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Using Letter Tiles to Teach Reading and Spelling

Color-coded letter tiles are a fantastic way to help your child learn to read and spell! Whether you’re using the Letter Tiles app or the physical letter tiles, letter tiles enable your child to quickly and easily grasp new concepts.

Here’s a short video demonstrating how letter tiles can be used to teach reading and spelling. This particular lesson from All About Spelling teaches when to use K and when to use CK at the end of a word.

Do you see how easy that concept was for our student to understand? Letter tiles are awesome!

7 Benefits of Using Letter Tiles

Whether you use the Letter Tiles app or the physical letter tiles, the benefits to your child are the same.

  1. Letter tiles help you explain reading and spelling concepts very clearly.
    Concepts and ideas become something your child can see and manipulate.
  2. The different colors help students visualize the different roles that letters have.
    In the video above, for example, colored tiles helped Oliver distinguish between vowels and consonants.
  3. Your child can try out the rules and see how they work.
    With letter tiles, concepts are no longer abstract or difficult to understand.
  4. Letter tiles hold a child’s attention…
    …especially a child who has attention issues or auditory processing difficulties.
  5. Mistakes are no big deal.
    It’s much easier to exchange tiles than to erase and rewrite a word.
  6. Letter tiles make it easier to stay on task for longer periods of time…
    …especially for younger kids who are still developing fine motor skills and for whom writing is more tiresome.
  7. Letter tiles lay the groundwork for the accomplishment of bigger goals.
    Letter tiles don’t take the place of spelling words with paper and pencil. Instead, they act as a fantastic learning tool that will enable your student to learn to spell more quickly and accurately, helping him get to the real goal: writing.

Color Coding Makes Learning Easier

Color coding makes it easy for students to see the role that each type of letter plays in a word. For example, consonants are blue, vowels are red, and phonograms representing the sound of /er/ (such as ER, IR, and UR) are purple. The chart below shows all our letter tile colors.

Letter Tiles App or Physical Tiles—Which Should I Choose?

You can’t go wrong with either the Letter Tiles app or the physical tiles. They are both great options! Here are some considerations to help you decide:

letter tiles app

With the Letter Tiles app:

  • It’s easy to capitalize words
  • You can hear the sounds of the phonograms as you teach
  • No more worries about lost letter tiles
  • Lessons are easy to teach “on the go”
  • Need to switch between students? No problem! Simply select your current lesson in All About Reading or All About Spelling and you’re ready to begin.

The Letter Tiles app has been our most requested product of all time, but the physical letter tiles have devoted fans as well.

physical tiles

With the physical letter tiles:

  • No tablet is required to complete the lessons
  • Larger tiles are easy to read
  • It’s easy to incorporate hands-on alphabetizing practice
  • Tricky word parts can be highlighted with markers
  • Timeless and traditional educational tool

As you’re deciding between the app and the physical tiles, consider which option would be the most engaging to your child. Which one would your child want to use? Some clues to consider: Does my child prefer colored pencils, or does she like computer games? Is my child used to learning from technology, or is he more comfortable with traditional methods of learning? Does she prefer to read paper books or eBooks?”

And be sure to consider your preferences as well. Do you like the larger format of the magnetic white board? Do you have a place to store the board, or are you attracted to the compact nature of the app?

The bottom line is that teaching and learning will be the same no matter which option you choose. What’s most important is that you have a way to teach the concepts and your child has an enjoyable way to practice and experiment. The physical letter tiles and the Letter Tiles app both provide interactive methods that make spelling and reading concepts more concrete for your child.

Additional Resources for the Letter Tiles App

Video of App Benefits
How to Use the App
The Letter Tiles app is intuitive and easy to use. Here are two videos to show you the basic and advanced features.

Basic Features:

Advanced Features:

Where to Get the Letter Tiles App
Follow these links to purchase the Letter Tile app:

Additional Resources If You Use Physical Letter Tiles

How to Set Up Your Letter Tiles
You can use your letter tiles on a table, but it is much easier to use a magnetic white board. You can get magnetic white boards at stores such as Walmart or Staples. Two feet by three feet is a good size because it will hold all the tiles while still allowing work space in the center of the board.

