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This Reading Mama

Playing With Syllables

By thisreadingmama 4 Comments

Let’s explore playing with syllables! This is the third post in the series, 3 Important Skills Kids Need for Reading.

Playing with Syllables | This Reading Mama

*This post contains affiliate links.

Playing with Syllables

Teaching and learning syllables occurs much the same way as everything else.  First, you as the mama/teacher need to model over and over how it’s done, giving your child multiple and meaningful exposures.  When your child seems ready (he’s offering more input when you model), give him a chance to try it with support, and finally set him free to do it independently.

Blending Syllables:

  • Model by playing games like this: “I’m going to say kitchen in a funny way.  Listen: kit-chen.”  (Putting space in between the syllables.)  Doesn’t it sound funny like that?

Run and Find Syllables Game for Indoor Learning This Reading Mama

  • Ask them to try: “I’m going to say a word in a funny (slow) way.  Listen and see if you can tell me what word I’m saying: fing-er,” like we did in our Run & Find Syllables Game.

Segmenting/Counting Syllables:

  • Counting syllables from words, like we did with LEGO blocks and picture cards.
  • Reading books featuring characters with long names, like Chrysanthemum by Keven Henkes is a fun way to let kids compare the syllables in their own names to that of the characters.
  • Give kids cubes that snap together. Call out a word and have your child snap the corresponding cubes to the number of syllables in the word. If you don’t have unifix cubes, you could ask them to stack blocks for each syllable or use dried beans or any small manipulative and ask your child to put that many in a row. You could also make this activity more active by having your child jump for each syllable.

FREE Syllable Counting Cards from This Reading Mama

  • Check out our FREE syllable counting cards, to help make counting syllables tangible and visible for young learners.

By the way, playing with sounds doesn’t require pencil and paper; these types of activities can be done anywhere.  My favorite places to do them are in the line at the grocery store, waiting at the doctor’s office, in the bathtub, in the van, or outside swinging in the swing.

Deleting Syllables:

  • Mama: “Wow, listen to this!  If I said chapstick without chap, I would just have stick left.”

More FREE Rhyming Resources!

More than 20 FREE Learning Packs for Preschool - Kindergarten smaller - This Reading Mama

  • All of our FREE Pre-K/K Packs as well as each lesson of Reading the Alphabet has syllable counting activities
  • Fun Syllable Count Activity from The Measured Mom
  • Poke ‘n Peek Syllables from The Tutor House
  • Beats on the Body Game from Playdough to Plato
  • Print & Play Syllable Games
  • NO PREP Dot the Syllables Pages

 

Find ALL our Reading Readiness printables.

 

Enjoy teaching!
~Becky

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Filed Under: Reading Readiness

« Playing with Rhyming Words
Playing with Sounds in Words- Part 1 {Phoneme Isolation} »

Comments

  1. marissa maningat says

    December 16, 2017 at 10:13 pm

    I can’t tell you enough how much you’ve helped me. Your resources are fantastic! The course is an eye opener. Thank you sooooo much!

    Reply
    • thisreadingmama says

      December 17, 2017 at 8:15 am

      You are very welcome! So glad you’ve enjoyed the course!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. The Role of Syllables in Reading and Spelling {The Tutor House Guest Post} | says:
    November 13, 2012 at 6:15 am

    […] Download Poke n’ Peek Syllables and start having fun with syllables!  There are several ideas for syllables found on Reading Rockets website and also right here on This Reading Mama. […]

    Reply
  2. Literacy Terms Defined for Parents says:
    November 15, 2013 at 7:26 am

    […] syllables- a part of phonological awareness. I call these the “big parts” of a word with younger kids. For example, words like cat, mop, and fun only have one big part (or syllable), while words like button, able, and under have two. {Read more HERE} […]

    Reply

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Hi! I’m Becky, a homeschooling mama with 4 blessings who keep me on my toes {and knees}. Before homeschooling, I was a classroom teacher (M.Ed.) and reading tutor. Read more about me here.

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