A New Approach to Foundational Literacy Instruction
At Active Alphabet, we believe that learning letters and sounds—the building blocks of reading—should be both effective and joyful. Rooted in the science of reading, our approach goes beyond worksheets and rote memorization. We harness what we know about how young children learn best: through motion, play, and integrated, sensory-rich experiences.
Where Phonics Meets Play
Active Alphabet is a systematic literacy program that turns early reading into a full-body adventure. With playful characters, purposeful movement, and engaging routines, children build phonics skills while having fun. The result? Confident, joyful readers who see learning to read not as a chore—but as something to look forward to every day.
About the Active Alphabet
What is the Active Alphabet?
Developed by reading specialists and early childhood experts, the Active Alphabet is a foundational literacy system that transforms learning into an engaging, full-body experience. Led by 26 vibrant characters, children stomp, dance, fly, and tip-toe their way through the ABCs, embodying letter sounds that build the essential phonemic and phonics skills needed to become confident, successful readers. The Active Alphabet leverages the power of movement and play, seamlessly integrating phonemic awareness and phonics skills as children move their way into literacy.
The Science of Reading Meets the Science of Early Learning
The Active Alphabet has proven to help children internalize the alphabetic principle—the concept that letters and letter combinations represent sounds—through movement, transforming children from passive to active learners.
Research consistently shows that integrating whole-body movement significantly improves children's ability to recall letter-sound pairings and strengthens foundational pre-reading skills. This multi-sensory, active engagement is crucial for how young brains make sense of language and build robust reading skills.
How it Works
Each lesson begins with our dynamic Active Alphabet video, inviting everyone to move through the alphabet alongside our cast of 26 engaging characters; through this embodied learning, children begin to internalize letter-sound correspondences. Lessons then follow a research-based, multi-sensory approach that systematically incorporate elements of foundational literacy. As students playfully progress through each lesson, they discover opportunities for authentic reading and writing. Doing so empowers children to see how their "ABCs" are more than just a song—they are a gateway to unlocking a new world of text.