When you first set up your magnetic white board, you’ll only include the tiles that have already been introduced. You don’t want to clutter up your board with tiles that your student hasn’t learned yet. If you are just starting out in Level 1, then, your set-up will look like this:

By the time you get to the end of All About Reading or All About Spelling, your board will contain all the phonograms:

If You Ever Lose a Tile…
Here at All About Learning Press, we know that even in the most careful households, letter tiles sometimes disappear. But don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Here’s Rachel with all the details!

How about you? Do you use physical letter tiles or our new letter tiles app? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!


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Soledad Darragh

says:

Oh my, I must say, this blog post is absolutely impressive! The author did a fantastic job of presenting well-researched information and presenting it in a clear and engaging way. I discovered the content to be highly enlightening and thought-provoking. The writing style is fascinating, making it easy to remain interested throughout the whole article.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thank you, Soledad.

Lena

says:

You are in TIME with your super instruments.High class in everything you give.Thank you very much.It is for me very, very important.

Robin

says: Customer Service

You’re welcome, Lena.

biography

says:

A great post without any doubt.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thank you!

Kim

says:

In our all about the spelling book it says there’s an alphabetize option in the app but I cannot find it.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Kim,
This feature came in an update, so you may need to go into the app store on your device and update the app.

Once your app is up to date, you will find the Alphabetize feature in the drop menu that starts with All About Reading. The Alphabetize feature is the bottom of that menu. Here is a video that shows how the feature works.

Let me know if you need more help!

Leslie

says:

You might want to correct “thapht” on #2 (7 Benefits of Using Letter Tiles).

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thank you for pointing that out, Leslie! We’ll get right on that!

Pauline

says:

Our tablet is set up with parental controls and it will not let me download the app. Anyone else experience this? I’m not sure which setting I can change to allow it to download

Robin

says: Customer Service

Pauline,
I’m happy to try to help, but I would need to know what kind of tablet you have and what operating system it is using.

However, I wonder if the parental controls are set so that no apps can be downloaded, or if only free apps can be downloaded. Can you possibly turn of the parental controls until after you get the app installed?

Please email us at support@allaboutlearningpress.com with the make and model of your tablet, as well as operating system and what happens when you try to download the app.

Rachel

says:

If I am working with a group of 3 students do I need to purchase the letter tiles app 3 times? Or will one purchase allow me to have all 3 of them on their iPads at once?

Robin

says: Customer Service

Good question, Rachel.

If all three iPads are set up through Family Sharing, then you can purchase the app once and put it on all three iPads. If the device accounts aren’t connected in that way, then the app would need to be purchased for each device separately.

Tarryn

says:

I have three children in various levels of AAS and two in AAR. We love these programs! I’ve always used the app, but I want to try the physical tiles. How important is it to remove the unnecessary tiles before each child’s lesson each day?

Robin

says: Customer Service

Great question, Tarryn!

When I had multiple kids in multiple levels of All About Reading and Spelling, I kept the tiles everyone was using toward the center of the board, and the ones only the oldest student was using toward the edges, and the in between ones in between. I still put the tiles in their appropriate categories, like the consonant team tiles under the Consonant Team heading, but the higher level ones were at the outside of that category. Does that make sense? I could try to explain further.

Anyway, it worked great, and it had the added bonus of letting the lower level students get a peak at what was coming.

Linda Mann

says:

Very interested in program. Have had excellent recommendation. Please keep me informed. thank you

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thank you, Linda!

Bailey

says:

I like the idea of the app for the letter tiles. Seems like an easier clean up. Anything to make it less hectic.

Robin

says: Customer Service

So true, Bailey!

Laura

says:

This explains tiles so nicely. Thank you!

Robin

says: Customer Service

You’re welcome, Laura! I’m glad this helped explain things for you.

Mindy

says:

We use the physical tiles for when we are
in the school room and app when we out outside or traveling. Being able to physically move the letters helps my dyslexic daughter connect the different sounds she hears in a word!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Mindy,
I love that you have both options for tiles to fit your needs wherever school is happening!

Lory

says:

Is there an additional fee to use both the app for “in the go” and tiles when at home?

Robin

says: Customer Service

Lory,
The Letter Tiles app is an optional one-time purchase that can be used in place of the physical Letter Tiles, or on days that you want to take reading or spelling on the go. It is compatible with Android, Amazon, and Apple tablets and touchscreen Chromebooks only.

