UNDERSTANDING WORDS IN SENTENCES & SYLLABLES IN WORDS
FOCUS ON SUBJECTS
• Say a sentence then clap it out, one clap for each new word. • Use a ball – throw for each new word. Use blocks, bean or anything lying around the house – touch each item every time a new word is said. • These same activities can be repeated for syllables in words. Start with 2 syllables (un-der) move to 3 (kan- ga- roo), 4 and so on.
RHYMING • Many stories and poems have rhymes. • Play rhyme tennis. You start with a word like cat, your child bounces back with a rhyming word, e.g. hat. These words may need to be introduced first. Use a ball, Frisbee or beanbag if you want. • Find pictures in magazines or Google images, cut out & stick them in a book. You now have your own rhyming book for future reference.
SOUNDS IN WORDS • Introduce same then different. Do these pairs of words have the same first sound? – hat/happy – yes, so reward (could be a points game). When they are confident with same sound, introduce different. Do these words have the same first sound? – dog/ cat, car/box, kiss/kite? NB. No letters are introduced yet as we are trying to get the children to hear the sounds. It is important to remember we have sounds in our language which have multiple letter choices, e.g. c, k, ck, or j, g, or e, ee, ea, y. • Word pairs-games can be carried out with end sounds too. E.g. rack/truck, net/rat etc... • The next stage is middle sounds which can be a lot harder to identify so keep it simple to start – cat/man, pop/rock. • Coloured blocks or counters could be used to help the child isolate the sound – each sound has a different colour and is touched as the sounds are said. You can then go back to the colour of the sound needed & see if they remember. This strategy is called tracking. • Silly sentences are great way to practice alliteration. Choose a sound such as ‘r’ – Roger’s rabbits runs round Rachel’s rat! There are also some great picture books available too which have great examples of alliteration.
“Whatever you do it is important you and your child have fun. If you both enjoy the experience you will want to do it again.” BLENDING • I spy – I am looking at a c-a-t • What’s under the tea towel? It is a g-r-a-pe
SEGMENTING • Counter/block push for every new sound • Games – correct segmentation earn a point/piece of the puzzle/turn to throw. These are just a sample of the activities you could do at home. Use the internet as a source of ideas and if you look for phonological awareness you will be amazed how much comes up. There are even apps for your smart phones. Whatever you do it is important you and your child have fun. If you both enjoy the experience you will want to do it again.
happy learning. TRACEY WILCOCKS, BEGIN BRIGHT BURLEIGH www.beginbright.com.au
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