Rationale: In order for children to be able to learn to read and write, they need to understand phonemes and learn how to detect them in words and be able to match graphemes to phonemes.  The letters b, d, p, and q are often quite confused by children because they all have a ball sitting on the sidewalk.  Also, students sometimes confuse the sounds of b, d, p, and q because they sound similar to a child who is not yet phonemically aware.  This lesson will help children identify the /b/ in spoken words by learning a meaningful representation and a letter symbol, and then practice finding /b/ in words.

Materials: Primary Paper and Pencil; chart with “Billy the bumblebee buzzes busily before baseball”; class set of cards with b on one side; drawing paper and crayons; It’s Not Easing Being a Bunny (Marilyn Sadler); picture page with bug, dog, bee, flower, basket, tub, baby, drum, sun, bat, bear, cat, and web.

Procedures:
1.) Introduce the lesson by explaining that our written language is a secret code.  The tricky part is learning what a letter stands for and the mouth moves we make as we say words.

2.) Ask students: Have you ever heard a bumblebee buzz.  The beginning sound is a /b/.  The letter, /b/, is a short breath sound made with our lips pressed together and air is let out quickly.  Let’s all practice buzzing like a bee.  The teacher emphasizes the /b/ as the children practice.  Can anyone tell me another word that has the /b/ sound?  (ball; bug; tub)

3.) Now let’s try a tongue twister that has the /b/ sound in it (refer to chart).  “Billy the bumblebee buzzes busily before baseball.”  Everybody say it three times together.  Now say it again, but this time we’re going to stretch the /b/ out like this, BBBBBilly.  O.K.?  Now, let’s all try it together.  “BBBBBilly the bbbbbumblebee bbbbbuzzes bbbbbusily bbbbbefore bbbbbaseball.”  Let’s try it again.  This time we are going to break the /b/ sound away from the word like this /B/ illy.  Now let’s try it together.  “/B/ illy the  /b/ umblebee  /b/ uzzes  /b/ usily /b/ efore  /b/ aseball.”

 4.) Have students take out primary paper and pencil.  We can use the letter b to spell /b/.  Let’s write it.  Start at the sky.  Draw a straight line down to the sidewalk.  On the right side of the line, start at the fence and curve back down around to the sidewalk.  I want to see everybody’s b.  After I put a smile on it, I want you to make a row of b’s just like it.  When you see the letter b all by itself in a word, that’s the signal to say /b/.

5.) Practice with recognizing the /b/ sound in words using rhyming riddles.

Beginning sounds ? Directions: Class, I’m going to tell you of something I’m thinking of that begins with /b/ sound and I want you to tell me what it is.  O.K.?

I am thinking of something that you throw.  Answer: ball
I am thinking of something you take when you get dirty.  Answer: bath
I am thinking of something that a dog does.  Answer: bark

Phonemes in the middle ? Directions: Class, I’m now going to tell of something that I’m thinking of that has the /b/ sound somewhere in the middle of the word.

I am thinking of something that you sit at.  Answer: table
I am thinking of something that you blow.  Answer: bubbles
I am thinking of something you do with a basketball.  Answer: dribble

Ending sounds ? Directions: Class, I’m now going to tell of something that I’m thinking of that ends with the /b/ sound and I want you to tell me what it is.

I am thinking of something I use when I take a bath.  Answer: tub
I am thinking of something a spider walks on.  Answer: web

6.) Read It’s Not Easing Being a Bunny (Marilyn Sadler) and talk about the story.  Read it again, and have students raise their hands when they hear a word with the /b/ sound.  List their words on the board.  Then have students draw a picture of them being a different animal and write a message about it using invented spelling.  Display their work.

7.) For assessment, distribute the picture page and help students name each picture.  Ask each student to circle the pictures whose name have the /b/.

References:
Eldredge, J. Lloyd.  (1995).  Teaching Decoding in Holistic Classrooms, Published by Prentice-Hall, Inc., pp. 64-67.
http://www.auburn.edu/rdggenie/breakthroughs/mcinnishel.html

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