Updated: Nov 25, 2021
Children in nursery will be learning to:
Develop their phonological awareness, so that they can count or clap syllables in a word. (Literacy)
Tub of water
Sponge
Chalk
Objects with different amounts of syllables
Examples:
1 syllable
rock
egg
2 syllables
rainbow - rain/bow
button - but/ton
3 syllables
broccoli - broc/co/li
dinosaur - di/no/saur
Write 1, 2 and 3 on the floor and sort the objects by how many syllables there are in their name. Say the name of the object and squeeze the sponge to make rain as you say the word e.g. button - squeeze for but and ton. It has two syllables.
Another way to count the syllables is to clap the word as you say it. Another way is to count your chin bobs. Ask them to place their hand under their chin. As they say the word, they should count how many times their chin bobs which will tell them how many syllables are in the word. If your child finds it tricky to say the word and count the syllables at the same time, they could count how many times they feel your chin bob. They could also watch you say the word and count how many times your mouth opens.
Syllables - Understanding syllables will help children when they begin to spell longer words in Reception e.g. if they hear garden they can break it into gar/den then sound out gar, g-ar and then den, d-e-n.
If you have a go at this activity and share any photos on social media I would love to see them. Please tag @miniwritersclub and let me know how you get on.
Anna
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We added a water fountain to create some rain.