Beginning Reading Lesson

Wee with EE!

 Courtney Davis

Rationale: Students will learn that ee= /E/. Many words have this phoneme so it is important that children can recognize it as /E/. This lesson will help students recognize ee= /E/ by using a letterbox lesson to practice spelling and reading words that contain this correspondence.

 Materials:

Lee and the Team- enough for your class (any easy decodable long E book may be used)

Elkonin boxes for each student

Letter tiles for each student of the letters - b, e, e, p, g, k, j, m, l, t, s, l,

cards with the words-  bee, peg, tree, keep, jeep, melt, beep, sleep, pelt, sleek

Dry erase board

Assessment worksheet

Chart paper with the tongue twister- The sheep can see the bee.

Cards with words (pseudo)- meep, ree, feg, teet, sleed, kelt, jeek, dreep

Elkonin boxes drawn on board or on a Smart Board slide that match the students.

 Procedures:

1)  Say: What does e say? That's right we have learned that e= /e/. Let's read some words. (Hold up cards with words that have short e. You can call on students individually or have them answer as a whole group. Use words such as egg, lend, sell, melon, let, and belt.) Say: You did very well at reading words that have an e that says /e/ in them. Today we are going to learn that e can also say its name in some words.

 2)  When we see two e's beside each other they say /E/ and it sounds like we are saying wee like when we go down a slide. Let's practice, say /E/ with me and hold it out. /EEEEEEEEEE/. Very good.

 3) Now I am going to show you how to find /E/ in the word sleep. I am going to stretch out sleep in slow motion and listen for my wee sound. SSS-lll-eee-eeee-ppp. I heard it!! It was in the middle. I could hear it sound like wee.

 4) Now we are going to do a tongue twister. Have chart where students can see. Read: The sheep can see the bee. Let's say it together. Say chant. Good job! Let's do it again and really stretch out the /E/. The sh /eeee/ p can s/eee/ the b /eee/.

 5)  I want you to raise your arms when you hear /E/ in a word like you are going down a slide. Watch me do sleep. I am going to say the word one time, "sleep," now I am going to stretch it out to hear /E/, sll-eee( raise hands when you get here)--pp. Jeep, sleet, slept, bee, see, peg, meet, beep. Very good you raised your arms on jeep, sleet, bee, see, meet, and beep because you heard /E/ in them.

 6)  Have the Elkonin boxes and letter tiles ready to give students. You should also have letter boxes drawn on the board or a Smart slide with them on it. We are going to spell words with the phoneme /E/ using our letterboxes. I will show you how to do the word sleep. The first phoneme is /s/ so I will put s in my first box. Do this with all sounds when you get to ee really emphasize they go in same box because they are buddies and need each other to say /E/. Then model how to read start with the vowel then add /s/ then /l/ and finally /p/. Blend as you go along and  then put together at the end. Now it's your turn. Set your letters out where they are in a straight line and you can see them. You need to have two boxes in front of you. Say bee, now you need three boxes- peg, tree, keep, melt, jeep, beep; you are doing great putting the ee in the same box! Now you need 4 boxes- sleep, pelt, sleek

Give a sentence with each word and allow time for each student to finish. Once you see students are finished show them with your boxes what it should look like. You can repeat words if you notice several students had trouble. It is also good to walk around to look at students work and make a miscue note by their name if they didn't do it right.

After you spell the words have students read them off cards or the board.

 7)  Now we are going to buddy read Lee and the Team. Give a book talk: Lee is in charge of a team and he can't get them to go to the field because it is hot. It is getting close to time for the game. Will he get them to the field in time? You will have to read to see. Allow time for students to read book to each other. Walk around to listen as students read.

 8) After they have read distribute assessment worksheet. Students will match long e words with the correct picture. As students work on this call students individually to read the pseudo words (meep, ree, feg, teet, sleed, kelt, jeek, dreep) to assess if they understand.

  Reference:

Freeman, Katie. Let's Go Fly a Kite.  http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/projects/freemanbr.html

Patterson, Whitney. Easy E Street. http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/odysseys/pattersonbr.html

Phonic readers. Lee and the Team. Dominguez Hills, Ca.  Educational Insights :1990.

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