THE LAND OF THE LETTER PEOPLE: EDUCATIONAL SERIES STARTS CHILDREN ON A TRIP INTO THE WORLD OF LITERACY

The Letter People hang from the ceiling in the kindergarten classrooms.

Kristopher Nunley colored overalls, one of the "O" words.

Visitors to the kindergarten classrooms at Washington Elementary School can expect to see two things: brightly-colored balloon figures suspended by string from the ceilings, and children excitedly talking about their letter friend of the day.

"Mr. O is opposites. He's my best friend," said Alaka Selvy-Carter, 5.

Mr. O is just one of the characters from "The Land of the Letter People," an educational series that creates a warm, friendly environment in which children are encouraged to try out their developing literacy and social skills.

The series includes 26 characters named for each letter of the alphabet and a wide range of group and individual experiences to teach children reading skills.

A number of the local elementary schools -- both public and parochial -- use the letter people in kindergarten.

Nancy Godwin said the Letter People are an integral part of her students' educational experience. The series works because the characters are about the same size as the children, and their stories and adventures are often adopted by the children, she said.

"I feel that it is appealing because it is a joyful, friendly place where 26 colorful, huggable characters make learning memorable, meaningful and fun," Godwin said. "They're child-sized and approachable, and they soon become trusted and timeless friends."

The series has been updated since its debut in the 1970s. The first set of Letter People consisted of 21 consonants called letter boys and five vowels called letter girls. Today, the genders are on equal ground with 13 of each. The new series also refers to vowels as "Letter Lights" because they "light their way" to making words by getting in between two consonants.

"Mr. O today is a Letter Light. That means he's like a letter and a vowel," said Donna Suhre, 5. "He's not my favorite though. I like Mr. Z, but he's not a vowel. He's just a letter."

Several of the characters have also been renamed over the years. For example, Mr. D originally liked delicious donuts. Today, he's a dazzling dancer. Mr. V now has a vegetable vest, but when he was first introduced he wore a violet, velvet vest.

"We sometimes meet and study both," said Godwin, who has used the series for 15 years.

Leasa Eudy said her students enjoy the variety of experiences that the series offers. If all the students did was look at letters everyday they would soon lose interest, she said. However, when the visit their Letter People friends they can expect to sing songs, write books and poems, hear stories and make special food.

"My classroom usually is fairly calm, but they always talk amongst their groups when we work with the Letter People," said Eudy. "I don't mind the chatter because they're usually talking about the letter we're working with."

Godwin said the multitude of experiences makes the series appealing to all students regardless of their reading skills. The Letter People start where the child is, then offers a wide range of education to meet the student's needs, she said.

"With experiences that combine big books, little books, music, poetry and art, students are invited into a safe place for experimenting with language," said Godwin. "It's comforting yet empowering for even the shyest student."

Students were definitely not shy when describing their favorite characters. Mr. V was popular because of the colors in his vegetable vest. Mr. Z, who has a zipper, was also a favorite, but there were many others.

"I like Mr. N, because his nose looks kinda like a snowman," said Corey Porter, 6.

Devin Hayden, 5 was a fan of Mr. H "because he has happy hair."

Megan Kilburn, 6, couldn't name a favorite character. "I like them all. I think all of them are my friends," she said.

Teachers said their students would like to study the Letter People most of each day instead of the 30 minutes they usually visit with them. The children treat the characters as friends and love to share new experiences with them, they said.

"The nice thing about the Letter People is there's no grouping: no top, middle and bottom," said Godwin. "All children feel successful and all believe they can achieve. Best of all, instead of phonics being the dull, dry skill-and-drill stuff many adults remember from school, it's fun."