Does Your Kindergartner Struggle with Beginning Reading Skills?
Ball Begins With B!
The Cow That Went OINK
Prep: 3 Minutes / Activity Time: 5–6 Minutes
Once your 5-year-old has mastered learning letters and their sounds, he is ready to begin to put those sounds together to build simple words. Before your child can see how the sounds in words come together, he must first be able to hear how sounds come together. Children who are ready for this activity are very close to becoming readers, which is an exciting milestone!
Step 1: Locate and name four objects whose names contain three distinct sounds and can easily be seen by your child. (Examples: lid, hat, pot, bed, cup.)
Step 2: Secretly choose one of the objects. Say each sound in the word (not the name of each letter), slowly, one sound at a time. Encourage your child to blend the sounds together and locate the correct object. Say:
“Listen, listen with your ear. Find the word that you hear: /h/ /a/ /t/. Blend those sounds inside your head, then show me which word I just said!”
Step 3: Continue playing with all objects on the table.
Step 1: To make it easier, reduce the number of objects. Locate and name two objects whose names contain three distinct sounds. Place both objects on the table so that your child can see them.
Step 2: Secretly choose one of the objects. Say each sound in the word (not the name of each letter), slowly, one sound at a time. Encourage your child to blend the sounds together and locate the correct object. Say:
“Listen, listen with your ear. Find the word that you hear: /h/ /a/ /t/. Blend those sounds inside your head, then show me which word I just said!”
Step 3: While your child holds the object, slowly say each of the sounds again. Encourage your child to jump once for each sound in the word. For example, your child would jump three times for the word “hat.” You might say:
“Listen: /h/ /a/ /t/. Let’s jump three times, once for each sound. What’s the word?”
Step 4: Choose two new objects and play again.
Step 1: Locate five objects whose names contain three distinct sounds. Place these objects on the table so that your child can see them. Name each object as you place it on the table.
Step 2: To add a challenge: Ask your child to choose one of the objects and encourage your child to separate the word into individual sounds. Say:
“Listen, listen with your ear. Tell me each sound that you hear. Listen: hat. (Say the sound each letter makes, rather than the letter name.) Say each sound slowly when you say ‘hat.’ That’s right! /h/ /a/ /t/.”
Step 3: Acknowledge your child for making each individual sound.
Step 4: Continue playing with all remaining objects.