Letter Sound Accuracy, Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down?

Activity Type: Build Accuracy

Activity Form: Standard

Grade: K, 1

Group Size: Whole Class

Length: 5 minutes

Goal: Given a sound, the student can identify words with that begin with that sound ("/d/" -> "dog").

Items: All letter sounds learned so far.

What to do

Before beginning the game, generate a list of words that begin with the target letter sound. Make sure to integrate similar structure words that begin with alternate letter sounds.
I am going to read a word out loud. When I say the word, I want you to decide if you hear /m/ at the beginning. If you hear /m/ at the beginning of the word, show me a thumbs up. If you do not hear /m/ at the beginning of the word, show me a thumbs down. Any questions.
Here we go. Read the list of words out loud and monitor students’ responses. Call on students individually. (Students love to be first to answer, so if you let the whole group respond, the student in need of the most practice will get the least.)
Man. Moose. Spaghetti. Top. Monkey. Have. Monster. Milk. We. Save. Mash.
At the end of the list, you can call a few students to give words to the class. Encourage them to try and “stump” their classmates.
As an alternative, repeat the same exercise with the target sound at the end of the word.
Observe students. For students who struggle, give them help and make a note in an Activity Log.