50 Awesome Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers

From kinetic stand to wikki stix!

Literacy Feature

Setting up classroom literacy centers in your elementary school classroom? These stations are designed to provide materials to help your students work independently or in small groups of two or more in an effort to meet literacy goals. We’ve done the research and gathered a great list of 50+ literacy centers supplies you can use to make your centers inviting and engaging for students.

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1. Primary Writing Paper

We all remember these, don’t we? They really do come in handy when encouraging students to practice their writing. The lines are effective guides for learning to write lowercase and uppercase letters.

2. Dry Erase Ruled Whiteboards

Waste not, want not! If you’re looking for a more environmentally-friendly (and cost-effective) alternative to traditional primary paper, these dry erase whiteboards come are perfect!

3. Dry Erase Erasers

You have the dry erase boards, now you need some erasers! The ones that come on the markers get damaged so easily, but this durable solution can be washed with soap and water!

4. Sharpened Triangular Primary Pencils

These fantastic triangular-shaped pencils are ergonomically designed to help little fingers have more control. They are an ideal choice for children who are in the earliest stages of developing writing skills.

5. Pencil Grip Aids

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A good ergonomic pencil grip can help kids develop correct writing postures and skills from the very start. These handy tools can also reduce hand fatigue so students can keep practicing longer!

6. Sentence Building Language Cards

These language cards make it easy to tailor literacy activities to students of different learning levels. Color-coded and interlocking, this resource covers everything from capital letters to sentence-building.

7. Comprehension Cubes

Have students roll the dice and turn discussions about reading assignments a game! This set includes six foam cubes in three different colors and an activity guide. It’s a great way to break students into small ggroups to spark conversations.

8. Double-Side Magnet Board

Classroom Literacy Center

This fantastic set comes with a double-sided magnetic board, 182 lowercase letters, 52 uppercase letters, three whiteboard pens, and an eraser. Allow students to practice distinguishing and classifying letters and work on their spelling.

9. Whack a Word Game

Create your own whack-a-word spelling boards and have your students practice their spelling. We love how easy this is to create!

10. Pop for Sight Words 2 Game

Classroom Literacy Center

This cute activity will bring a little whimsy to your classroom literacy centers. It includes 100 die-cut popcorn cards printed with 92 sight word cards, 8 POP cards, and a guide. Students can learn game etiquette while practicing articulation, increasing vocabulary, and improving fluency. Build more sight word vocabulary with these activities.

11. Phonics Dominoes

Classroom Literacy Center

Most kids love dominoes and the tiles in this bright-colored set are printed with commonly used consonants and word families to make building words easy and fun. Kids of virtually all ages will enjoy this activity which comes with a clear storage container!

12. Spelling Memory Game

Help students boost spelling and memory skills with the Spelling Memory game. This activity is a good addition to your classroom literacy centers as it promotes letter recognition, word formation, and vocabulary growth. Make this a social game by pairing kids up with a partner!

13. Snap It Up! Phonics & Reading Card Game

This fast-paced Snap It Up! card game engages students and builds reading and phonics skills. Encourage parents to buy a second set for home—it’s a fun activity for the whole family!

14. Literacy Fun Game

This cool hands-on game turns developing literacy into a lesson in taking turns and sharing while encouraging object and letter recognition, matching, critical thinking skills and more. Each package contains a game board, 60 cards, and 52 plastic letters.

15. Phonics Spelling Game

Looking for something that supports Common Core standards for kindergarten and beyond? The Phonics Spelling Game prompts young learners to find the missing letter of the words printed on the cards. Each set comes with 12 game boards, 40 foam letter tiles, and an activity guide.

16. Wooden Reading Blocks

Classroom Literacy Center

Spark imagination in your classroom literacy centers with these rotating blocks that spin to form three-letter words. Each box comes with five reading blocks. Bonus: this activity is also helpful for strengthening fine motor skills.

17. Word Family Dice

Who doesn’t love brightly-colored foam dice? This set comes printed with letters, different combinations of letters, and short words that can be used for many engaging activities in your classroom literacy centers. Students can develop word building, decoding, and spelling skills.

18. Ladybug Letters

No reading required for this one—these ladybugs are all about letter recognition. This is adorably perfect for any student who is working towards learning the alphabet. They are also simple puzzles that promote the development of problem-solving and fine motor skills.

19. Literacy Wiz Game

The Literacy Wiz game is the kind of thing that students can do on their own or taking turns with classmates. As they work to put the pieces together, they’ll learn more about the mechanics of vocabulary while strengthening concentration skills and memory.

20. Spelligator

Classroom Literacy Center

There’s so much to love about this literacy tool. The name is funny, it’s bright and colorful, and kids will work on word building while learning spelling rules and sounding out words. Note: this one gets a little noisy!

21. Genius Words Game

This is a tool with an increasing range for your classroom literacy centers. It’s ideal for learners of all levels, and can be played individually or with a partner. The word tiles are handheld but connect to iPads and Fire tablets to bring student’s word creations to life!

22. Anti-Tear Flash Cards

Raise your hand if you used flashcards as a kid. Sometimes, you’ve got to go back to basics, right? Each pack includes 56 cards which are printed with a single image and word on one side, but can be combined like a puzzle when flipped over!

23. Early Literacy Kit

This wonderful literacy kit is packed with goodies to promote learning. Whether it’s sorting wooden blocks, using the foam letters to form words, or matching the cards, there are opportunities for improving problem-solving skills, color recognition, and more!

24. Zingo! Sight Words

Ideal for pre-readers and early readers, the Zingo! Sight Words game is a popular choice for your vibrant classroom. Played in the style of bingo, this tool will have kids excited to learn and engage.

