Ah, Target. My happy place. The go-to store where I can find everything I need - and let's be honest - lots of things that I don't need. But when I saw these adorable tiny mailboxes and felt hearts in the Dollar Spot last week, I knew I needed them, so into the cart they went. I had no clue what I was going to do with these materials, until inspiration struck and I created a letter recognition game for Valentine's Day. This activity is so simple to create, and the best part? All of the materials cost under $5! 

Materials:

• Felt hearts (can substitute for paper. I thought felt was much more durable)

• Mini Mailboxes 

• Permanent Marker

• Dry-erase marker

To Do:

• Choose the letters you want to work on, write one on each heart, three times (We have three mailboxes, and we are working on three letters in my son's name, so - 9 hearts in total)

• Using the dry erase marker, write the same letters on the mailboxes, so you know where to "deliver" the Valentines.

• Place the Valentine hearts facedown, and have your child pick a heart one at a time. Say the name of the letter, and the sound it makes. Then, have your child try to match the heart to the correct mailbox, and deliver it to the box (for an extra challenge or for kinesthetic learners, hide the Valentines and mailboxes around the house and have your child search and deliver them!). 

This activity is not limited to only letters! Stretch your imagination to new possibilities that match your child's current learning goal: colors, shapes, sight words, numbers, addition facts - the options to personalize are endless!