Hi friends!
When we explicitly teach students letters and corresponding sounds, we are giving them the tools to crack the code that is the English language,
Today I wanted to share with you some of my all-time favorite activities for teaching initial sounds and letter/sound identification. Ranging from groups of letters to more advanced skills using blending, add these activities to your literacy rotation today!
I have ordered the list from 'easiest' to 'hardest' in terms of what skills and knowledge are involved with successfully engaging with each activity.
1. INITIAL SOUND ALPHABET MATS
Prep once and never again with these initial sound mats. I use these on rotations with my students. Tweezers and pompoms are excellent ways to build finger dexterity and fine motor skills.
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2. SAY & COLOR ALPHABET SOUNDS
My students cannot get enough of anything that they can color in! These sheets are perfect for isolating and practicing single sounds that have just been taught.
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3. INITIAL SOUND PUZZLES
Do your students enjoy puzzles as much as mine do? I made these alphabet matching puzzles so students who are consolidating their letter/sound ID can practice independently or with partners. Cards students have to pick up and move around is great for building finger dexterity as well as truly using and applying their letter/sound knowledge.
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4. CVC INITIAL SOUND CARDS
An activity for some of the higher level students, these cards not only require application of the letter/sound ID knowledge, but also support skills of blending to read. These cards are easy to prepare and can be stored away for use across many activities and for years to come.
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5. ALPHABET PUZZLE CARDS
Similar to the Initial Sound Puzzles, these cards operate on the same premise - students meaningfully rehearse their knowledge of letters and sounds. Further, students will practice how to listen for and isolate sounds in words to correctly identify the initial sound. These puzzles are fantastic for use as you teach groups of letters, as there are 5 parts to each puzzles you can offer 8-12 letters at a time without the activity being too quick and easily completed.
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6. INITIAL SOUND READ, CUT, AND MATCH
I'm not much of a worksheet kind of gal but sometimes my students actually crave something quiet, independent and methodical to do. Perfect for rehearsing small groups of taught letters at a time, these sheets will support students in their segmenting of words, fine motor skills as they cut and paste, and color the pictures. These sheets are perfect for homework or morning work!
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7. INITIAL SOUND PEG CARDS
Using pegs and manipulatives in your classroom is an ideal way to build critical fine motor skills in students' little hands needed to grasp a pencil correctly and write. I specifically designed these cards to include other prominent sounds in the words to build the ability to segment and isolate individual sounds in words.
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8. BUILD-A-CVC WORD
Continuing to move up the ranks of difficulty, these CVC Build-A-Word cards use students' letter/sound ID knowledge to create a CVC word that matches the bright and colorful picture. These can be laminated and written on with wipe-off markers, or used with magnetic letters.
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9. STARTING SOUND MYSTERY SENTENCES
Perhaps the most challenging initial sound activity on my list (and why I left it until last!) but boy oh boy do my students eat these up! Students truly will be able to 'crack the code' using their knowledge of letters and sounds in this activity. The sheets can be laminated and used with wipe-off marker or with magnetic letters. Students will practice a variety of important phonological awareness skills as well as recognition and rehearsal of high frequency words.
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