Parent guide · Grade 1 Phonics & Reading: Long Vowels and Many Words · Unit 6
Lesson 6.1 ar
Written for the parent. Read the Say this lines aloud as they are, or in your own words. Answers for you are marked Listen for.
At a glance
- Time
- 5 sessions of 15–20 minutes
- Goal
- I can say /ar/ when I see ar (as in car ), and write it. I can tap and blend words such as car , star , far . I can read the heart words heart , because and say which part is learned by heart. I can read “The Star” and tell it back.
- You need
- Sound cards (printables pack)
- Heart-word cards (printables pack)
- Primary-ruled paper and a pencil
- A King James Bible
- the lesson page (it also has a short video (3:18) and an explainer to read aloud (about 11 minutes))
Steps
Do this: Bossy r changes the vowel: cat → cart, ham → harm, bark, star, far.
Do this: New sound: ar. Show the card and say: “This says /ar/, as in car.” Your child says it three times, then writes it in the air, on the table with a finger, and on paper. Then play a quick ears game: you say words and your child gives a thumbs up whenever /ar/ is in the word.
Do this: Tap and blend. For each word your child touches each letter (or letter team) and says its sound, then sweeps a finger under the whole word and says it smoothly. Never guess from the first letter or a picture. If a word is misread, point to the part that was missed and blend again from the start.
Do this: Spell it. Say a word. Your child says it back, taps the sounds on his or her fingers, then writes one letter (or letter team) for each sound. Check together, sound by sound.
Do this: Heart words. A heart word is mostly regular. We tap it like any other word, and draw a heart over the one part that does not follow the rules we know yet. Practise the heart words on cards every day this week (see the table below).
Do this: The week at a glance. Day 1: warm-up, new sound, handwriting. Day 2: card review, word lists, spelling. Day 3: second new sound or more words, heart words. Day 4: read the story, talk about it. Day 5: reread the story for fluency, play the game, quick check (10 words, 1 sentence, 5 spelling words). Read the read-aloud at another time of day.
New cards:
- ar says /ar/, as in car. Make a sound card: write ar on the front and draw a car on the back.
Show: Blend car.
Say this: “Touch and say: /c/ /ar/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: car . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: car
Show: Blend star.
Say this: “Touch and say: /s/ /t/ /ar/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: star . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: star
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: car · star · far · farm
Listen for: car = c | ar; star = s | t | ar; far = f | ar; farm = f | ar | m
Ask: Read: barn · dark · park · hard
Listen for: barn = b | ar | n; dark = d | ar | k; park = p | ar | k; hard = h | ar | d
Ask: Read: yard · sharp · start · arm
Listen for: yard = y | ar | d; sharp = sh | ar | p; start = s | t | ar | t; arm = ar | m
4 more practice items on the lesson page.
- Reading r-controlled vowels as short vowels (cat for cart). The r changes the vowel; underline the vowel and r together.
- Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
- Copy: They saw the star.
- Use the ball-and-stick lines: tall letters touch the top line, short letters touch the middle line, tails go below the base line.
Copywork: Write each word once, saying the sounds as you write: car, star, far, farm, barn, dark.
Word Sounds Heart part heart /h/ /ar/ /t/ ♥ ear says /ar/ because /b/ /ĭ/ /k/ /ŭ/ /z/ ♥ au says /ŭ/; se says /z/ The Star
Wise men from far in the east spotted a star. "A King is here!" They packed up and went on a long, hard trip.
They came to King Herod. "Where is the King of the Jews? We have seen His star." Herod was alarmed. He did not want a King but him.
The star went on and stopped by a home in Bethlehem. The wise men were so glad! They went in and met Jesus with Mary.
They bent down to Him. They gave Him gold and frankincense and myrrh. Then God warned them in a dream, and they went home by a back path.
Retold from Matthew 2:1–12. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: Herod, Bethlehem, Jesus, Mary, Jews, frankincense, myrrh, east, wise.
Every word in this story uses only the sounds and heart words taught so far (checked by the School Launch decodability checker). Read a page a day on Days 3 and 4, and the whole story on Day 5.
- What did the wise men follow?
Answer
A star.
- Who was alarmed?
Answer
King Herod.
- What gifts did they bring?
Answer
Gold, frankincense and myrrh.
- Why did they go home another way?
Answer
God warned them in a dream.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
- What did the wise men follow?
Matthew 2:1–12. Read aloud.
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Lay ar word cards in a row. Your child reads a card, then does a star jump.
Say this: “Tell me the new sounds you learned this week, and read me one word.”
Listen for: I can say /ar/ when I see ar (as in car ), and write it.; I can tap and blend words such as car , star , far .; I can read the heart words heart , because and say which part is learned by heart.; I can read “The Star” and tell it back.
Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
This week: Pause at the marks. Stop briefly at every comma and a little longer at every period. Pauses help listeners think.
- Day 1: The teacher says it twice; the child echoes it one line at a time.
- Days 2–4: Say it together each morning; drop one line of help each day.
- Day 5: Say the reference, then the verse, then the reference again. Stand up and say it alone for the family.
When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
The wise men were very glad.
Spread over the week
5 sessions of 15–20 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.
- Session 1. Warm-up, then New sound: ar. Finish with a little practice or the game.
- Session 2. Warm-up, then Tap and blend. Finish with a little practice or the game.
- Session 3. Warm-up, then Spell it. Finish with a little practice or the game.
- Session 4. Warm-up, then Heart words. Finish with a little practice or the game.
- Session 5. Warm-up, then The week at a glance. Finish with a little practice or the game.
For you
For families. Keep each session short and cheerful: 15 to 20 minutes, then stop. If your child is tired or frustrated, stop and finish tomorrow. A lesson can take more than a week; move on when the quick check on Day 5 is mostly “Got it.”