When it comes to teaching students how to read, sorting activities can be extremely helpful in developing strong phonemic awareness skills. Sorting by initial consonant blends or digraphs is an effective way to help students recognize the sounds of letters and understand how they work together to form words. Here are a few activities you can use to teach your students to sort by initial consonant blend or digraph:
1. Picture sorting: Create a set of picture cards that feature words with different initial consonant blends or digraphs. For example, you might have cards with pictures of a snake, a spoon, and a snowman. Have students sort the cards into different piles based on the initial sound they hear. This activity can be done individually or in small groups.
2. Word family sorting: Choose a word family, such as -at or -ad, and create a list of words with different initial consonant blends or digraphs in that family (e.g. mat, bat, chat, fat, sad, glad). Have students sort the words into categories based on their initial sound. This activity can be done on paper or using magnetic letters on a whiteboard.
3. Crossword puzzles: Create crossword puzzles that feature words with different initial consonant blends or digraphs. For example, you might have a crossword puzzle with clues like “a word for a type of cheese that starts with ‘ch’,” and the answer would be “cheddar.” This activity is a fun way for students to practice recognizing and spelling words with specific initial sounds.
4. Writing and drawing: Have students write or draw pictures of words with specific initial consonant blends or digraphs. For example, they might write or draw a picture of a frog (with “fr” as the initial blend) or a ship (with “sh” as the initial digraph). Encourage creativity and have students share their work with the class.
5. Team sorting: Divide the class into two teams and have them compete to see who can sort the most words into categories based on their initial consonant blend or digraph. You can use pre-made word cards or create your own based on the skill level of your students. This activity encourages teamwork and friendly competition.
By using these and other activities, you can help your students develop strong phonemic awareness skills and learn to recognize and spell words with specific initial consonant blends or digraphs. With practice, your students will become more confident readers and writers.
