Lesson 3.4 Unit 3 Check

Steps

1. Warm-up

   Do this: Count the sounds: hen (3), rug (3), cat (3), up (2).

2. 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.

3. Show how

   Show: Blend hut.

   Say this: “Touch and say: /h/ /u/ /t/.”

   Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”

   Say this: “Say the word: hut . Use it in a sentence.”

   Answer: hut

   Show: Blend red.

   Say this: “Touch and say: /r/ /e/ /d/.”

   Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”

   Say this: “Say the word: red . Use it in a sentence.”

   Answer: red

4. Practice together

   Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.

   Ask: Read: hut · red · kid · cup

   Listen for: hut = h | u | t; red = r | e | d; kid = k | i | d; cup = c | u | p

   Ask: Read: ham · rim · cot · sun

   Listen for: ham = h | a | m; rim = r | i | m; cot = c | o | t; sun = s | u | n

   Ask: Read: pen · hug

   Listen for: pen = p | e | n; hug = h | u | g

   4 more practice items on the lesson page.

5. Watch for
   • Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
6. Handwriting and copywork
   1. Dictation: hen, rug, cat, the hat.
   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: hut, red, kid, cup, ham, rim.

7. Decodable story: The Dog and His Ham

   The Dog and His Ham

   A dog had a ham.

   The dog ran to a pond. The dog spots a dog in the pond!

   The dog in the pond has a ham. Is it his? The dog snaps at it.

   Snap! His ham is in the pond. The dog has not a ham. The ham is in the mud of the pond.

   Retold from Aesop, The Dog and His Reflection.

   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.

8. Talk about the story
   1. What did the dog have?
      Answer

      A bit of ham.

   2. What did he see in the pond?
      Answer

      Himself (his reflection) with ham.

   3. What happened to his ham?
      Answer

      It fell in the pond.

   4. What is the lesson?
      Answer

      Be glad for what you have; greed can make you lose it.

   Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).

9. Read-aloud

   Aesop: The Dog and His Reflection. Read the original from The Aesop for Children and compare.

   The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.

10. Game: Fast Cards

    Flip all sound cards (s a t p i n m d g o c k e u r h) against a sand timer.

11. 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 hut , red , kid .; I can read “The Dog and His Ham” and tell it back.

12. Recitation

    Humpty Dumpty (Mother Goose)

    Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
    Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
    All the King's horses, and all the King's men
    Cannot put Humpty Dumpty together again.

    This week: Clear words. Say every ending sound: the t, the d, the s. Open your mouth wider than feels normal.

    • 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.
13. Scripture

    Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

    To be content means to be glad with what God has given you.

Spread over the week

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

1. Session 1. Warm-up, then teach the new idea (steps 1 and 2).
2. Session 2. Warm-up again, then show how with the examples.
3. Session 3. Practice together, then play the game.
4. Session 4. More practice, handwriting and reading, and the daily habit.
5. 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.”