Katie Copper Reading Lesson: Hearing and Blending Syllables; Sounding out words Multi-part lesson Syllable Counting

with Names This was a lesson in practicing hearing syllables. We used the names of the students in the class to help them practice hearing and clapping out syllables (used all names so that no one was left out). We also discussed whose name in the class has the fewest syllables (answer: James, with one syllable). The kids really enjoyed doing this and it was sweet to see them light up when their name was called. I went in a random order so they never knew which name was going to come next. The lesson was conducted in this manner: I said the name and clapped the syllables alone the first time, then the students accompanied the second time for the first few names (5 or so). After that, I would call out the name and the children would follow by saying the name while clapping the syllables. If I noticed that the students had trouble with a certain name, I stopped, modeled the syllable clapping and then children repeated. Syllable Blending This was a lesson in practicing blending syllables. We used words that were pre-chosen. The lesson was conducted in this manner: I said the syllables separated (enough so it didnt sound like I was saying the word). Then, the students would blend the syllables and tell me the whole word. The words used are as follows: carrot, pickle, popcorn, chicken, peanut, biscuit, etc. Sounding out Words We followed the syllable lesson with a little work on sounding out one-syllable words. Each child was given a mini whiteboard and marker. Then, I would say a full word, wait a moment, and then say the word slowly making sure to enunciate each sound. For example: cat. /c/.. /a/.. /t/. As I sound out the words, the children would also sound it out aloud and would write the letter to spell the words on their boards and hold them up. The words used were as follows: cat, bat, pet, pin, cup, hot, sit, etc.