At some point in your life, you've probably played the game "I Spy." It's perfect for boring waits at the grocery store, or long car rides. But with a little tweaking, the game can also help kids practice a key first grade concept...syllables. Here's how to play:
Once beginning readers know the individual sounds that letters make, they need to learn how to blend them and how to break them apart. This activity will help them practice. Readers, ho!
More activities for reading:
The "Three Post-Its" Approach to Reading
Using post-it tabs is a very non-threatening, risk-free, and fun tool to aid students in learning the important skill of summarizing!
Write a New Ending!
Knowing how to use quotation marks to write character dialog is an important skill for developing writers. Here's a fun way to get your child writing speech.
Make a Figures of Speech Book!
As your child becomes a more advanced reader (and writer!) he'll be dealing with more complicated text. Help him get figures of speech (such as similes, metaphors, hyperbole, and personification) down pat. This make-your-own book project is a great start!
Play with Words: A Pretend Bakery Game
If your child loves to play pretend, and needs practice with letters and the sounds they make, get cooking with this activity! Not only is it playful fun, but it builds key reading skills.
Create a Recipe to Practice Writing
With this activity, your third grader will get experience with informational writing, and your Thanksgiving guests will leave with a keepsake to cherish!
Play Vacation Bingo!
Got a long car ride ahead? Keep the kids busy in the back seat, with these free, printable bingo cards. Or create your own version, using our template. Let the games begin!
Story Starters: A Book Making Activity
Want to spark some creativity? Give your child some pictures for a story, then let his imagination run wild! Not only is this book-making activity quick and easy, but it gives emerging readers insight into how a story's illustrations provide context clues. So get a stack of old magazines and get ...
Sweet Sorting: A Fun Activity to Practice Categorizing
Delay your child's sugar overload, and develop his critical thinking skills, by doing some "sweet sorting" of his Halloween treasures!
Learn to Find the Big Ideas!
Categorizing information according to specific attributes is a key critical thinking skill in third grade. By sorting and grouping key facts about Martin Luther King Jr., students will develop this skill while they celebrate Dr. King’s life.
Go on a Teddy Bear Expedition!
This game helps children learn directions in a fun way. The object of the game is to find the hidden teddy bear by only using cardinal directions and coordinates.
