Rationale: In order for children to become successful readers they need to have an accurate understanding of phonemes. Before children can match letters to phonemes they must be able to recognize phonemes. This lesson is designed to help children identify the short vowel /a/ in spoken words as well as the letter representing it.

Materials:
ð Primary paper
ð Pencil
ð Elkonin boxes
ð Letter manipulative for the words: at, am, cat, pal, mat, rag, hand, and flash
ð The book: Cat Nap
ð A poster with "Andy the alligator was angry with Alice"
ð Crayons
ð Paper
ð Poster with things (Ex: apple, bat, rat)  that have the /a/ sound

Procedure:
1. Introduce the lesson by telling the children: Every letter has its own sound and words are made up of these sounds. We will be learning the short /a/ sound today.
2. Children, who knows what sound a baby makes when they cry. Let me hear everyone cry like a baby. That is the sound of the short /a/. Now everyone pay close attention to your mouth movement when you cry like a baby. That what movement we are going to be making when we say he short /a/ sound.  Next have the students practice with me saying several words with the short /a/ sound such as "pal" and "mat". Children can we say these words really stressing the /a/ sound. Who can think of other words that have the short /a/ sounds that we can practice saying together?
3. Now, lets say a tongue twister and then I want you to repeat it back to me. "Andy the alligator was angry with Alice." Now lets try it again this time we are going to hold out the Ahhh sound in the short /a/ words. " /A/ ndy the /a/ lligator was /a/ ngry with /A/ lice." Lets say it one more time all together.
4. Everyone take out your primary paper and pencil and we are going to practice making the letter a. To make a lower case a don' start at the fence, start under the fence. Go up and touch the fence, then around and touch the sidewalk, around and straight. I am going to walk around and look at everyones paper as I am doing this I want everyone to be practicing the letter a across your paper.
5. I will now read "A Cat Nap" and discuss the story. I will read it again this time as I read it I want you to stand to your feet when you hear the short /a/ sound.

6. For assessment, I will get out the poster with pictures on it. I want everyone to get out a piece of paper. As I point to each picture and say the name of the picture I want you to write an a on your paper if you hear the short /a/ sound in the word. If I say a word that does not have the short /a/ sounds then I want you to put an x on that line. Use one line for each word that I say and point to.

References: Moseley, Lindsay. "The Crying Baby". Emergent Literacy

Murray, B.A. & Lesniak, T. (1999). The Letterbox Lesson: A Hands on Approach for Teaching Decoding: The Reading Teacher, 52, 644-650.
 

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