Parent guide · Kindergarten Phonics & Reading: First Sounds, First Words · Unit 8
Lesson 8.4 Long Words: CCVCC; Unit 8 Check
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 tap and blend words such as stamp , crust , blend . I can read the heart words love , above and say which part is learned by heart. I can read “The Wind and the Sun” and tell it back.
- You need
- Heart-word cards (printables pack)
- Primary-ruled paper and a pencil
- A King James Bible
- the lesson page (it also has a short video (3:33) and an explainer to read aloud (about 10 minutes))
Steps
Do this: Count the sounds: stamp (5), crust (5), blend (5), frost (5), trunk (5).
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.
Show: Blend stamp.
Say this: “Touch and say: /s/ /t/ /a/ /m/ /p/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: stamp . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: stamp
Show: Blend crust.
Say this: “Touch and say: /c/ /r/ /u/ /s/ /t/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: crust . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: crust
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: stamp · crust · blend · frost
Listen for: stamp = s | t | a | m | p; crust = c | r | u | s | t; blend = b | l | e | n | d; frost = f | r | o | s | t
Ask: Read: trunk · plant · stand · clamp
Listen for: trunk = t | r | u | nk; plant = p | l | a | n | t; stand = s | t | a | n | d; clamp = c | l | a | m | p
Ask: Read: grunt · spent · drink
Listen for: grunt = g | r | u | n | t; spent = s | p | e | n | t; drink = d | r | i | nk
5 more practice items on the lesson page.
- Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
- All capitals review. Dictation: The sun was hot.
- 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: stamp, crust, blend, frost, trunk, plant.
Word Sounds Heart part love /l/ /ŭ/ /v/ ♥ o says /ŭ/; e is silent above /ŭ/ /b/ /ŭ/ /v/ ♥ o says /ŭ/; e is silent The Wind and the Sun
The wind and the sun had a contest. A man went past in a thick, soft cloak.
"I can get his cloak off him," said the wind. The wind blasts and blasts. The man held his cloak in his hands. The cloak did not come off.
Then the sun had a go. The sun was hot and kind. The man got hot. He went to rest in the grass, and the cloak came off!
Kindness can do what a blast can not.
Retold from Aesop. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: cloak, came, kindness.
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 was the contest?
Answer
Who could make the man take off his cloak.
- What did the wind do?
Answer
Blew hard; the man held his cloak tighter.
- What did the sun do?
Answer
Shone warm and kind; the man took the cloak off.
- What is the lesson?
Answer
Gentle kindness wins more than force.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
- What was the contest?
Aesop: The North Wind and the Sun. Read the original.
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Change one sound at a time: camp, clamp, clump, plump, plum.
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 stamp , crust , blend .; I can read the heart words love , above and say which part is learned by heart.; I can read “The Wind and the Sun” and tell it back.
Jack and Jill (Mother Goose)
Jack and Jill went up the hill,
To fetch a pail of water;
Jack fell down, and broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after.This week: Begin and end well. Say the title and author (or the Bible reference) first. At the end, pause, then say “thank you” and sit down.
- 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.
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
Kind, gentle words help more than harsh ones.
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.”