Anybody have good old fashioned tricks of the trade that work and require no prep?
I've got a few I've used over the years. They are my go to strategies in my classroom and a staple during my phonics instruction...plus, since they are Total Physical Response strategies, they are perfect for my ELL babies!
>>>Arm Segmentation<<<
The beginning sound is touched and spoken on the shoulder...
How 'bout my cutie patootie model? October break calls for models who aren't firsties! :)
The middle sound is touched and spoken on the elbow...
And the ending sound is touched and spoke on the hand.
Then the hand slides from the shoulder down to the hand to blend it all back together.
This strategy is a perfect Total Physical Response strategy that gives my tactile learners some support. It is also great for asking, "What sound did you hear in the middle of crab?" while touching your elbow, etc....to give them that visual and tactile cue.
Super easy and the kids use it all. the. time. I see kiddos daily using their arms to break apart words during Writers' Workshop. It's easy to remember and you carry the materials around with you every where you go! :)
>>>Break It Down Chant<<<
Essentially, we do the arm segmentation while chanting the break it down chant. Here's how it goes.
*snapping to the beat*
Break it down (snap)
Break it down (snap)
Break. It. (snap) Down (snap)
I say the word,
YOU say the sounds.
T: Cab.
S: /c/ /a/ /b/
I add a "scoop" to connect to lines to just add a visual that two letters blend their sound. This has been so so powerful during our intervention time as well as in whole group {read more about how we transfer our segmenting into spelling new words HERE.}
>>>Slippity Slide Chant<<<
Slide, slide,
slippity slide
I say the sounds,
YOU make it glide!
T: /c/ /a/ /b/
S: cab!
Need help spelling a word? Break it down!
Need help reading a word? Slide it out!
>>>Word Family Cha-Ching!<<<
The onset is on our thumb....
The rime is on the palm of our hand...
The whole word gets read while we make a fist and cha-ching our hand back to our body...
This is great for when kids are ready to read by onset and rime instead of individual sounds. It's also great for phonemic awareness when we are listening to see if words rhyme.
What I love about each of these strategies is that they are perfect for first grade phonics. They work for CVC words, but they also work for blend words and most other one syllable words. These are strategies I can literally use all year long...and my kids use them all year long too!
What free strategies do you like to use?
No comments