top of page
Image by Markus Spiske

BR Design

Beginning Reading Design

Title: Pirates say, Aye Mate!


Rationale: This lesson explains the long vowel correspondence a_e = /A/. To achieve in learning this lesson, the student must be able to identify the keep spellings that are being written and read through a_e. After this, they must be able to recognize the map word pronunciations, and through this, they will be able to read, recognize, and spell the words containing the correspondence that was mentioned above. Decoding will also be needed in sounding out the words along with this long vowel correspondence. The representation will be meaningful (A pirate, saying Aye, Mate!). They will spell and read words in letterbox lessons containing a_e. The students will also be reading a decodable story that focuses on this correspondence as well.


Materials:

Graphic of the child dressed as a pirate; cover-up critter; chalk board or smartboard; letterboxes (Elkonin boxes) for each student to use at their own desk; letter manipulatives for each student; magnetic letter boxes and letters for teacher: a, c, e, f, k, l, m, n, r, t, y. List of spelling words that read: Ape, Ate, Cake, Mane, Crack, Flake, Scrape; Decodable text: Jane and Babe and Long a_e Worksheet.


Procedures:

1. Say: I know we all want to be the best readers we can! In order to do that, we need to learn different ‘codes’ that give us clues on how to pronounce words. We know short vowels like /a/ and /e/ in bad and bed. Today, we are going to learn about long A and the silent e signal that is used to make A say its name /A/. When I say the sound /A/, I want everyone to think of a saying ‘Aye, Mate,’ [Show Image of Pirate].


2. Say: First, let’s find the sound /A/ in a few words. If you are trying to hear the a in different words, your lips should part and widen for the letter A [vocal gesture]. Let’s all try that first. A-a-a, now your turn, A-a-a. If I give you the word ‘Rake,’ there is a long a, followed by a consonant, and then an e. If we say ‘rake,’ our lips will part and widen to make that a sound. Do you hear it in ‘fire?’ Hm, when I say it out loud, my lips part, but they do not widen to make an a sound. They widen to make an i sound. Let’s try our tongue tickler, ‘Pirates say, Aye Mate!’ If you hear the long vowel a sound in Aye, Mate, then I want you to hold up your fingers like a pirate hook [show class]. How about fool, crawl, plate, pants, fate, nose? [Have the children say each word out loud three times before giving their answer. Emphasis the vocal gesture for the students.]


3. Say: Of course, there are many ways to spell a word and make the a sound, but we are going to focus on the a_e long vowel correspondence for right now. This means that a word would be spell with a_(consonant) and then an e. The e is a signal for us to remember to make that long vowel a correspondence sound. The letter e is silent, yet it is a clue for us to sound out the word with a long vowel a sound. Let’s use the word ape. ‘The ape cried for his mother.” Ape has three letters in its name, and we can use our letterboxes to describe this. First, how many phonemes do I have in the word ape. Let’s stretch out the word to see: /A//p/. I need two boxes! Great work! I heard the /A/ first, and this means that I put the /A/ in the first letterbox. The popping /p/ goes in the next letterbox beside it. This is perfect! Where does that silent e go? It is silent, so it does not get its own letterbox. The silent e goes right outside of the second letterbox right beside the popping /p/. | A | p | e – no box for e


4. Say: Now, let’s let you do this yourselves! I am going to be giving you all different words, and I want you to sound out the phonemes and place them where you see fit. The first word is ‘ate.’ I just ate a sandwich for lunch. It means to have just eaten something. What should go in the first box? Talk to your neighbors, and then raise your pirate hook once you have your answer. Sound it out to yourself, too. [Respond]. What about the second box? And where does that pesky silent e go? Did you remember the trick with it? Okay! [Observe progress of students]. Now, let’s go through the letterboxes. You will need two letterboxes for this with a in one box, t in the second box, and the silent e goes on the outside. Let’s try some more. Here is the word: Cake. I want to bake a cake today; cake. [Give time to spell]. This will be in 3 letterboxes spelled out, c – a – k | silent e on the end. [Use letterboxes on the board]. Let’s try one more 3 letterbox word. The word is Mane: The horse’s mane was brown and flowed down his back, mane. It is the hair on a horse’s back! [Walk around and observe]. Who thinks that they got the answer right? [Call on someone to become the teacher and spell it out on the black board or smartboard for the class]. Great job! Let’s do another! Find out if this word has the /A/ in it or not: Crack. There was a crack in the window from the baseball, crack. Make sure to be careful! Did you open your mouth to make a sound? Great job! How does this look on the letterboxes? [Allow students to give their answers. Work out what they say]. C – r – a – ck. Yes, the ck goes together because it makes one sound. Let’s do one more with four letterboxes: Flake. The Frosty Flake fell to the ground in a crumbly mess, flake. [Observe the students, and make sure everyone has the correct spelling]. Okay, nicely done! One more spelling work, and this one has five letterboxes with it. The word is, Scrape. I scrape my knee whenever I fall, scrape. Remember that this requires 5 letterboxes. [Observe the students]. Spell it out on the smartboard: S – c – r – a – p | silent e.


5. Say: Sometimes spelling is easier than reading the letter. Let’s try the hard word, scrape, and see if we can blend it all together when it is written out. [Spell out scrape on the smart board or black board]. Let’s start at the beginning: s. I see our slithery s, and then I also see the letter c right next to it. /S//c/, let’s all say that! [Cover up the other letters.] Great job! Now, the letter r changes the sound to /S//c//r/. Continue! I see an a, but I also see a consonant and then an e. That’s a sneaky silent e! What does that make the a sound like? S – c – r – a – p – e. Let’s keep blending it! [Observe the students]. Scrape! [Write each word on the board and give the students opportunities to come up and teach the class].


6. Say: Okay, I am going to now read a story, and I want everyone to pay attention for the long vowel a_e correspondence! It is called Jake Stays Awake! Jake cannot go to sleep, and he is scared. He wants to sleep, so he climbs into his parent's bed! Now, they can't sleep! It is so late! Where will they be able to rest for the night? [Read to the students as a group, and take turns having the children sounding out the words with long a_e vowel correspondences].


7. Say: What an exciting story! Has anyone not been able to go to sleep?Now, I am going to give you an activity, and you have to find all of the long vowel a words’ in the puzzle! Make sure to circle the silent e along with the different letters that you will look for! Do not forget the sneaky silent e. Let’s try saying all of the words quietly to ourselves before we start. Talk to your neighbors after you are done, and you can all work together as pairs to find the different words. I will be collecting these so make sure to do your best! [Observe the students and take up the worksheets at the end of the lesson].


Resources:

Wright, Michael. Jake Stays Awake

https://www.amazon.com/Jake-Stays-Awake-Michael-Wright/dp/031236797X

Long a_e Assessment Worksheet: https://www.superteacherworksheets.com/phonics-long-a.html


Anne Scott Turner, Open Wide at the Doctor's Office

https://ast0028.wixsite.com/mysite/beginning-reading

BR Design: Product
bottom of page