Multimodal learning of unfamiliar English letters: graphomotor, recitation, and combined practice in Arab Israeli children

This study investigated the impact of different practice modalities—graphomotor, recitation, and a hybrid combination—on the acquisition of unfamiliar English letters by second-grade Arab Israeli children. One hundred 7- to 8-year-old Arab Israeli second-graders (50 girls) were randomly assigned to a graphomotor group, a recitation group, a hybrid graphomotor–recitation group, or an untrained control group. Foundational letter-level skills (identification, naming, sound knowledge) were assessed pre- and 24–48 h post-intervention, while emergent writing skills (letter copying speed, accuracy, and spelling) were assessed post-intervention.All groups, including the control, showed significant gains in foundational letter skills, with structured interventions producing notably greater improvements. The hybrid group consistently outperformed all other groups in letter identification, naming, sound knowledge, and spelling. For letter copying speed, graphomotor practice—both alone and in the hybrid condition—was superior, while all intervention groups improved copying accuracy compared to the control.These findings strongly support multimodal learning theories, demonstrating that integrating motor and verbal engagement is most effective for building robust grapho-phonemic representations from scratch. This study highlights the significance of active, multisensory instructional strategies for early literacy acquisition in non-native language contexts, particularly when the target script is entirely unfamiliar.