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Slithering Snakes on a Safari With S

Emergent Literacy Design

Jenna Wilson

Rationale: In this lesson, students will identify the phoneme /s/, represented by the letter S. Students will learn to recognize the phoneme /s/ in spoken words through the use of a meaningful representation (slithering like a snake) and the letter symbol S, practice finding /s/ in words, repeat a tongue tickler filled with /s/, and apply phoneme awareness with /s/ in phonetic cue reading by distinguishing rhyming words from beginning letters. 

 

Materials:          

  • Picture of the Letter S Snake

URL: http://www.first-school.ws/t/alpha_snakec.htm

  • Chart with tongue tickler “Sam saw slithering snakes on a safari.”

  • Primary paper (1 piece per student)

  • Pencils (1 pencil per student)

  • Picture OF Uppercase and Lowercase Letter S Snake

URL: http://previews.123rf.com/images/eleter/eleter1208/eleter120800086/14935833-Font-made-from-green-snake-Letter-S-Stock-Vector-alphabet.jpg     

  • 4 inch Letter S Cut out on Green Cardstock (1 letter per student)

  • Red Pipe Cleaners cut into ½ inch pieces (1 piece per student)

  • Small Googly Eyes (2 per student)

  • Elmer’s Glue

  • Colored Crayons

  • Book: Stella Star of the Sea by Marie-Louise Gay (published by Groundwood Books, 2010)

             Option: You may have your students watch/listen to the book  

          URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qg9WmfCpqxA

  • Word Cards: SIP, SEAT, SlOW, SICK, SAND

  • Assessment worksheet identify pictures with /s/ and completing partial spellings

URL: http://www.kidzone.ws/kindergarten/s-begins2.htm

 

 

 

Procedures:

1. Say: Our written language is a secret code. It can be tricky at times because we may not know what letters stand for-the mouth moves we make as we say words. Let’s look at how we move our mouths to make /s/. We spell /s/ with the letter S. The letter S looks like and sounds like a slithering snake. (Present the Letter S Snake)

2. Say: Let’s pretend to be a slithering snake on a safari by making a hissing sound, /s/, /s/, /s/. First, we need to put our hands together in a prayer position, then point your fingers away from our bodies. This will be the head of our snake. Now move your arms side to side like a snake and say /s/, /s/, /s/. Do you notice the position of your tongue when you say /s/. Our tongue touches our top teeth and we blow out air to say /s/.

3. Say: Let me show you how to find /s/ in the work desk. I am going to stretch the word desk out super slowly and listen for my snake hiss. Ddd-e-e-esk. Slower: Ddd-e-e-e-sss-k. There it was! I felt my tongue touch my top teeth. I can feel the snake hiss /s/ in desk.

4. Say: Let’s try a tongue tickler. (Show picture of tongue tickler). My friend, Sam, went on a safari in Africa and he saw some very fascinating creatures. “Sam saw slithering snakes on a safari.” Everybody say it three times together. Now say it again, and this time stretch out the /s/ at the beginning of the words. “Sssam sssaw ssslithering sssnakes on a sssafari.” Try it again, and this time break it off the word: “/s/am /s/aw /s/lithering /s/nakes on a /s/afari. Great job!

5. (have students take out primary paper and a pencil). We use the letter S to spell /s/. Uppercase and lowercase S look the same but are different sizes. They also look like a curvy snake. (Show the Uppercase and lowercase letter S snake picture). Let’s write the uppercase S first. (Model as you explain how to write an S). Begin with your pencil just below the roof and make a little curved c so that it sits on the fence. Now, without lifting your pencil, cross over the fence and loop back down to the sidewalk to make a backwards c. I want to see everybody’s uppercase S. After I put a checkmark on it, I want you to make four more just like it. After you write five uppercase S’s, write a lowercase s. (Model how to write a lowercase s). Begin with your pencil just below the fence and make a little c that is between the fence and the sidewalk. Now, without lifting your pencil, loop back down to the sidewalk to make a backwards c. I want to see everybody’s lowercase s. After I put a check mark on it, write four more just like it.

6. Say:  Now we are going to make our own S slithering snakes. While I pass out the activity, I need you to get out your colored crayons and glue. (Distribute the letter S cut out, googly eyes, and red pipe cleaner for the snakes tongue). I need you to color and design the letter S. Then, glue your snakes eyes with the googly eyes and the snakes tongue with your little piece of pipe cleaner.

7. Say: Now I want to see if you can hear the /s/ sound in SAD OR HAPPY? SOFTBALL OR FOOTBALL? BISCUIT OR ROLL? (allow students to answer aloud)

8. Say: Let’s see if you can spot the mouth move /s/ in some words. I want all of you to lift your slithering snakes we just made and say /s/ if you hear /s/: animal, serpent, slug, bug, prize, six, stand.

9. Say: Let’s look at a book that has /s/ sounds in it. (Introduce the book Stella Star of the Sea by Marie-Louise Gay).  Have any of you ever been to the beach or the seaside? What did you see? Today we will be reading a story about Stella and Sam’s visit to the beach. It is Sam’s very first time at the seaside. Sam has many questions and is very curious about the creatures of the sea. Do you think Sam will become brave and go into the sea to catch some waves? We will have to read the story to find out. While we read this story, I want you to carefully listen for the /s/ sound like our slithering snakes. Whenever you hear the /s/ sound, I want you to hold up your slithering snakes that we made.

10. (Get out word cards). Show SICK and model how to decide if the word is sick or tick: the S tells me that this word has a sound that a snake makes in it /s/, so this word is sss-ick. You try some: SIP: dip or sip? SAND: sand or land? SEAT: neat or seat? SLOW: slow or bow?

11. For assessment, distribute the worksheet. Students are to complete the partial spellings and color the pictures that begin with S. Call students up one by one to read the phonetic cue words that are listed in step #9.

 

 

 

 

Reference:

Jeannie Pearman, Slimy Snakes Say "Ssssss".

http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/solutions/pearmanel.html

Rhiannon Akins, Slither like a Slimy, Sticky Snake with S.

http://akinsrhiannon.wixsite.com/eceed/el-design

Book: Gay, Marie-Louise. Stella Star of the Sea. Groundwood Books. 2010

Assessment worksheet: http://www.kidzone.ws/kindergarten/s-begins2.htm

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