Say IT Move IT

Activity Type: Introduce

Activity Form: Game

Grade: 1

Group Size: Small Group

Length: 15 minutes

Materials: Three counters per student, a mat or large sheet of paper to write on

Goal: The student will learn how to divide words into phonemes and blend the phonemes back into words.

Items: Pool, cool, hook, book, good, wood

What to do

Prepare the mat or large piece of paper by drawing a circle and an arrow going from left to right on it.
Form a small group. Distribute the counters (each student should have three). In order to become aware of the sounds in words, we are going to play a game where we will use counters to separate sounds and then put them back together.
This mat (or paper) has a circle at the top where we keep the counters when we are not using them. There is an arrow which goes from left to right to remind us to put the sounds back together to say the word. Indicate these features by pointing.
I'll use the word mom. The first sound is /m/. The next sound is /o/. The last sound is /m/. /M/ /o/ /m/, mom. Move one counter to the arrow for each sound in the word; elongate the sounds as you slowly slide the counters from left to right. When you repeat the word, quickly slide your finger beneath the arrow.
Repeat and demonstrate again using the word miss.
Now it's your turn. The next word is red. Ask a student to mimic what you have done using the new word. If correct, try another word with another student. If not, model the activity again. When the task is understood, continue with words selected for specific student needs.
If you notice that any student has trouble with this activity, you may wish to make specific notes in an Activity Log.

Activity adapted from the mCLASS®:DIBELS® site by Pamela Tow, Garfield Primary School, Peoria, IL.