How to Play

Put the fish magnet on top of the ocean scene, and the other magnet under the plate. By moving the bottom magnet, your child will be able to make the fish swim from one letter to the next in the ocean.

You can call out the letters in the alphabet, have them move the fish through the letters in their name, or even practice their spelling words.

This is surprisingly captivating and held my young son's attention much longer than I anticipated. When he grew weary, we read two great books.