Clap the Sounds

The teacher will Say a simple word like “dog” and have students clap once for each sound they hear – such as /d/ (clap), /o/ (clap), /g/ (clap)

Differentiation: Use rhythm sticks for students who need physical guidance.

Sound Switch

The teacher will say a word ex: “cat” and ask students, “What word would we get if we change the letter ‘c’ to ‘h’?

Differentiation: Allow students to select from picture clues om visual options to reduce language demands.

At-Home Activity:

‘Sound Seeking’

Ask children to look around the house for objects that begin with the same sound; ex: for the sound ‘S’; they would look for a sock, spoon, soap. This activity will help build sound recognition during their everyday routines. Also helpful in supporting children with language delays, by parents modeling the sounds and words.

Website: Reading Rockets – Phonemic Awareness Basics: Phonological and Phonemic Awareness | Reading Rockets

This resource provides fun sound games and ideas for families to help their children practice and build on their listening skills.

Sound & Letter Bingo:

Students will listen to a letter sound and use a marker to circle the matching letter on the bingo card.

Differentiation: The teacher can use visual aids like adding a picture next to each letter to support students who benefit from picture-word associations. You can also offer them a Bingo card with fewer letter choices to reduce stress and help with focus. Teachers can also use texture markers or Velcro dots for sensory feedback while engaging in the activity.

Magnet word building:

Students will use magnetic letters to build simple 3 letter words. Mixing and blending.

Differentiation: The teacher can use a different color for the vowels and another for consonants to support their visual processing. For students who may have difficulty scanning / looking for matches, the teacher can pre-select the letter magnets that they will need for the activity. Slow repetition and modeling how to blend words allowing students to mimic at their own pace is helpful as well.

At-Home Activity:

Label the House: Children can label the furniture with sticky notes with the beginning letters written on them; like “w” for “window. Saying the word together for each one and discussing the sounds that they make. This activity encourages letter-sound recognition in a familiar environment with things they see daily. For non-verbal children, you can use pictures instead of words

Website: Starfall – ABCs & Phonics

This resource provides fun & interactive letter -sound games to teach phonics, which is great for visual and auditory learners. ABCs - Learn the Alphabet - Starfall

Weekly Word Wall: The teacher will introduce new words (with the associated pictures) to match the theme of the week to allow students to connect the meaning with the visual.

Differentiation:

Use a limited number of words for students who may be easily overstimulated; only focusing on 2-3 key words at a time. Pair students together, to work together is describing or acting out words for each other; this will help the students with limited language skills.

After Story Discussions: After a read-aloud, talk about the new words they heard in the book and what they mean.

Differentiation:

Provide picture-word cards to show what each word means. Offering sentence starters like “The word ___ means…” will make it easier for them to talk about the words. Using hand motions or short, simple explanations can also help students who learn better by visual or kinesthetic support. For students who struggle with verbal communication, they can draw a picture to show what the word means instead.

At-Home Activity:

Story Word Hunt: Have the child pick a word from a favorite story or a story recently read and ask them to look for that object; inside or outside.

This will help them build word connections from stories and real life and the repetition of seeing and saying the word supports their memory.

Website: Flocabulary – Vocabulary

This resource helps engage students through music and video; while teaching them new words. A great tool to support English Learners

Echo Reading: The teacher will read a sentence out loud, and the students will read it back using the same voice and rhythm.

Phrase Practice: Have students read short and familiar phrases to practice pacing and reading smoothly.

Differentiation: Use books that match each student’s reading level, allowing them audio support.  

At-Home Activity:

Family Reading Night: The parent and child will take turns reading different pages in the book. This allows the child to hear fluent reading and ability to practice their fluency and expression in a stress-free environment.

Website: PBS Kids Reading Games

This resource helps because it provides fun and interactive stories and games to help children practice and build their reading confidence.

Story Recall: After reading a story with the class, let students use props or puppets or props to act out parts of the story. This engaging recall will help them remember what happened as they explain it with their own actions and in their own words.

5W’s: After reading, ask simple questions about “who” was in the story, “what” happened, “where” it happened, “when” it happened and “why” it happened to help students think about and understand what they read.

Differentiation: Use pictures from the story and read the book more than once so all learners, especially those who need more support, can better understand and remember it.

At-Home Activity:

Story Drawing: After reading a book together, you can have your child draw a picture of something that happened or their favorite part in the story. This activity will allow children to demonstrate what they learned and understood about the store in a fun way if they’re not ready to explain it in words. Drawing supports memory, story sequencing, and helps them connect with the story in a creative way.

Website: Storyline Online – Read-Aloud Videos
This resource helps supports comprehension by helping kids hear and see fluent and animated readings.