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Spanish English Alphabet Chart

Twenty-six English-Spanish word pairs — anchor/ancla through zigzag — form a bilingual alphabet chart where each Spanish word's first sound teaches the matching English letter sound.
Year groups
Early years, Years 1–2
File type
PDF
Preparation
Print ready

Updated Mar 10, 2023

Subject
Strategies, English
Topic
Translanguaging, Multilingual
Resource types
Charts, Teacher Tools
Preparation
Print ready

From the author

About this resource

What is translanguaging? And how can it help your students learn their letter sounds? Translanguaging is when a multilingual person’s full linguistic repertoire is used and honored, instead of trying to keep narrowly focused on a single language.
Translanguaging is a pedagogical process where more than one language within a classroom lesson is utilized to build understanding. Translanguaging describes the way bilinguals use their linguistic resources to make sense of and interact with the world around them through language. Using translanguaging strategies in your classroom is an equitable way to support your emerging bilingual students.
This resources validates the learning your native Spanish speakers and their families bring to the learning environment. Rather than the traditional charts/charts-by-subject/ela-charts/pre-reading-charts/abc-chart">ABC chart where "A is for apple" this chart uses cognates for letters A-Z so students can use what they know about letters sounds in Spanish to build understanding of the letters sounds in English. An ideal tool to share with parents and students who are native Spanish speakers. Without needing to speak English, they will be able to practice and master all 26 letter sounds of the English alphabet!
This document is 2 pages. The front page is the charts/charts-by-subject/ela-charts/pre-reading-charts/abc-chart">ABC chart with pictures. The back page is the correlating word in English and Spanish. Great for use in the classroom, at home, or shared with families so students can use the resource at home in their native language. Appropriate for any grade level where students could benefit from learning or review of letter sounds.

In the classroom

Teaching tips & learning objectives

Learning objectives

  • Produce the primary sound of each English letter by anchoring it to a familiar Spanish word

  • Connect English words to their Spanish counterparts, including close cognates such as elefante/elephant and robot/robot

  • Use the chart as a reference when decoding or writing English words

Teaching tips

  • Post the chart during phonics and writing time so multilingual learners can self-serve letter sounds instead of waiting for support

  • Read a pair aloud together — say the Spanish word first, isolate its first sound, then attach it to the English letter — following the bilingual direction printed on the chart

  • Slip a copy into student folders or send one home; the instructions appear in Spanish as well, so families can practice the same routine

  • Point out the cognate pairs (cámara/camera, insecto/insect, unicornio/unicorn) to build vocabulary confidence alongside letter sounds

Skills covered

  • Letter-sound correspondence — each of the 26 entries ties an English letter's sound to the first sound of a Spanish anchor word.

  • Cross-language transfer — students use Spanish phonology (barco, limón, pingüino) as the bridge into English letter sounds, the translanguaging strategy the chart is built on.

  • Bilingual vocabulary — every letter presents a matched English-Spanish word pair, many of them cognates.

Good to know

Questions teachers ask about this resource

How does the chart use Spanish to teach English letter sounds?

The first sound of every Spanish word on the chart makes the corresponding letter's sound in English — so a student who says 'barco' already has the /b/ sound for the letter B. The chart states this rule in both English and Spanish right at the top.

Are the words the same in both languages?

Many are close cognates — cámara/camera, elefante/elephant, insecto/insect, robot, yoga, zigzag — while others differ (barco/boat, nido/nest, sol/sun), which is exactly what lets the Spanish first sound carry over to the English letter.

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