Emergent Literacy Lesson:

“Vacuum that Rug!”

By Leigh Morgan

Beginning Literacy

Rationale:  Prealphabetic readers must first be aware of and familiar with phonemes before being expected to beginning using the alphabetic code.  This lesson will focus on the consonant sound /n/ in words.  The concentration will be phonemic, but the grapheme N will be present to give connection.

Materials:

• A set of dirty paw print cards for each child (15 prints per child)
• Teacher list of words (compiled before lesson)
• A book with concentration on short N
• A dog puppet – “Sparky the sound sleuth”
• Short N picture sheet
• Short N story (included)
• A card showing the grapheme N and a picture of a vacuum
• LOTS OF IMAGINATION !

Procedure:

1. “The words we say every day are made up of lots of little mouth moves.  Watch my mouth when I say mouth moves.”  Stretch the words out and exaggerate movement.  “Now I want you to say the words “mouth moves”, pay close attention to what your mouth is doing.  Today we are going to work on the /n/ mouth move.  When you say /n/ where do you feel it?  Do you feel a tickle in your nose?  Try again and see.”
2. “Do you know what the /n/ sound makes me think of?  A vacuum (show card with the picture of the vacuum and the letter N).  You know the sound your mom’s vacuum makes,  nnnnnnnn.  Turn on you imagination and for the next thirty seconds I want you to vacuum the floor with you imaginary vacuum.”
3. “That vacuum sound is hidden in a lot of words.  Listen to this tongue twister and see if you hear the vacuum.  "Now Nan Knits Nicely".  This time I am going to push and pull my vacuum on the /n/ sound.”  Say the tongue twister while “vacuuming” when you say the short n.  “Now you try.”  Repeat the tongue twister with the children.  Have them push and pull their vacuums on the short n.
4. “With all these great sounds I bet we will have a visitor soon – and here he is.  It’s Sparky the Sound Sleuth.  Sparky is going to say some words for us.  When we hear the vacuum sound we need to push and pull our vacuum.  I’ll try the first one.”  Read the first word from the word list with Sparky.  When you reach the /n/ run your vacuum.  After that demonstration, have the class join you as Sparky reads the rest of the word list.  Note:  Not all the words should have the /n/ sound.
5. Put a set of paw print cards on the children’s desks – If you are up to a challenge put them all over the room.  “You did a great job with those vacuums, but it looks like we have a problem.  Sparky did not wipe his paws when he came in the classroom and there are paw prints everywhere!  We need to use our vacuums to clean them up.  I am going to read this story (included short story).  Every time you hear the vacuum sound, you can vacuum up a paw print.  So if I read the word ‘if’ could I vacuum a print?  What about ‘man’?”  If the students listened well their desks should be “clean” by the end of the story.
6. “Now that we all know the vacuum sound I am going to pass out a sheet for each of you.  If has several pictures on it.  I want you to color the pictures of objects that have the vacuum sound.  For example if I had these two pictures (hold up pictures of a can and bear) I would say them to myself.  /b//ea//r/, /m//a//n/, /b/   /ea/   /r/, /m/   /a/   /n/…. I think it is man.”  Allow the students to complete the sheet and have them turn the sheets in.

 
Story:

Ned is a boy who lived on my street.
He needs new shoes.
I felt sorry for Ned.  His shoes were too small.
I knew I could help.
I was sprouting up.
My shoes were nearly new.
I thought that they might fit Ned.
I do not need them. 
They are too small.
I gave Ned my shoes.
They fit nicely.
New shoes for Ned.

 
References:

Adams, Marylin.   Beginning to Read. Pg 140-143. The Center for the Study of Reading. 

Illinois. 1990

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