QWERTY Mat Games
QWERTY are the first 6 letters on a standard keyboard, read from left to right. We created an alphabet mat with letters organized like a keyboard instead of alphabetically to introduce the ubiquitous arrangement to my little one. I also added some blends (CH, SH, TH, and PH) at the bottom of the mat, hence the name QWERTY+ mat.
Once we had the mat, we played various games with it. To use, we set up the QWERTY+ mat on an area rug, where there’s enough room to move around. We attached the mat to our living room rug using binder clips to keep it in place. We NEVER use the QWERTY+ mat on slippery surfaces (e.g. hardwood floors or tile) to avoid accidents!
Here are a few of our games.
Palette:
QWERTY Twisty
Although G already knew his letters when we started playing QWERTY Twisty, he still enjoyed the game because of its physical challenges. We continue to play it, even now that he is five years old, simply because it’s silly and funny. This game is very much like TWISTER. I like that the game introduces him to the letter placements on a standard keyboard, and provides practice in identifying the left vs right side of his body. To play, we shuffle the QWERTY cards, and call out the cards one at a time. The twister touches the letter on the card with the body part named on the card. For example, if the card states Right hand U, the twister needs to place his/ her right hand on U. If the twister performs the card action without falling over, the card caller sets the previous card aside and reads the next card. If the twister fails to perform the card action (falls over, can’t reach a letter), the twister’s turn ends. The cards that were set aside are counted and marked as twister’s score.
The twister now becomes the card caller, and the next player twists. After a predetermined number of rounds, the player with the most points wins!
QWERTY Race
QWERTY Hop
Here are the dimensions of the mat we used.
Palette: