What it looks like… What students may be doing…

Word Knowledge Learning Center

Organize a small area of the room or provide a tub for word knowledge activities.

Develop separate centers that address specific skills within phonological awareness, phonics, and sight word identification appropriate to the readers in your classroom.

Sample Phonological awareness: o Rhyming pictures o Elkonin boxes & counters o Blending & segmenting

activities Sample phonics materials:

o Letter tiles o Magnetic letters o Wipe-off boards/markers o Erasable highlighters for

word hunts o Phonics games

Sample sight word materials: o Word walls o Baskets w/blank word

cards, highlighter tape, pointers, etc.

o Sight word games & stories Resources: Words Their Way, 3rd Ed by D. Bear, S. Templeton, M. Invernizzi, and F. Johnston. Word Journeys by Kathy Ganske Phonics They Use by P. Cunningham.

Sample Phonological Awareness activities

Playing a rhyming game Syllable awareness games Concept of Word activities:

cutting up sentences and arranging words from familiar texts

Push & Say It (blending & segmenting sounds in words –at 1st with sounds only, later paired with letter tiles)

Sample Phonics activities Alphabet games for letter

recognition (matching upper/lower case, tracking ABC’s, sequencing letters, etc)

Picture or word sorts for specific phonics feature

Writing sorts Speed sorts Build words with magnetic

letters Word hunts

Sample Sight Word Activities Practice reading words on

word wall w/pointer Play Sight Word Bingo Word hunt for designated high

frequency words Play Flip-It Practice writing sight words

from the wall.

Sample Blending & Segmenting Strategies [Activities taken from: Fitzpatrick, Jo, Phonemic Awareness, 1997; Blevins, W. Phonemic Awareness Activities, 1997; Adams, Foorman, Lundberg, & Beeler, Phonemic Awareness in Young Children 1998. *Adapt the difficulty level by using onset-rime(easier) OR phoneme level units (more difficult)*

Rubber bands Large rubber bands are an easy way to illustrate how to stretch out the sounds in words. Use a dry erase board & demonstrate with a rubber band: Stretch out the rubber band as you segment each sound. Then, let it snap back into shape as you “say it fast”. Example: /c/---/a/---/t/ cat

Puppets Puppets who say words in “special” ways can be used to teach segmenting & blending. Choose a puppet that has a visible, movable mouth. Example: I have a special friend here today. [show puppet] My puppet is from a faraway land where the people talk in a special way. See if you can figure out what my friend says: /d/--/og/ [dog] /w/---/ig/ [wig]

Mystery Bag Keep a bag filled with common objects. Have students guess what you are holding by giving them a clue, i.e., segmenting the sounds of the word. Eventually let students who guess correctly choose the next object and say the “special” clue. Sample objects: sock, can, leaf, top, soap, pen, boat, gum, key, dime, etc.

Where is the Sound? Have the students write down simple words for this activity, e.g., weekly word study words. Give everyone an erasable highlighter. Teacher says the word, then says a sound in the word. Highlight the letter making the sound. Note: Discuss whether it is in the beginning, middle, or end of the word. Have students segment & blend the sounds in each word. Big. Find /ig/. Wig. Find /w/.

cat

MMMYYY SSS TTT EEE RRR YYY

?

?

big wig

Word Knowledge

Phonological awareness, phonics, and sight words

Sample Tasks for Alphabet Center:

Magnetic letters:

Match upper & lowercase A a

Make your name. Find it.

Make 3 words. Write it.

Learning Names Find the bag with your picture. Take out cardboard pieces with letters.

Make your name in upper & lower case and say each letter.

Write your name. Do a friend’s name.

Alphabet puzzles

Match upper & lower case. Put in order A-Z. Find the letters that make your name.

Practice writing some of the letters.

Font sorts

Match the letters, e.g., M, A, S Match upper & lower case

Read Alphabet Books Choose an ABC book to read. Read “My Letter Book” (choose

the specific letter from word study) Use a letter finder to hunt letters.

Ideas for Initial Sound Sorts

Sort 2-3 initial sounds by objects Sort 2-3 initial sounds using pictures.

Glue & label pictures (writing sort) Say what’s the same about each

object or picture. Name the letter & sound it makes.

A

a

a

a

a A

P p M m

Sample Tasks for Sight Word Center:

Word Wall Work:

Read your words with a pointer Put tape on hard words Use 5 words in a sentence.

Sight Word Suns Get a sun sheet Fill it in with word wall words Practice reading your “sun” words 3

times. Switch and read your buddy’s

words.

Sight Word Story

Pick a sight word story. Read it to yourself. Read it aloud. Read it to a buddy.

Word Hunts: Use a word finder to…

Find 3 color words Find 3 number words Find 3 animal words Find 3 action words Find 3 interesting words Find was, there, here, saw Make a silly sentence with your

words. Write words on cards & sort by

categories.

Flip-IT Get a flip-it sheet. Write down this week’s words. Read them fast and flip-it. Do 2 more times. How many could you flip?

Sight Word Game

the is his

at

with

on they for

Play sight word Bingo Take turns calling out the winning

words and write on wipe-off boards.

BINGO

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