February 10-14
Letter of the Week: V
Theme: Valentine’s Day
Valentine's Day is coming up. Next Friday, in fact! Some people are really anti- Cupid's holiday. Others LOVE it. I love the possibilities. It creates a great atmosphere for working on themes like kindness, friendship, love, feelings. It also provides a lovely theme to go along with our letter-sound of the week. Bring on the love!
‘V’ is a consonant. From a speech perspective, /v/ is a “lip cooler” sound. Just as with ‘F’, you make /v/ by placing your top front teeth lightly on the lower lip 
Image from the LiPS Program by Lindamood-Belland releasing a smooth stream of air across the lip (‘cooling’ it). ‘V’ and ‘F’ are sound brothers; they are made exactly the same way. Well, the same way with one difference. /v/ is the noisy brother (voice on – vocal cords vibrate – to make this sound). Hold your hand to your throat as you say /v/; you should feel vibration from the vocal cords. Now say /f/ (the quiet brother); feel the difference?
If the /v/ sound is tricky for your child, try using your thumb to gently push your child’s lower lip over his/her bottom teeth. Use a mirror to let your child compare his/her mouth shape to yours as you practice the “lip cooler” sound.
In therapy: We will be reading 'v'/Valentine’s Day themed books, doing ‘v’/Valentine’s Day themed activities, and exploring the letter name, letter sound and letter symbol for 'v'.
Suggestions for home: Pick out the ones that appeal most to your child (and you!). Kids learn best through active experiences. And multi-modal learning helps make stronger and more diverse connections in the brain, which helps with retention and recall. Sprinkle ‘v’ throughout the week. Most important, have fun!
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links
BOOKS
- My “v” Sound Box (Sound Box Books) by Jane Belk Moncure [Kindle edition]
- The Day It Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond
- Roses Are Pink, Your Feet Really Stink by Diane deGroat
- Valentine's Day Is by Gail Gibbons
- Happy Valentine's Day, Little Critter! by Mercer Mayer
- Valentine's Day by Anne Rockwell
- The Biggest Valentine Ever by Steven Kroll
- Doc McStuffins My Huggy Valentine by Disney Book Group, Sheila Sweeny [Kindle edition]
- The Ballad of Valentine by Alison Jackson
- The Valentine Bears by Eve Bunting
- Valentines Are For Saying I Love You by Margaret Sutherland
- Happy Valentine's Day, Mouse! by Laura Numeroff
- The Valentine Express by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace [Kindle edition]
- Who Will Be My Valentine This Year? by Jerry Pallotta
- Cranberry Valentine by Wende Devlin, Harry Devlin
- The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever by Brenda Ferber
Looking for non-Valentine's Day books for the letter 'V'? Check out this 8 Letter V Books list curated by The Measured Mom.
FOOD
Eating the Alphabet - V: Consider adding some “v” foods to your menu this week. Admittedly, ‘v’ is a tough one. Here are a few ideas:
vegetable soup/dip... vanilla wafers/ice cream... vinaigrette Vichysoisse
Feeling adventurous? Make red velvet cupcakes!
ACTIVITIES
Scavenger Hunt: how many ‘v’ things can you find around the house, while shopping at the market, in a magazine or store ad flyers?
Field Trip:
- Zoo/Aquarium: can you find any animals with ‘v’ in their name?
- The animals at Woodland Park Zoo are celebrating early, with festivities on Saturday, Feb 8
- Head to Seattle Children's Museum for some special Valentine's Day fun on Friday, Feb 14
- What could be sweeter than a retro prom sweetheart soiree with your little ones for Valentine's evening? Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center is the place to be!
Be a letter detective: hunt for the letter ‘v’ in a variety of texts (books, magazines, newspaper, road signs, license plates).
Community helper: learn about veterinarians or veterans
Sensory Play:
- Set up a Valentine Alphabet Scavenger Hunt like this one from Reading Confetti
- Try this Color A Heart Alphabet Movement Game by Toddler Approved
- Make Valentines!
- Pick a number and do that many "secret acts of Valentine kindness"
APPS
- Biscuit's Valentine's Day
- I Get... Valentine's Day Social Skills Stories
- Disney Where's My Valentine?
- First Words Valentine
- Wubbzy Loves You
Do you have family Valentine traditions? I’d love to hear! Please take a moment to leave me a comment.