Lesson 9.2 Silent e Preview: a_e and i_e

Steps

1. Warm-up

   Do this: Magic e: say hat, then hate. Say kit, then kite. The e is quiet, but it makes the vowel say its name.

2. Teach the new idea

   Do this: New sound: a_e. Show the card and say: “This says /ā/, as in cake.” 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 /ā/ is in the word.

   Do this: New sound: i_e. Show the card and say: “This says /ī/, as in kite.” 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 /ī/ 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: 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:

   • a_e says /ā/, as in cake. Make a sound card: write a_e on the front and draw a cake on the back.
   • i_e says /ī/, as in kite. Make a sound card: write i_e on the front and draw a kite on the back.
3. Show how

   Show: Blend cake.

   Say this: “Touch and say: /c/ /a_e/ /k/.”

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

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

   Answer: cake

   Show: Blend make.

   Say this: “Touch and say: /m/ /a_e/ /k/.”

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

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

   Answer: make

4. Practice together

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

   Ask: Read: cake · make · lake · gate

   Listen for: cake = c | a_e | k; make = m | a_e | k; lake = l | a_e | k; gate = g | a_e | t

   Ask: Read: name · tape · kite · bike

   Listen for: name = n | a_e | m; tape = t | a_e | p; kite = k | i_e | t; bike = b | i_e | k

   Ask: Read: time · like · pine · side

   Listen for: time = t | i_e | m; like = l | i_e | k; pine = p | i_e | n; side = s | i_e | d

   5 more practice items on the lesson page.

5. Watch for
   • Saying the silent e. It makes no sound of its own; it tells the vowel to say its name.
   • Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
6. Handwriting and copywork
   1. Copy: Jake made a kite.
   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: cake, make, lake, gate, name, tape.

7. Decodable story: Jake and the Kite

   Jake and the Kite

   Jake made a kite. It was red and white.

   Jake ran to the lake. The wind came, and up went the kite! Up, up, up it went.

   Then the kite hit a pine. Jake was sad. "It is stuck on the pine!"

   Dad came with a ladder. Dad got the kite. Jake said, "Thank you, Dad." Jake and Dad ran with the kite till the sun set.

   Original. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: Jake, ladder.

   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 Jake make?
      Answer

      A red and white kite.

   2. Where did the kite get stuck?
      Answer

      In a pine tree.

   3. Who helped?
      Answer

      Dad, with a ladder.

   4. What did Jake say?
      Answer

      "Thank you, Dad."

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

9. Read-aloud

   A Child’s Garden of Verses: "The Wind". Read Stevenson’s poem "The Wind" aloud.

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

10. Game: Magic e Wand

    Write hat, kit, pin, tap, rid on cards. Your child taps the end with a "magic e" card and reads the new word: hate, kite, pine, tape, ride.

11. Narration

    Say this: “Tell me the new sounds you learned this week, and read me one word.”

    Listen for: I can say /ā/ when I see a_e (as in cake ), and write it.; I can say /ī/ when I see i_e (as in kite ), and write it.; I can tap and blend words such as cake , make , lake .; I can read “Jake and the Kite” and tell it back.

12. Recitation

    Wee Willie Winkie (Mother Goose)

    Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town,
    Upstairs and downstairs, in his nightgown;
    Rapping at the window, crying through the lock,
    "Are the children in their beds? Now it's eight o'clock."

    This week: Recital. Put it all together: stand tall, big clear voice, eyes up, steady pace, pauses, expression, a good beginning and ending.

    • 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

    The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

    We cannot see the wind, but we see what it does.

Spread over the week

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

1. Session 1. Warm-up, then New sound: a_e. Finish with a little practice or the game.
2. Session 2. Warm-up, then New sound: i_e. Finish with a little practice or the game.
3. Session 3. Warm-up, then Tap and blend. Finish with a little practice or the game.
4. Session 4. Warm-up, then Spell it. Finish with a little practice or the game.
5. 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.”