Letters, Numbers & Wiggles Preschool Learning Video

What's Letters, Numbers & Wiggles About?

Your little one joins Miss Taryn for an energetic learning session that combines alphabet practice with counting games and whole-body movement! They'll master letters O through T, count objects up to 10, and get the wiggles out—all while building foundational literacy and math skills.

5 minutes
Ages 2-5
Skill: Letter recognition, counting 8-10, and movement coordination

Your kid watches letters and numbers come alive through wiggles and spins. You get 5 minutes to finish that cup of coffee.

Miss Taryn introduces letters O through T with fun animal and nature connections—O is for Octopus, P is for Pig, R is for Rainbow! Then the counting begins with numbers 8, 9, and 10, each paired with movement activities like wiggling arms, spinning, and clapping. Nina the Nightingale even joins in for a spinning countdown!

What your child learns:

This video builds essential pre-reading skills by connecting letters to familiar words while reinforcing number recognition through physical activity. The combination of visual learning and movement helps concepts stick in young minds.

• Recognizes and pronounces letters O, P, Q, R, S, and T
• Identifies beginning sounds (phonemic awareness)
• Counts from 8 to 10 with one-to-one correspondence
• Connects numbers to real quantities (8 octopus arms, 9 spins, 10 claps)
• Follows multi-step movement instructions

They'll use these skills when:

• Spotting letters on cereal boxes and street signs during breakfast or car rides
• Counting toys during cleanup time or snacks on their plate
• Following directions in games like "Simon Says" or at storytime
• Singing the alphabet song with friends or pointing out letters in picture books

The Story (what keeps them watching)

Miss Taryn welcomes little learners for an alphabet and counting adventure! First, she introduces letters O through T, connecting each to a fun word—Octopus wiggles, Pig oinks, and Rainbow shines! Then the real fun begins: counting 8, 9, and 10 with whole-body movements. Kids wiggle their arms 8 times like an octopus, spin 9 times with Nina the Nightingale, and clap 10 times to celebrate. The video wraps up with a silly moment about milk and water, keeping giggles going until the very end!

How We Teach It (the clever part)

• First 2 minutes: Letters O through T are introduced with alliterative phrases and animal/nature connections. Each letter gets repeated sounds to build phonemic awareness ("P-p-p-pig!").
• Minutes 2-4: Numbers 8, 9, and 10 are taught through movement—wiggling, spinning, and clapping the exact number of times. Nina the Nightingale models counting along.
• Final minute: Learning is reinforced through additional movement (twisting, clapping) and simple vocabulary practice with everyday words like "milk" and "water."

Teaching trick: Each number is paired with a physical action repeated that exact number of times. When your child wiggles 8 times like an octopus, they're building one-to-one correspondence—the foundation of all math understanding!

After Watching: Quick Wins to Reinforce Learning

• Mealtime activity: "Can you find something that starts with P on your plate?" (Practices beginning sound recognition with peas, pasta, or pizza!)
• Car/travel activity: "Let's count to 10 by tapping our knees—just like we clapped in the video!" (Reinforces counting sequence with movement)
• Bedtime activity: "Let's wiggle our arms 8 times like an octopus to get our sleepy wiggles out!" (Connects number 8 to quantity through body movement)
• Anytime activity: "I spy something that starts with the letter R... it has lots of colors!" (Builds letter-sound connections with rainbow or other R words around the house)

When Kids Get Stuck. And How to Help.

• "My child mixes up similar letters like O and Q" - Totally normal! Point out that Q has a little tail while O is a perfect circle. Practice drawing both in sand, shaving cream, or with finger paint to feel the difference.
• "They can't count to 10 without skipping numbers" - Counting takes lots of practice! Slow down and count together while touching objects one at a time. The video's movement activities help because each wiggle or clap represents exactly one number.
• "My child just wants to do the movements, not pay attention to the letters" - That's actually great! Movement helps the brain learn. After watching, ask "What letter was the octopus?" during wiggle time to connect the fun back to learning.

