Abc's

Books, like Dr. Suess' ABC and Chicka Chicka ABC.

Magnet letters for the fridge and foam letters for the bath tub.

I also got in the habit of singing it while brushing DD's teeth - it's how you know you have brushed long enough. So she was also hearing it twice a day.

I am not anti-TV - a little Sesame Street or Super Why goes a long way (both are on PBS).

DD could recite the whole alphabet by age 2.

My little guy turns 3 next month and he knows the ABC song, and all his letters by sight and I'm working on the sounds with him. One thing he does is play with his ABC wooden puzzle (Target/$5.99) and he goes through and as he puts the letter back he identifies them. He uses the foam letters that stick to the tub during bath time, Target again, and i guess we've just talked and done things with letters and numbers a lot since he was a baby ; )

There are lot of ways, IMO. My DD learned her ABCs partially with a V-Tech laptop. We also have fridge letters (the ones where you put the magnet in the shape and it sings). Books like Chicka Chicka Boom Boom teach letters, too. And just singing the ABC song. Also, even if it's not in order, play the alphabet game in the car where you look for letters. "Look, Ava! There's a V. There's a V in the middle of your name."

My 20m old can sing her ABCs independently because we sang them at every diaper change. Just a tip for others.
For your three year old I would sing them in the car, before bed, and one other specified time of day.
If your looking for more letter recognition type stuff ABC picture books are great. Also, Leap Frog toys.

Try starfall.com. It is an educational website (free). Of course you will have to sit with your child and do the mouse, but my son loved this website. He even sings some of the songs from there.

Hi A. - For preschoolers and toddlers repetition is key. I sang ABC song at bedtime in the beginning = tune is the same as Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and then I'd ask my boys to sing it with me quietly. Then we would just do different things like doing the ABCs as a rap or making up our own ABC songs. Our preschool and kindergarten use ZooPhonics song every day. You can hear it online. There are all kinds of fun versions of the song online too. Have fun!

You might also check out Starfall.com

I think the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom helps enormously. It helps with letter recognition and is fun to read. I also think the ABC magnets are very helpful. Leapfrog makes a Fridge Phonics set that has ABC magnets and a magnetic thing you put the magnets into, and when you press on it, it will say the letter and the sound it makes and also sings the ABC song. It is a little annoying, but my son had his ABC's down at age 2 thanks to that toy.

We're working on this right now. 1 great video we watch is the Lepfrog Letter Factory. Here are a few other things we do:

* Fridge letter magnets

* sticker matching ( I take a piece of paper and write (for example: A B C D) I then write the same letters on stickers (the garage sale labeling type) and have the kids cover up the written letter with the matching sticker.

* Letter matching with flashcards

* Hop to the Letter (I take a piece of paper and write a letter on it. I put several on the floor and say, "Hop to the A, Hop to the C, etc.)

* Read lots of ABC books

* Stamp letters

* Color letter pictures

* Letter of the day

* Letter magnets - find all the A's, Find all the r's,

* Easel matching (draw lines to connect the a's, b's, etc.)

My nonverbal son, 5, has learned the alphabet via reading and hearing various alphabet songs. What I did do to teach my 8 year old daughter was constantly read to her, have her attempt to and read to me, sing songs, play games and always point out various letters and/or words throughout everyday life.

On a sort-of-related note...

My son is a 'will not perform on command' kind of kid. He is super smart, but whenever I'd try to work with him on his letters he'd just make crazy guesses. Then he'd say all the letters and put them in order when he thought I wasn't looking. I knew he could sing his ABC's because I'd hear him in the bath, but he was well over four years old before he was willing to sing it for an audience (me included). (He is the complete opposite of my oldest who will perform anything to anyone!)

I guess my point is to make sure you have materials for your child to work with and offer teaching when you can, but realize each child will learn their own way.

Our school district now teaches the ABCs to the tune of "Mary Had a Little Lamb"! The reason is to break up the LMNOP which trips so many kids. I had to write out a chart for me to be able to teach it to my daycare kids....grrrrr.

At age "just turned 3", you can start your daughter on recognizing the letters in her name. I begin with the 1st letter & work our way thru. A few worksheets, a few hands-on activities to "build" the letter, & lots of identifying it in print....on food products, on clothing labels, on signs, etc. I do not force-feed kids.....I simply make it 2nd nature to identify letters/#s & the kids go town on it!

Oh, & for teaching the song....VTech or LeapFrog has a refrigerator magnet with ABCs. That's how one of my daycare kids learned the song at age 18months! His older sister would play it & he learned the song at the same time as she did! He's the youngest I've ever seen...normally the song is sung at age 2!

I liked utilizing the ABC Learning Zoo from Fisher Price's site. Combines fun visuals along with song. I found it best to say them along with my child and encourage them to speak the letters out as well when they see them. Here's the link - http://www.fisher-price.com/us/fun/games/abczoo/default.asp

just keep singing it over and over :)