What can you bring for Show and Tell with the letter P? From puppets and pinecones to pandas, pencils, and pinwheels — the letter P is packed with possibilities. This guide has everything a preschooler or kindergartener needs to walk in prepared, proud, and ready to present.
🎈 Show and Tell Letter P Ideas
- Pencil – Simple, always available, and endlessly interesting. "A pencil has graphite inside, not lead. The eraser is made of rubber. Pencils can draw a line 35 miles long before wearing out!"
- Photo – A framed or printed family photo. "This is a picture of my family. I want to tell you about each person." The easiest and most personal option.
- Pinecone – Free from any walk outside. "A pinecone is how pine trees make new seeds. When it opens up, the seeds fly away on the wind."
- Puppet – A hand puppet, finger puppet, or homemade sock puppet. Children can use it to introduce themselves or tell a story — a shy child's best friend.
- Puzzle – Bring a small puzzle and talk about how many pieces it has and what the picture shows. Bonus: ask a classmate to help put one piece in.
- Pebble – A favorite smooth pebble from a walk. "I found this pebble at ___. Pebbles are small rocks that get smooth when water rubs against them for a very long time."
- Plant or seed – A small potted plant or a seed packet. "This is a ___ plant. It needs water, soil, and sunlight to grow. Roots drink the water underground."
- Pretzel – A fun, edible letter P item. "Pretzels were invented a long time ago by a monk in Europe. He made them in the shape of arms crossed in prayer."
- Pinwheel – Easy to bring, delightful to demonstrate. "Wind makes my pinwheel spin. Wind is air that is moving. I can also blow on it to make my own wind."
- Panda (toy) – A stuffed panda or figurine. "Giant pandas are black and white. They live in China and eat mostly bamboo — up to 26 pounds of it a day!"
💡 Encourage your child to say: "My letter P item is ___ because…" to build vocabulary and early public speaking confidence.
🎨 Letter P Craft Ideas
- Paper Plate Pig – Paint a paper plate pink, add a snout cut from a smaller circle, two triangle ears, curly pipe cleaner tail, and googly eyes. Simple, adorable, and a perfect P craft.
- Potato Stamp Printing – Cut a potato in half and carve a simple shape or letter P into the flat side. Dip in paint and stamp to create repeating patterns. Discuss how potatoes are a vegetable that grows underground.
- Paper Bag Puppet – Decorate a brown paper bag to make any animal or character that starts with P: a penguin, pig, panda, or parrot. Use it during the presentation to tell a short story.
- Pinwheel – Cut a square piece of paper diagonally from each corner almost to the center, fold every other point to the middle, and attach to a stick with a pin. A satisfying P craft that doubles as a science lesson on wind energy.
- Paper Plane Engineering – Fold three different paper plane designs. Test which flies farthest. Talk about wings, angles, and the letter P for "pilot."
✏️ Letter P Worksheets
Help your child recognize, trace, and write the letter P with these worksheet activities:
- Uppercase P and lowercase p tracing pages
- Color all the pictures that start with P
- Circle the letter P hidden in a page of mixed letters
- Match the P word to its picture (pencil, pig, plant)
- Beginning sound sort: P vs. B (these are easy to mix up!)
- "I can write P" free practice lines with dotted guide
🎵 Letter P Songs & Videos
- The P Song by Have Fun Teaching – Energetic, phonics-focused, great for movement and repetition.
- Peter Piper – The classic tongue twister ("Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers") is a joy to practice for the /p/ sound.
- Polly Put the Kettle On – A beloved nursery rhyme that gives lots of P-word exposure in a musical, memorable format.
- The P is for Penguin Song – Search for this on YouTube; several animated versions exist that children love.
▶️ Watch: Search "P phonics song for kids" on YouTube for a range of child-friendly animated options.
📚 Letter P Book Recommendations
- Pinkalicious by Victoria Kann – A girl eats so many pink cupcakes she turns pink herself. Irresistibly silly and a class favorite.
- Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin – Pete stays cool no matter what happens to his shoes. A wonderful lesson in resilience wrapped in a catchy song.
- P is for Pterodactyl by Raj Haldar – A hilarious alphabet book about all the letters whose sounds break the rules. P is, of course, the star.
- Poppleton series by Cynthia Rylant – A friendly pig navigates neighborly life. Perfect for early readers and a great discussion starter about friendship.
- The Pigeon Needs a Bath by Mo Willems – Mo Willems' pigeon is a beloved character in early childhood classrooms. Hysterically funny and surprisingly relatable.
🔬 STEM & Sensory Activities for Letter P
- Plant a Seed – Plant a fast-growing seed (bean or sunflower) in a clear plastic cup pressed against the side so the root is visible. Watch it grow over the week. "P is for plant, and plants are living things just like us."
- Pulley System – Tie a string through a paper towel roll attached to a doorknob and demonstrate how a simple pulley makes lifting easier. Pulleys are a type of simple machine — also starts with P!
- Paper Bridge Engineering – Can a single sheet of paper hold weight? Challenge children to fold paper into a bridge shape across two stacks of books, then add pennies (P!) until it collapses. Record results.
- Patterns with Pebbles – Use collected pebbles (or colored counters) to make AB, ABB, and AABB patterns. Discuss how patterns repeat and how mathematicians look for them everywhere.
- Pressure Test – Fill a plastic bag with water and poke a pencil through it — if done quickly, it won't leak! The plastic seals around the pencil. A classic science trick that always gets gasps.
🎉 Wrap-Up
Letter P is a powerhouse! From the practical pencil in every backpack to the playful puppet in every imagination, P surrounds children every single day. Help your child find their favorite P item, practice their three sentences, and walk into Show and Tell proud and prepared.