Parent guide · Kindergarten Phonics & Reading: First Sounds, First Words · Unit 2
Lesson 2.2 m and d
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 /m/ when I see m (as in map ), and write it. I can say /d/ when I see d (as in dot ), and write it. I can tap and blend words such as mat , man , map . I can read the heart words to , has , as and say which part is learned by heart. I can read “Dad and the Map” and tell it back.
- You need
- A clock face
- 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 (3:59) and an explainer to read aloud (about 12 minutes))
Steps
Do this: Change a sound: say "sat." Now change /s/ to /m/: mat. Change /m/ to /p/: pat.
Do this: New sound: m. Show the card and say: “This says /m/, as in map.” 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 /m/ is in the word.
Do this: New sound: d. Show the card and say: “This says /d/, as in dot.” 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 /d/ 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:
- m says /m/, as in map. Make a sound card: write m on the front and draw a map on the back.
- d says /d/, as in dot. Make a sound card: write d on the front and draw a dot on the back.
Show: Blend mat.
Say this: “Touch and say: /m/ /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: mat . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: mat
Show: Blend man.
Say this: “Touch and say: /m/ /a/ /n/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: man . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: man
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: mat · man · map · dad
Listen for: mat = m | a | t; man = m | a | n; map = m | a | p; dad = d | a | d
Ask: Read: mad · dip · did · sad
Listen for: mad = m | a | d; dip = d | i | p; did = d | i | d; sad = s | a | d
Ask: Read: and · mid · dim · pad
Listen for: and = a | n | d; mid = m | i | d; dim = d | i | m; pad = p | a | d
5 more practice items on the lesson page.
- Adding "uh" to stop sounds (/tuh/, /puh/). Clip them short: /t/, /p/. Extra "uh" makes blending hard (tuh-a-puh is not tap).
- Mixing up b and d. Use the "bed" hands: left fist thumb up is b, right fist thumb up is d.
- m: Start at the middle line. Straight line down. Back up, hump over and down, hump over and down again.
- d: Circle back like c all the way around. Then start at the top line on the right and make a straight line down.
- Trace three, then write three on your own on the printable handwriting page. Circle your best one.
Copywork: Write each word once, saying the sounds as you write: mat, man, map, dad, mad, dip.
Word Sounds Heart part to /t/ /oo/ ♥ o says /oo/ has /h/ /ă/ /z/ ♥ s says /z/ as /ă/ /z/ ♥ s says /z/ Dad and the Map
Dad and Sam sit. Dad has a map.
Sam tips the map. "I am in it!"
Dad pats Sam. Sam is a man in the map!
Dad and Sam nap.
Original. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: Sam.
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 Dad have?
Answer
A map.
- What did Dad do to Sam?
Answer
He patted him.
- What did they do at the end?
Answer
They napped.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
- What did Dad have?
Genesis 1:24–31: God made the animals and man. Read aloud. Ask: What did God say about everything He made? (It was very good.)
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Use letter cards to make sat. Your child changes one letter at a time to make mat, man, pan, pin, tin.
Say this: “Tell me the new sounds you learned this week, and read me one word.”
Listen for: I can say /m/ when I see m (as in map ), and write it.; I can say /d/ when I see d (as in dot ), and write it.; I can tap and blend words such as mat , man , map .; I can read the heart words to , has , as and say which part is learned by heart.; I can read “Dad and the Map” and tell it back.
Hickory, Dickory, Dock (Mother Goose)
Hickory, dickory, dock!
The mouse ran up the clock;
The clock struck one,
And down he run,
Hickory, dickory, dock!This week: Big voice. Speak so a person at the back of the room hears every word. Big, not shouting: fill the room, do not scream.
- 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.
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
God made everything good.
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.”