Emergent Literacy
Pretty, Pretty Queen!
Emergent
Literacy
Goal and Rational:
The goal for this lesson is to
identify and listen for the beginning sounds of words (specifically p
and q). This is very important for children to
learn. In this lesson I will work with students to recognize and
understand the differences between p=/p/ and q=/kw/. Many
children confuse these letters and find them hard to learn because they
look so similar to each other. In this lesson I will provide
practice for students in writing p and q and also
looking for them and listening for them in text.
Materials:
- Large cards with the letters p and q written on
them
- Picture cards with
words starting with p - pillow, pick, pumpkin
- Picture cards with
words starting with q - queen, quail
- Book: Stella, Princess of the Sky
and Stella, Queen of the Snow
-
Dry Erase Board
-
Dry Erase Marker
- Primary writing paper
- pencils
- pink and purple
cards for each student
Procedure:
1. Today we are going to talk about letters that
look like each other, p and q (show cards as you
discuss each letter). We are going to learn to crack the code of p
and q and see how they fit into language
2. Hold up the card with the letter p
and ask Can anyone tell me what sound
p makes? Good, p=/p/.
3. Now everyone say /p/ with me. (Hold the card
with the p on it while students say the sound)
4. Hold up the card with the letter q
and ask Can anyone tell me what sound
q makes? Good, q=/kw/.
5. Now everyone say /kw/ with me. (Hold the card
with the q on it while students say the sound)
6. No lets look at some pictures that have pās
and qās in them. Which pictures start with a p
and which pictures start with a q?
7. Now listen carefully to what I say and answer my questions.
- Do you hear /p/ in place or face?
- Do you hear /kw/ in queen or seen?
- Do you hear /p/ in point or joint?
- Do you hear /kw/ in quest or best?
8. Great! Now lets try some tongue twisters with
pās and qās to help us remember the sounds that they
make. (Write tongue twisters on the board.)
- Here is our tongue twister for p. Every time you hear /p/ say the sound really hard.
- Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
- ćHere is our tongue twister for q.
Every time you hear /kw/ say the sound really hard.
- Be quiet, said the queen quickly, or I'll quarrel
with your question!
9. Now letās practice writing p and q.
Watch first as I write the letters on the board and I show you how to
write them.
- To write a lower case p start at the
fence go straight down into the ditch, come up and put his chin on the
sidewalk.
- To write a lower case q start with an
a, come down, and give the queen some curly hair.
10. Now I want you to practice each letter 5 times. When you finish you should have 5 little p's and 5 little q's. I will walk around and check on how you are doing. If you need help, raise your hand and I will come to you.
11. Yāall are doing an amazing job practicing
and learning the difference between p's and q's.
Now I want us to sit in our reading circle area and read Stella,
Princess of the Sky and Stella, Queen of the Snow.
Book talk: Stella loves playing. All the time she imagines
and make-believes. Letās look and read to see where Stella's
adventures take her today.
12. In each of these books we will hear words
that start with p's and q's. As I read the book I
want you to listen closely. Each time I say a word that starts
with a p, raise the pink card. Each time I say a word that starts
with a q, raise the purple card. Letās try it and see how it
works. Then read the title and let the children practice holding up
cards.
Assessment:
The students will be evaluated
and/or assessed based on their participation in the card
activity. They will also be evaluated based on their letter
writing practice from earlier in the lesson. Assessment with the
card activity will be based on the childrenās responses during the
reading time (how many are correct and how many are incorrect).
Checklist for
assessment
_____ Accuracy in
distinguishing
p and q in spoken words using cards
_____ Accuracy and neatness of letter writing practice
_____ Correct execution of directions during activities and practice
Lewis, Naormi (Fall 2006). Reading Genie. Retrieved
Gay, Marie-Louise (2004). Stella, Princess of the Sky. Australia: Allen and Unwin.
Gay, Marie-Louise (2004). Stella, Queen of the Snow. Australia: Allen and Unwin.
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