So often we associate the alphabet with Pre-K and Kindergarten students. The alphabet is a prime focus for that age, but big kids love their ABC’s, too! We are starting to wrap up the school year and it is way different than any of us could imagine. Typically, we would be in the middle of test prep, but that is not our focus right now. Instead, our students are learning virtually and meeting with teachers during this distance learning time.

While thinking of how I could keep my students engaged as we are gearing up for summer break, I decided that they would be given a challenge: to complete an ABC’s Countdown! I wish you could have seen their faces when I first told them of this upcoming challenge task… I saw confused faces and a few students even mentioned how their baby brothers and sisters have an ABC’s Countdown meaning ABC Countdowns are for babies. LOL. I just stared back at them and chuckled. Then I shared my screen and showed them their version of the popular “ABC Countdown”. Excitement stirred! “Cool!”, “That looks so fun!”, “Awesome!”, and “WE get to do THAT??!” were their responses. #teacherwin

I will be short, quick, and to the point! During the month of May, students will have tasks to complete. This can easily transfer into the summer months, too. It is not for a grade – it is for FUN!

What ages of students can use this ABC Countdown?

I work with 2nd – 5th grade students, so these can easily be adapted to different ages. Parents may need to assist while other children may be completely independent.

Where can I get this awesome resource?

CLICK HERE to snag this chart!

How can I implement this activity?

My favorite question! Glad you asked! 🙂

• This resource is completely print-and-go, and the PDF can easily be uploaded to Google Classroom to become digital. I use Small PDF and convert PDFs to JPGs all the time! Then, I click download and the pages extract as a JPG. Super easy to grab the page I want, import to Google Slides, and assign to my classrooms! That means this is handy for right now (virtually) but also can be used in the actual classroom later! Need a tutorial? Check out my IGTV where I walk you right through it!
• Work with your students to check off a box or two during your Zoom call (or whatever virtual learning platform you are using). Having students popcorn read in a Silly Voices or discuss a This or That question can easily help them mark off a task and get closer to their goal of BLACK OUT!!
• Encourage parents to get involved. There are 26 opportunities for engagement and participation. No more guessing what to do – just work to cross off the board!
• Students can place a check mark in each box or use a diagonal line to show their progress. If students are using Google Classroom, they can do the same thing – insert a symbol to show the letter is complete!
• This is a great opportunity for students to keep a journal! They can keep track of the day of the week and which letter(s) they completed. If it is a writing task they can do the activity right inside of their journal! Otherwise, they can simply reflect on the experience.

Wrapping it up…

I told you this would be short and sweet! I hope this chart can be useful to you and your students and/or children! If you end up using it, be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can see!

P.S. If you are looking for more activities to use as we close out the school year, check out my monthly writing prompts! These have been a game-changer and promote writing to a variety of genres and the best part – students get to choose!