What Your Child Will Learn

Prerequisites and Building Blocks

This video is ideal for children who have some familiarity with the first half of the alphabet (A-N) and can count to 7. It builds on earlier Kokotree phonics videos introducing beginning letters and foundational counting content. Within the Little Seeds program, this episode bridges mid-alphabet recognition with higher single-digit counting, preparing learners for complete alphabet mastery and counting beyond 10. Children benefit from prior exposure to following simple movement directions.

Cognitive Development and Teaching Methodology

The multi-sensory approach addresses visual learners through on-screen letter and number displays, auditory learners through repeated phonetic sounds and counting sequences, and kinesthetic learners through movement activities. This aligns with how 2-5 year olds process information—their brains are wired to learn through whole-body engagement. The repetition of sounds ("P-p-p-pig") builds phonological awareness, while counting with movement develops one-to-one correspondence essential for mathematical thinking.

Alignment with Educational Standards

This content aligns with Common Core Kindergarten standards RF.K.1d (letter recognition) and K.CC.A.3 (counting to 20). It supports Head Start Early Learning Outcomes in Literacy Knowledge and Mathematics Development. The phonemic awareness activities meet pre-K benchmarks for understanding that words are made of sounds. Teachers expect incoming kindergarteners to recognize most letters and count to 10—this video directly builds those school-readiness indicators.

Extended Learning Opportunities

Pair this video with Kokotree's letter tracing activities for O, P, Q, R, S, and T. The app's counting games reinforce numbers 8-10 with interactive touch activities. Extend learning with printable letter cards featuring the video's vocabulary (octopus, pig, rainbow, spider, tiger). Create a simple movement game at home: call out numbers 8, 9, or 10 and have your child do that many jumps, claps, or wiggles.

Transcript Highlights

• "O is for Octopus. O-o-o-o-o-octopus." — Demonstrates phonemic awareness through sound repetition
• "See? 8 looks like a twisty, loopy number. And guess what? I know someone with 8 arms. An octopus!" — Connects number recognition to real-world quantity
• "Let's wiggle our arms like an octopus 8 times. Ready? Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle..." — Reinforces counting through kinesthetic learning
• "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9! Whoa!" — Models clear counting sequence with one-to-one correspondence

Character Development and Story Arc

Miss Taryn models enthusiastic learning behaviors, celebrating each small success with genuine excitement ("Amazing!" "You shine so bright, superstars!"). Nina the Nightingale demonstrates participation and cooperation by joining the spinning activity, showing children that learning is more fun together. The progression from letters to numbers to movement shows learners that education involves variety and play. Miss Taryn's patience and encouragement throughout models growth mindset for young viewers.

Phonics and Early Numeracy Deep Dive

This video strategically combines two foundational skills: phonemic awareness and number sense. The letters O through T represent a crucial mid-alphabet segment where children often need extra support—these letters include tricky sounds like the "kw" blend in Q and the tongue-position challenge of R.

The teaching technique of elongating initial sounds ("S-s-s-spider") isolates phonemes, helping children understand that words are built from individual sounds. This phonological awareness is the strongest predictor of early reading success. By connecting each letter to a concrete, visualizable noun (octopus, pig, rainbow, spider, tiger), the video builds vocabulary while anchoring abstract letter symbols to meaningful concepts.

The numeracy component focuses on 8, 9, and 10—numbers that challenge young counters because they require sustained attention and sequencing. Research shows children often plateau at 7 before mastering higher single digits. The movement activities provide proprioceptive feedback: when a child wiggles exactly 8 times, their body literally feels the quantity of "eight-ness."

The clever connection between the number 8 and the octopus's 8 arms demonstrates mathematical thinking—recognizing that numbers represent real quantities in the world. This concrete-to-abstract bridge is essential for developing number sense beyond rote memorization. The spinning and clapping activities also build gross motor coordination and the ability to follow sequential instructions, skills that support classroom readiness.