Parent guide: Kindergarten Phonics & Reading: First Sounds, First Words 1.4 Splitting Words; Unit 1 Check

At a glance

Time: 5 sessions of 15–20 minutes
Goal: I can tap and blend words such as sat , pat , tap . I can read “Tap, Tap” and tell it back.
You need: Heart-word cards (printables pack)
Primary-ruled paper and a pencil
A King James Bible
Print: the lesson page (it also has a short video (2:51) and an explainer to read aloud (about 9 minutes))

Steps

Warm-up
Do this: Now the child is the robot: you say "sat," the child says /s/ /ă/ /t/ and holds up a finger for each sound.
Teach the new idea
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: 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.
Show how
Show: Blend sat.
Say this: “Touch and say: /s/ /a/ /t/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: sat . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: sat
Show: Blend pat.
Say this: “Touch and say: /p/ /a/ /t/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: pat . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: pat
Practice together
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: sat · pat · tap · sap
Listen for: sat = s | a | t; pat = p | a | t; tap = t | a | p; sap = s | a | p
Ask: Read: at · pats · taps
Listen for: at = a | t; pats = p | a | t | s; taps = t | a | p | s
Ask: Silly words (not real words; read them by their sounds): tas · pas · apt
Listen for: tas = t | a | s; pas = p | a | s; apt = a | p | t. If your child turns a silly word into a real word, point to the sound that changed.
3 more practice items on the lesson page.
Watch for
- Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
Handwriting and copywork
1. Review s a t p. Write the word sat.
2. 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: sat, pat, tap, sap, at, pats.
Decodable story: Tap, Tap
Tap, Tap
Pat taps. Tap, tap, tap!
Pat sat at a tap.
Pat pats a sap.
Original. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: Pat.
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.
Talk about the story
1. What did Pat do first?
  Answer
  Pat tapped: tap, tap, tap.
2. Where did Pat sit?
  Answer
  At a tap.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
Read-aloud
Genesis 2: God makes Adam and plants a garden. Read Genesis 2:7–9 aloud. Ask: What did God plant? Who did He put in it?
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Game: Sound Hop
Chalk or tape the letters s a t p on the floor. Call a sound; your child hops to the letter.
Narration
Say this: “Tell me the new sounds you learned this week, and read me one word.”
Listen for: I can tap and blend words such as sat , pat , tap .; I can read “Tap, Tap” and tell it back.
Recitation
Who Has Seen the Wind? (Christina Rossetti)
Who has seen the wind?
Neither I nor you:
But when the leaves hang trembling
The wind is passing thro’.
Source: Christina Rossetti, Sing-Song (1872), Project Gutenberg #76703
This week: Stand tall. Feet still and a little apart, hands quiet at your sides, chin up. Stand still from the first word to the last.
- 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 title and the poet, then the poem. Stand up and say it alone for the family.
Scripture
And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
Genesis 2:15 (KJV)
God gave Adam good work: to take care of the garden.

Spread over the week

5 sessions of 15–20 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.

Session 1. Warm-up, then teach the new idea (steps 1 and 2).
Session 2. Warm-up again, then show how with the examples.
Session 3. Practice together, then play the game.
Session 4. More practice, handwriting and reading, and the daily habit.
Session 5. Quick check: narration and a few practice items. Move on when it is mostly right.

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.”