Introduction
Hello Kindergarten Student! Today you are going to use this Webquest (along with a family member) to practice hearing and using the sounds in words in a fun way. Why do we want to do that?...because being able to hear and play with the sounds in the words is going to help you be a better reader!
Parents! These activities are designed to engage you and your child in a skill known as phonological awareness...the ability to hear and manipulate words and the sounds in them. For example: clapping for each word in a sentence, separating the sounds of a word, blending sounds to make a word, finding same first, middle, and last sounds in words, and rhyming are all phonological awareness skills.
You can improve phonological awareness skills anytime! Listen to camp songs. Read rhyming books (Dr. Seuss, anyone?) Tap out words or syllables. Break down a word into its individual sounds and help your child put the word back together.
For today's activity, we'll be making a traditional nursery rhyme into a silly new poem created by your child.
Task
You and your family member are going to be creating something new from something very old! You will be choosing a nursery rhyme and transforming it into a silly new version by replacing some of the rhyming words with new ones. Do you want the rhyme to make sense? or be super silly? It's up to you.
Here's an example:
Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
Silver bells and cockle-shells,
And pretty maids painting their toe.
Click on the process tab to get started.
Process
Before we can get to rhyming (matching middle and last sounds together) we'll spend some time listening for similar sounds in all word positions. Remember: Phonological awareness is about the sounds we hear, not the letters we see. You can use the worksheets on your computer screen, or print them out to practice later.
Task 1: Listen to beginning sounds.
Here are games to practice listening to beginning sounds:
http://teacher.scholastic.com/clifford1/flash/phonics/index.htm
http://www.professorgarfield.org/Phonemics/chickenCoop.html
Here is a worksheet to practice beginning sounds:
Task 2: Listen to final sounds:
Here is a game to practice listening to ending sounds:
https://www.spellingcity.com/which-final-sound-game.html?listId=18535883
Here is a worksheet to practice listening to ending sounds:
Task 3: Listen to middle/vowel sounds:
Here is a game to practice listening to ending sounds:
http://www.funbrainjr.com/games/WordGobble/
Here is a worksheet to practice listening for middle sounds:
Task 4: Listen to rhyming words:
https://www.turtlediary.com/game/words-that-rhyme.html
Task 5: Create rhyming word lists.
Use this worksheet to create lists of rhyming words that appear in the nursery rhymes.
Rhyming Word Lists for Nursery Rhymes (1).docx
Task 6: Use rhyming word lists to make a nursery rhyme your own. Choose one of the Nursery Rhyme pages below to modify:
Mary Had a Little Lamb Rhyme.docx
When you're done, print out your new nursery rhyme to share with others.
Evaluation
How did you do? Adults and kids can decide together how well you thought this project went. Use the rating scale you see below:
| TASK | Easy-Peasy | Needed Some Help | Not ready to do this |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. I can match starting sounds. | |||
| 2. I can match ending sounds. | |||
| 3. I can match middle sounds. | |||
| 4. I can match rhyming words. | |||
| 5. I can list rhyming words. | |||
| 6. I made a new rhyme! |
Grown-ups, Please provide comments how your student performed on this activity. What kind of assistance was helpful? What did they struggle with? Was this activity fun and/or productive for them?
Conclusion
Nursery rhymes are a great way to share rhythm and rhyme with your child. Here are some links to free downloads of classic nursery rhymes from Project Gutenberg. Maybe you'll see some that are new to you.
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=nursery+rhymes&submit_search=Go%21
Here are LOTS more great phonemic awareness activities:
https://www.readingrockets.org/article/phonemic-activities-preschool-or-elementary-classroom
Game boards you can print in this pdf!
https://www.themeasuredmom.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/SySndPhAwGames.pdf
Credits
I wish to thank the many writers and content creators who provide free online materials to work on this important skill.
Bibliography:
“Phonemic Activities for the Preschool or Elementary Classroom.” Reading Rockets, 24 Apr. 2013, https://www.readingrockets.org/article/phonemic-activities-preschool-or….
Wright, Blanche Fisher. The Real Mother Goose. 2004. Project Gutenberg, https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/10607.
Clifford the Big Red Dog: Sound Match Activity. http://teacher.scholastic.com/clifford1/flash/phonics/index.htm. Accessed 26 Sept. 2020.
The Chicken Coop: Professor Garfield. http://www.professorgarfield.org/Phonemics/chickenCoop.html. Accessed 26 Sept. 2020.
Play Which Final Sound Game. https://www.spellingcity.com/which-final-sound-game.html?listId=18535883. Accessed 26 Sept. 2020.
Word Gobble - FunbrainJr.Com. http://www.funbrainjr.com/games/WordGobble/. Accessed 26 Sept. 2020.
Partners in Rhyme | Phonics Games | Turtle Diary. https://www.turtlediary.com/game/words-that-rhyme.html. Accessed 26 Sept. 2020.
“How to Build Phonemic Awareness.” The Measured Mom, 25 May 2020, https://www.themeasuredmom.com/how-to-build-phonemic-awareness/.
Teacher Page
This webquest was created by Melissa Reiher Bland to provide practice for students and their families to develop phonemic awareness skills.