Letter S Game

Big S, little s and the S in snake all come together in the Letter S Game, an ice cream shop adventure for preschool kids. Lexy runs a sweet pastel ice cream shop. First she fills the empty cones at Scoop Station, then she sprinkles the sundaes on Sprinkle Street, then she climbs Freezer Hill to get the ice cream back from Bomzy. Children tap a stop, Lexy walks over, she says what to do, and a card asks them to find the letter S. Every right answer does the job: a scoop of ice cream plops onto an empty cone, and rainbow sprinkles and a cherry land on a plain sundae. Some stops also give a reward for Lexy’s backpack, like a rainbow lollipop, a cherry on top or a gold star, and shop friends like a squirrel, a swan and a sloth make their own sounds and do something silly when kids tap them. Playing the letter s game again and again helps little learners recognize the big S and the little s, tell S apart from look-alike letters like Z, C and z, and hear that sun, sock, seal and snake all start with S.

In this letter s phonics game, Lexy cheers kids on through three parts of the shop. At Scoop Station they find the big S among letters like Z, C and G, with the tip that big S curves this way and curves that way, like a snake. On Sprinkle Street they find the little s among z, c and e, with the tip that little s is the same curvy shape, just smaller. Then Bomzy grabs the ice cream, and on Freezer Hill kids find big S, little s and pictures that start with S, like sun, sock, seal and snake, while skipping the fish, the hat and the ball. The letters a child mixed up earlier come back for one more try. A wrong answer costs one of five hearts, never a reward, and Lexy gives a kind hint. She reads every direction out loud and names each answer (“Snake! Snake starts with the letter S.”). Play it in your browser on a phone, tablet, Chromebook or computer.

What’s Included

• Online game that plays in any browser on desktop, tablet and phone
• Included with every Have Fun Teaching membership
• 3 rounds: Scoop Station (big S), Sprinkle Street (little s), then Freezer Hill with big S, little s and S pictures
• Voice directions, cheerful sound effects and a star score at the end

Here are three reasons this letter s game helps kids learn. First, every choice sits next to letters and pictures that look or sound different in one clear way, like Z beside S, z beside s and fish beside snake, so kids learn to spot exactly what makes an S an S. Second, Lexy names the letter or the word after every right answer and uses the same words teachers use, like big S, little s and starts with the letter S, so the lesson sounds the same at home and at school. Third, the rewards, the silly shop animals, the silly Bomzy, streak celebrations and the stars at the end keep kids smiling and asking to play again.

Teachers and parents can keep the S fun going after the game. Draw a big S in the air like a wiggly snake and make it hiss: sss. Go on an S hunt at home for a sock, a spoon and a sandwich. Make a pretend ice cream shop and name the S scoops. Write a big S together: curve this way, then curve that way.

Related Resources

• Letter S Song (Animated Music Video)
• Letter R Game
• Letter Q Game
• Letter S Tracing Worksheet