Letter and syllable dice devised for a project in rural Ecuador provide inexpensive, easily reproducible learning materials for practice in basic literary skills. Eleven wooden cubes with six letters on each cube are cast onto a surface and the player constructs words from the letters on the top side of the dice. After a word is formed and recorded, it may be taken apart to use the letters in forming another word. The player receives practice in assembling words from letters, and the observer gets exposure to words he doesn't know and reinforcement of words he vaguely knows. Both player and observers increase their spelling and vocabulary skills. Letter dice have been successfully used in community meetings, reform schools, and by Peace Corps members in English classes. Because syllable dice seem to be most effective in the early stages of literacy, they are used in the primary schools and in private tutoring sessions. In one approach the teacher draws a simple scene on the board and the students describe it by building words from the syllable dice. Attempts are presently in progress to adapt the dice to the native Quechua language. The author notes that although the materials have created interest, a satisfactory means of stematic evaluation has been difficult. The method of creating the dice and an illustration of the letter distribution are provided. (KC)