Distinguishing Letters, Numbers, and Words Worksheets

Related ELA Standard: RF.K.1.D

Core Standard
Answer Keys Here

Being able to understand the differences between letters, numbers, words, and even symbols takes some maturity. A great way to get students started with this concept is by using highlighters. Have them choose a color for each and then let them loose on a magazine, newspaper, or anything you do not need to use in the future. You can also let them cut and paste them into groups. These worksheets will help students learn the differences between numbers, letters, and words.

Distinguishing Letters, Numbers, and Words Worksheets:

Letters and Numbers - Color each shape that contains a letter red. Color each shape that contains a number blue.

Shopping for Numbers - Color the cans that contain numbers. Do not color the cans that contain letters.

I Love Letters! - Find all the letters. Color the hearts containing letters pink.

Letter Challenge - Circle all the letters.

Color Code - Color the blocks that contain numbers red. Color the blocks that contain letters blue. Color the blocks that contain shapes yellow.

It's Raining Numbers! - Color the raindrops containing numbers blue.

Visual Discrimination - Ask the child to look at each item, starting at the top row and moving from left to right. Draw a circle around every letter.

Letters or Numbers? - Cut out each square. Glue them into the correct column.

Letters Aloft! - Joe's balloons all had letters in them. Help Joe find his balloons by coloring them yellow.

Fishing for Numbers - Color the fish that have a number inside them.

Use Your Eyes! - Find all the numbers in the maze.

Wave the Flag! - Color the flags with numbers red. Color the flags with letters blue.

Letter Shapes - Color each shape that contains a letter orange. Color each shape that contains a number pink.

Number Maze - Draw a circle around each number.

Circle It! - Draw a circle around each number. Draw a square around each letter.

How to Help Students Distinguish Between Letters, Numbers, and Words


Children must start to recognize the difference between letters, numbers, and words at a young age. This will help them get rid of any confusion in the text. Here is a fun activity that will help students distinguish between letters, numbers, and words.


Before you conduct this activity to teach the children about the differentiation between letters, numbers, and words, there are some things and concepts that your students should be aware of. They should learn the basic 1 to 9 numbers and A to Z alphabets. You should also tell them about the basic formation of words. You can create a chart and write all the letters and numbers along with a few words. To avoid any confusion, you can miss out on the letters I and O. This is because these letters can be confused with number 1 and number 0. You can start by telling the kids that they have already learned the alphabetical letters. This will be a sort of revision with the chart. You can then revise all the numbers with them. Also, teach them that a combination of a few letters will result in the formation of words that we use in our daily language.


After the revision of the three topics, it is time to conduct the activity. You will have to get three highlighters. It is best to get a yellow one, a red one, and a blue one. Each highlighter will be used for three topics. You can put the color key on the board for the students to understand. Yellow one should be used for letters. Red one should be used for numbers. The blue one should be used for words. Now, call the students one by one on the board. Write one of all three on the board and ask the student to highlight according to the key. When the student is done, you can let him or her analyze the result.