Katie

says:

This program is awesome

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thank you, Katie!

Jessica

says:

Thanks for the info, I’m excited to start using AAR with my son

Alix Owens

says:

Love this!

Angie

says:

The app looks like a great option!

Lauren Altomare

says:

We are just getting started with our homeschool journey. I think I have one child that would prefer the app and the other that would learn better with the physical tiles. To be honest, I love the color coding. I was on the fence with this problem but after reading through everything I may just have to give it a shot!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Lauren,
I agree with you about the color coding! It really helps students to see the various categories of phonograms and to group them more easily in their minds.

Do you have any questions about the program? I’m happy to help.

Lauren Altomare

says:

I actually think these blog posts have answered all my questions and concerns! Thank you!

Jaclyn Yacek

says:

I just started using AAR1 with my daughter. I think the physical tiles are nice for hands-on learning. I’ve realized that moving forward, it might be better to use the app so I don’t have to spend time tracking down each letter tile I’ll need for a lesson. Love that both options are available, and I am loving the program so far!

Robin

says: Customer Service

I’m so pleased to hear that All About Reading is working out well for you, Jaclyn! Thank you.

Beth

says:

My son is a sensory seeker (but struggles some with fine motor skills) and he loves the physical tiles! I love that he has started coming up with his own words to spell out when we’re doing the lessons now!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Beth,
I love that the Letter Tiles are so appealing to your son’s sensory seeking!

Brittany Fawson

says:

Letter tiles have really helped my daughter learn to read.

Robin

says: Customer Service

I’m so glad to hear that the letter tiles have been helpful for your daughter, Brittany! Thank you.

Heather Connelly

says:

We are just starting our reading/spelling journey but this sounds like a fun way to do it!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thank you, Heather!

Summer F.

says:

Absolutely love the app! AAR was never on my radar because of the amount of pieces involved. Im so glad I gave it another look because we have ditched all other reading programs I’ve tried through our 11 years of homeschooling, for AAR. We only need level 4 to complete our collection!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Summer,
I’m glad the app made All About Reading approachable for you!

Glenda W.

says:

I would Love to purchase the AAR LEVEL …3, for two children, with the proceeds from this GiveAway!
My eldest is almost 12 now. We are finishing up Level 1, and I already have Level 2 to begin this summer. He is severely dyslexic, and he is READING! And HE LOVES TO READ! (Contrary to all that I have heard from others who claimed that persons with dyslexia never enjoy reading even after they are successful at it.) I always held a firm belief that he would enjoy reading as much as I do. He now volunteers to read in his HomeSchool-Community-Day Class, (~5th Grade Language course).
I am so grateful for having found this program, and for it’s creator, Marie Ripple for sharing her “Recipe for Success” from her experience with her family of children with dyslexia. THANK YOU!
I now pray that I will find the recipe for dyscalcula! In the mean time, I am using some similar strategies to those that I learned in the AAR & AAS programs.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Glenda,
I am so excited to hear how well your child is doing, and I love that he loves to read! So wonderful!

Thank you for sharing about his success!

Jessica

says:

We love the tiles and the app. The app makes it easier to switch subjects or to switch between kids without having to reset the whole board by hand. But, there is something fun about using the tiles. So, we use a mix!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Jessica,
I love that you found a mix of physical tiles and the app are the best approach for you!

Iris

says:

We have been loving using letter tiles! My son said the other day he went to find an “a” on a keyboard and reached his left hand out to “pull one down from the whiteboard!” It really sticks!

Robin

says: Customer Service

I love this! Thanks for sharing, Iris.

Juley

says:

We have used both the App and the physical tiles. I prefer the physical tiles because I’m old school.

AJ

says:

Using the letter tiles app helped my 5 year oldest excitement to start Level 1! It’s been working great for us.

Katy

says:

My daughter is a hands on learner so she loves using the tiles!

AC

says:

We love the letter tiles! Been holding off on getting the letter tile app to minimize screen time during school but may go ahead and get it for the next school year.

Lilly Madru

says:

I love the letter tile app. We homeschool in our RV sometimes so it’s very convenient not needing to bring the whiteboard along!