Beginning Sounds Letter Match-Up Mats Printable

Are you needing a simple-to-use, hands-on alphabet activity for your students to work on beginning sounds? These beginning sounds letter match-up mats are for you!

Free printable alphabet mats. Pictures of objects that represent a specific beginning sound on the mat. Students place alphabet manipulatives on the corresponding object.

Beginning Sounds Letter Matching Mats

These beginning sounds letter match-up mats are perfect for your students as they learn letter sounds and beginning sounds. This activity would be a great addition to literacy centers, guided reading groups, or individual practice.

This beginning sounds activity can be used with preschool and kindergarten students and can even be adapted to meet the needs of some first graders.

Free alphabet mats that come in color and black and white.

Print and Go!

These beginning sounds letter mats are incredibly easy to prep! Just print, laminate, and go! Instead of laminating, you can also slide the mats into a write and wipe pocket for durability.

There are 3 different beginning sound mats with 9 pictures each, so every letter in the alphabet is represented.

These mats come in color AND black and white, so you can use them even if you don’t have access to color printing. Want to add a fun spin to this activity? You can print black and white mats and let your students color them.

You may print the letter cards found in the activity or use your own letter manipulative, such as letter tiles, magnetic letters, letter beads, etc.

For easy storage, put the letter cards in a small baggie and store the entire activity in a large baggie, file folder, or storage tray.

Free alphabet mats with printable letter tiles. Perfect for distance learning!

Differentiate With Letter Match-Up Mats

There are several ways to differentiate with these beginning sounds alphabet mats. Since there are 3 different mats, you can assign your students 1 mat, 2 mats, or all 3 mats. They can start with 1 and work their way up to completing all 3.

If they are struggling with a particular beginning sound, assign the letter match-up mat that includes that letter sound.

Since the directions do not change depending on the mat used, your students will be successful completing this activity independently. These mats can be used in a variety of instructional settings, including:

  • Morning work
  • Independent practice
  • Bell ringer
  • Exit ticket
  • Early finisher activity
  • Small group
  • Partner work
  • Literacy center
  • Guided reading station
  • Assessment

Setting Up the Beginning Sounds Mats

Supplies needed:

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  • Beginning sound picture card mats
  • Letter tiles OR other letter manipulative
  • Write and wipe pocket (optional)
  1. Print the beginning sound picture card mats.
  2. Laminate or slide into write and wipe pockets.
  3. Print, laminate, and cut out the letter cards if using.
  4. Store the letter cards in a baggie if using.
Alphabet mats with beginning sound pics on mat. Students place letter magnets on corresponding beginning sounds picture.

Using the Beginning Sounds Alphabet Mats

To use the beginning sounds letter match-up mats, students will look at each picture on the mat and determine what letter sound is at the beginning of the word.

They will identify the letter that makes that sound and cover the picture with the corresponding letter tile, magnet, bead, etc.

To take it a step further, you can have your students tell you the word, the beginning sound, and which letter matches out loud. This will give them a little more practice.

If the students are using all 3 mats, they can switch it up by drawing a letter, making the beginning sound, and finding the picture that begins with that sound.

Alphabet mats with initial sounds pictures on it. Students match letter cards to the picture it matches.

This beginning sounds activity is an effective, yet simple to understand activity that will give your students meaningful practice with this literacy skill. Incorporate it into your day in many ways and watch your students’ skills grow!

Click the button below to get the Beginning Sounds Alphabet Mats and start using them with your students!

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