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My first graders are really starting to take flight with their reading and writing, but I’ve noticed lately that some of my kiddos still haven’t quite made it over that tricky B/D and P/Q “hump”.
Because I’m somewhat obsessed with centers, I whipped up this quick and easy letter identification / beginning sounds activity!
Getting it Ready
I store all of my centers in baggies and then I write the main skill on the outside of the bag in
sharpie. It’s an easy and affordable system that works for me. When I’m tutoring, planning small group lessons, or even just re-stocking my whole-class centers, it’s SO EASY to just flip through my pre-made centers for a few supporting activities to go along with whatever we are learning!
The Activity
Since I created this activity for a few select students in my first grade class, I introduced it in my Guided Reading groups as a part of my word work/warm-up to reading. I laid out each of the letter cards first (b, d, p, and q) and asked my kiddos what they noticed about the letters.
We talked about what letters they are, but also how tricky and confusing they can be since they all look similar!
Next, I spread out all of the picture cards and explained that we were going to practice saying words, thinking about what letter they would start with, and work together to complete our activity! I also reminded my students to refer back to our beloved ABC chart as needed!
I gave each student a few cards and then we went around the table letting each student have their turn. I prompted them to practice saying the word slowly, checking the ABC chart, and then deciding which letter to place the card under.
After using this activity with my students who really needed it, I showed it to the whole class under our document camera and added it to our class stash of word work choices! My kiddos who struggle with reversals could then be the experts and help show it to other students who hadn’t tried it out yet!
Ready to Download?
Simply click on the blue button below to grab it for free in my TpT shop!
When you’re done downloading, hop over to some of these awesome blogs for more penguin activities! They are sure to bring more fun into your classroom or home!
