Q is one of the trickiest letters in the alphabet. Big Q looks almost exactly like big O, and little q is easy to mix up with little p, d, b and g. On top of that, Q hardly ever goes anywhere without its buddy U, so “queen” and “quilt” start with a /kw/ sound kids don’t hear very often. The Letter Q Game turns all of that into a day of archery at the castle fair.
Meet Roxy at the fair! Colorful archery targets stand in the grass, each with a letter or a picture in the middle. Kids tap the target with the big Q, or pull back Roxy’s longbow and let go to aim the shot themselves. THWOCK! The suction-cup arrow sticks, and every right answer lands on its own prize rosette. Hit the very center and Roxy cheers “Bullseye!”
Before you play, draw a big circle in the air together and add a little tail at the bottom: that’s a big Q. Then draw a little circle with a straight line down on the right: that’s a little q.
Watch Roxy play the Letter Q Game
How to play the Letter Q Game
- Press Play. Roxy says hello and reads the directions out loud, so even non-readers can play on their own.
- Two ways to shoot: tap a target, or press and pull back on the field, then let go. A dotted line shows where the arrow will fly.
- Round 1, big Q: shoot the target with the big Q. Look-alikes like O, C, G, D and U are mixed in, so look for the little tail.
- Round 2, little q: shoot the little q. It’s a little circle with a straight line down on the right, so watch out for p, d, b and g.
- Round 3, Q pictures: shoot a picture that starts with Q, like queen, quilt, quail or question.
- Every right answer lands on a prize rosette, and a shot right in the center is a Bullseye! Need help? Roxy gives a friendly hint, like “Big Q is a big circle, with a little tail.”
- Build streaks for 3, 5 and 10 in a Row!, beat your High Score!, and aim for a Perfect Game! and all the stars at the end.
What kids learn
The Letter Q Game builds letter recognition and beginning sound awareness, the same skills preschool and kindergarten classrooms practice for the Common Core foundational standards RF.K.1.d (recognize and name all upper- and lowercase letters) and RF.K.3.a (know the most common sound for each consonant).
- Big Q is a big circle with a little tail. Big O has no tail.
- Little q is a little circle with a straight line down on the right. Little p has its line on the left.
- Queen, quilt, quail and question all start with the letter Q.
- Pictures like sun, ball and fish are mixed in, so kids listen for the /kw/ sound every time.
Try this at home or in class: Q and U stick together! Say “queen,” “quilt” and “quail” slowly and listen for the /kw/ at the start. Then draw a big circle in the air and add a little tail to make a Q.
Members and teachers can assign the Letter Q Game to students with a Classroom link, and every child’s score shows up for the teacher automatically.
