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#167. Letter Slide

The Letter Slide : Blending sounds into words

Objective: Once children know a few letters and their
sounds, they are ready to blend those sounds into words.
This is an activity for children who are having difficulty understanding
the concept of blending.

Materials: chalkboard and letter cards

Procedure: Draw a large sliding board on the chalkboard. Let
students share experiences about sliding boards.
Have they ever been afraid to climb up or go down one?
Well, all the vowels are afraid. Make up a little
story like the following example. One day,
"a" wanted to go down the slide, but was afraid. His
friend "c" said that he would go up with him. Along
came "t" who said that he would stand at the bottom of
the slide and catch them. Hold "c" and "a" in one hand
and as you move them up each step of the slide, have
the students say "/ca/" "/ca/" "/ca/" and then draw
out the sound as you move the letters down the slide. When you
get to the bottom, make the /t/ sound. Someone is
sure to call out "/cat/"! Adapt the stories to include the other
vowels and new consonants as the students learn them.
For example, when "e" sees "a" having so much fun, he wants to try.
And when "t" gets tired of catching, "d" can take over.
Kindergarteners never tire of this story. The lesson also works well with first graders who are having trouble with blending letters into words.

Reading-writing connection: Have students
keep a list of the words they have made. Use the
words to create sentences or experience stories.
For a hands-on approach to this lesson, make individual
slides and letter cards for each child. Let them act
out the stories with you and then make up their own stories.