Animated alphabets

I've written before about Bembo's Zoo and make no apologies for mentioning it again because I love it. Though to be honest, I'm not sure how I would ever use it for teaching spelling.

From Bembo's Zoo at http://www.bemboszoo.com/

But I've just discovered another site. It may not compete with the design and beauty of Bembo's Zoo, but it has some lovely surprises. In the Poisson Rouge animated alphabet you can hover over the letters to see a word and image for that letter.

From Poisson Rouge at http://www.poissonrouge.com/abc/index.htm

That's OK, but the fun starts when you click on an image. Sometimes there's just a little animation, sometimes there's a game. In this one you match the cake ingredients to their silhouettes and then they pour into the cake tin. Finally your cake gets baked. Mind you, I've always had a problem with virtual cake - it's only virtual!

From Poisson Rouge at http://www.poissonrouge.com/abc/index.htm

I guess they would make nice little starters or rewards in primary classes if your have an interactive whiteboard or computer and projector. But I do think interactive whiteboard activities need to stimulate learners to do a bit more than that. Perhaps it's just fun for kids to play with on their own - to develop a love of letters.

Any primary teachers or homeschoolers out there - tell us what you think. Useful or not for helping with spelling? How?


Johanna