25. VersaTiles Literacy Classroom Set

Classroom Literacy Center

Increase student confidence with this low-prep classroom literacy centers solution. The VersaTiles system can be found for different grade levels and include activity books, answer cases, and a teacher guide. This is one way to take phonics, fluency, comprehension skills and more to the next level.

26. Parts of Speech Bingo

This hands-on activity teaches students all about prepositions, conjunctions, verbs, pronouns, adjectives, interjections, nouns, and adverbs. Also, check out these other activities to up your parts of speech game!

27. Mad Libs

Who doesn’t love a simple game of Mad Libs? Fast and fun, these activities teach parts of speech and will have students thinking beyond traditional words to make their story even more enticing.

28. Sequencing Verb Tenses

Helps your students identify and use past, present, and future tenses of verbs with these sequencing cards. Contains 24 regular and 24 irregular three-step, illustrated sequences.

29. Flash Cards

Help your students further their literacy skills and increase their vocabulary. This flashcard set contains cards for prepositions, actions, and emotions.

30. My First Bananagrams

This version of the classic game utilizes lower-case letters and letter combination tiles for early readers. Help them practice spelling and have fun at the same time!

31. Scrabble Jr.

Another spin on another classic spelling game! Scrabble Jr. has two sides for beginner and advanced play. One side allows for matching of letters while the other side lets students build their own words.

32. Workbooks

Not as fun as a game, but these workbooks help with comprehension, reading, spelling, and more. Perfect for early finishers to go grab something to keep them occupied.

33. Bingo Daubers

Arm your word hunters with these colorful bingo daubers! These are a fun way to get younger children excited and engaged about learning while promoting word recognition.

34. Reading Pointers

Think of these cool pointers as a literal extension of your arm as you direct students attention to things in a big book or across a whiteboard. They also come in handy for reaching up to words or posters you’ve taped high up on the wall!

35. Kinetic Sand

Kinetic sand is a really fun way to bring a sensory table to your classroom literacy centers. Trace letters, or use letter stamps to promote recognition and spelling without making a huge mess—this sand literally sticks to itself!

36. Alphabet Alligators

These alphabet alligators are an adorable and colorful way to reinforce both color matching and letter recognition. Each gator has an uppercase and lowercase letter printed on its side that kids can put together like a puzzle!

37. Junior Learning CVC Word Builders Activity Cards

Consonant vowel consonant (CVC) cards are a must-have for classroom literacy centers. These word-building activities are especially helpful to students who are learning to identify sounds in three-letter words.

38. Picture Cards

Support children’s recognition of everyday objects with these picture cards, which come with guides in both English and Spanish. This deck supports NCTE and NAEYC standards and is perfect for early childhood and English Language Learners (ELL).

39. Pocket Chart Cards

Grab some of these pocket chart cards for your classroom literacy centers as they boost kids’ ability to recognize phonemes, letter-sound relationships, and word patterns. The color-coded cards make it easy to exchange, move, add, or delete sounds to form new words.

40. Word Building Letter Cubes

Help early learners develop word building, decoding, and spelling skills with this set of linking letter cubes. They are color-coded by phonics to make identification and differentiation easier.

41. Feedback Phones

There are many ways to develop literacy and language skills, which is why these feedback phones are so useful in classroom literacy centers. They can not only help improve reading fluency, but they can help students with pronunciation as well!

42. Pocket Charts

Pocket charts give students the power to create stories and use problem-solving skills through an engaging hands-on activity. There’s a reason why these have been included in classroom literacy centers for years—they work!

43. Sentence Strips

Sentence strips are an excellent addition to your classroom literacy efforts. These handy tools can help your guided reading routine as students can use them to keep their place while practicing reading sentences.

44. Alphabet Bulletin Board Set

Your wall space is prime real estate in the classroom, so you want to choose what you hang wisely. These beautiful alphabet cards by Eric Carle provide a visual reference for young students to enhance the learning experience.

45. Sequence Cards

50+ Best Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers - WeAreTeachers

Literacy is about more than recognizing letters and sounds—it’s also about understanding the meaning of text. These sequence cards are an excellent resource for classroom literacy centers as they help build social skills and emotional recognition.

46. Letter Sound Tubs

50+ Best Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers - WeAreTeachers

These little acorns are really wonderful for visual and tactile learners who are working on those early vocabulary skills. Additionally, they’ll get plenty of practice with learning the alphabet and color recognition.

47. Wikki Stix Literacy

50+ Best Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers - WeAreTeachers

These alphabet cards include directional arrows that show students the proper stroke for letter formation, supplementing learning with a kinetic tool. Use with Wikki Stix, which are made with non-toxic food grade wax and hand-knitting yarn.

48. Elkonin Boxes

50+ Best Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers - WeAreTeachers

Support very early emergent readers with these Elkonin Boxes, a great research-based resource for your classroom literacy centers. Students will learn to hear and identify the number of phonemes in words and map sound patterns.

49. Sight Word Cards

50+ Best Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers - WeAreTeachers

Can your students memorize all 1,000 high-frequency sight words? Okay, that might be a bit ambitious, but you can help them get started with this activity designed to increase reading fluency, confidence, and independent reading.

50. Retell a Story Cubes

50+ Best Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers - WeAreTeachers

There’s just something fun about giant foam dice, isn’t there? Your kids will light up with these a Retell a Story cubes, designed to strengthen after-reading skills by boosting reading and listening comprehension.

Now that you’ve got literacy centers supplies, here are 40 activities students can perform in your classroom literacy centers.

What do you put in your classroom literacy centers? Come and share in our WeAreTeachers Deals group on Facebook.

50 Awesome Supplies for Classroom Literacy Centers