Reading Resources for ECP-Grade 1: Pre-Literacy Activities

Remember: phonemes are sounds, not letters.

Practicing the sounds heard in a word is an essential step in the process toward learning to read those words. This kind of practice can be done in lots of fun ways! You can use beads on a chenille stem and move one over for each sound heard. Small Play-doh balls can be used to squish one for each sound. Circles on the floor can be used to jump on for each sound heard. There are some images and links below with ideas:

Play-doh or clay work really well as a fun way to practice the sounds heard in a word. Have your child "say and squish" for each sound heard. 

Some fun activities:

Read books with rhymes: Enjoy stories together that include rhymes. Practice repeating words that rhyme after the story. 

Rhyming Basket. Make a rhyming basket by putting a collection of small rhyming objects into a basket for the children to investigate.

Rhyming Songs: Sing songs together that include rhymes. Practice saying the words that rhyme. 

Nursery Rhymes: Read, say, or sing nursery rhymes together to practice rhyming. 

• Point out words that begin with the same letter as your children's names (for example, John and jump). Talk about how the beginning sounds of the words are alike.
• Use alphabet books and guessing games to give your children practice in matching letters and sounds. A good example is the game, "I am thinking of something that starts with /t/."
• Write letters on pieces of paper and put them in a paper bag. Let your children reach into the bag and take out letters. Have them say the sounds that match the letters.
• Take a letter and hide it in your hand. Let your children guess in which hand is the letter. Then show the letter and have your children say the letter name and make the sound (for example, the letter m matches the /m/ sound as in man).
• Make letter-sounds and ask your children to draw the matching letters in cornmeal or sand.