Originally Posted on Heidi’s Weekly Blog that can be found here.

A precious gift from one of my students.

Phonics! It’s the dreaded word: PHONICS! It’s not an easy thing to teach. We spend gobs of time trying to teach the children that each letter carries one sound, and then the next thing you know, we are telling them that those same letters sometimes will make different sounds! So this week, I am going to tell you how I?have been teaching my class how to read words with the “sh” and the “th” sound in them. We have been working on our these phonics skills for a long time, practicing every day. The trick is to get the kids to recognize these letters as a UNIT when they see them together, and not to attempt to sound each letter out individually.

I print out the pages that I need from the download and then put them in page protectors in a binder.

Both of our Sounds Fun workbooks are finally FINISHED! Here’s a sample of the TH section of the workbook for you to try out as my free download for the week!

This is my Sounds Fun binder from the inside.

Here are the general steps I have been following in order to get my students to read words with the “sh” and “th” sounds in them. If you have been following my blog for a while, then you will already be familiar with the first few steps, since they have been happening over the past few months.

1. Introduce the Sounds Fun cards, including the ones with the “sh” and the “th.”
The children make the motions and say the sounds when they see the character with the letters on the cards. I first introduced the cards, sounds, and movements in late November, in response to a question that a child asked about why a word was spelled with an “s” and an “h.” This is usually what happens with my phonics cards; I wait for the children to express and interest and ask questions. From that point on, I begin to teach them, and we keep going with it as much as they are able to comprehend and for as long as they are interested. (Keep in mind that I teach Kindergarten, so much of this that I have introduced has been “extra” and not required in my district’s curriculum, at least up to this point. In my district, Kindergartners are required to read certain high frequency words that begin with an “sh” and a “th,” but are not required to pass tests showing that they know these phonics sounds. So they can be taught these words as sight words only, or we can teach them via phonics, or both. I usually try both methods, and if one doesn’t work well with a child, then he or she can always try another.

Sounds Fun Phonics DVD’s!

2. Sing the songs that go along with the phonics sounds I am trying to teach.
I first started singing the “Sh Song” from the Sounds Fun Phonics CD in SEPTEMBER! That’s because I was using it as a song to get the children to quiet down, rather than a song to teach phonics, LOL! But at the same time, I also showed them the “Quiet Girl” card that has the little girl with her finger in front of her mouth in the “shush” position, and told them that an “s” and an “h” put together make the /sh/ sound. Since we have sung that song many, MANY times, just trying to get them to be quiet, I think this really helped them internalize the concept quite well! The kids all seem to know that the “s” with the “h” after it make the /sh/ sound!

We have been reading the Sounds Fun cards and matching them to their flash cards whole group.

3. In January, we started sounding out “sh” and “th” words daily whole group.
I have been using the same routine that I have been writing about in my blog in the past two posts, in which EVERYONE must put their hands up to get ready to sound out the words with the motions. We use the Sounds Fun Phonics motions whenever we get to the “sh” and “th” sounds. Otherwise, we use Zoo-Phonics motions. But as long as I have everyone moving along with me, then NOBODY can be just sitting there, picking at their shoe laces or buttons, etc. No daydreaming allowed! If anyone puts their hands down and starts daydreaming again, I spot it immediately and insist that they put their hands up and keep going. Otherwise, they have to do it with me or my aide privately during recess or playtime.

In after school tutoring, my struggling students worked ONLY on the required words on this small pocket chart. As you can see, the flashcards for some of the words reflect the lyrics of the song! So the the “they” flashcard shows a boy that wants some girls to “go away now,” just like the song from Sing and Spell Vol. 1, etc.

4. Read and match the words to the flash cards .
I had the whole class try to sound out even more CVC words from the workbook with the flashcards provided in the workbook. I tried very hard to include words that would be as easy to read as I could find in the beginning units, for “sh,” “th,” and “ch.” In any case, all the kids have to do is TRY to begin each word with a /sh/ or /th/ sound, and then I’ll help them from there. It’s just a matter of getting started with the correct sound.

For most of the words, it’s simply a matter of finding the words that begin with a “th” and circling them. Then they copy the word below it.

5. Circle the words with the “sh” and “th” phonics patterns.
Now, with the completed workbook, we are finding words with the “sh” and “th” spelling patterns on the worksheet pages and circling them. THEN the children can complete the workbook pages. Having the children highlight the “th” and the “sh” sounds that they see on the pages will also help them, I know.
At first glance, it seems like some of the pages might be too hard. But then if you really look at the example in the picture, you’ll see that there is only one “th” word to choose from of the two words given! So all the children have to do is find the ONE word that starts with an “th.” Then they have to circle it, and copy it. So some of the pages can be done at this time of year with the average Kindergartner, as long as they have someone to go to when they need help. My high students enjoyed being able to go on to the harder worksheets that I placed in dry erase sleeves when they were finished with their work.

We put the extra pages in page protectors and dry erase sleeves so that they could try a few of them without the pressure of HAVING to complete every single thing!

6. Listen for the “sh” sound in other books that we are reading, and then look for the “sh” spelling patterns on the pages- especially in big books.
This is a great activity to help children learn that this spelling pattern pops up everywhere, in real writing and in the real world!

The worksheets with spaces to draw pictures are always a hit!

7. My best advice is to have children look for these phonics patterns FIRST, (before they begin reading), and perhaps mark them lightly with a pencil, if possible.
This should help remind them that the word is coming and assist in comprehension and fluency while the child is reading. Just make sure that it is the CHILD that does the marking of the letters, not an adult! They need to do it themselves to help them remember.

Originally Posted on Heidi’s Weekly Blog that can be found here.

This is a sample page from the book.

One problem with this rubric is that it only addressed writing conventions, and did not address the problem of staying on topic. So for example, if a child that writes the first sentence about lions and the second sentence about Easter Eggs, then there was nothing in the rubric to address this problem. Indeed, many years ago when the original rubric was written, we had only begun to scratch the surface of getting kindergarten students writing enough to even THINK about whether or not they were staying on topic! (In our own defense, we had only half day Kindergarten at that point, and the standards were MUCH lower, as well!) In any case, up to that point, we were pretty glad to have had a legible sentence or two that the child could read back and had illustrated. This is probably why the rubric did not include any notes regarding content. Given that problem, I am revising the rubric that I had posted last year to include a few notes on the content of the child’s writing, and re-posting it here for you today if you are interested.

This year, we are being trained in using Step Up to Writing. At the Kindergarten level, this means that we are supposed to work with the children orally to first brainstorm ideas. Then we train them to organize their thoughts into paragraph form. Finally, we teach them to write these thoughts down, hopefully into a paragraph that they can read back. Assuming that they can write phonetically and that they can write a few sight words, then they can at least make an attempt to do this! Admittedly, this really is a very TALL order for Kindergarten students! But we are breaking it down into the tiniest of steps to help them along. This is how we did it this week:

First, we read some books about Valentine’s Day, and then brainstormed a list of things that happen on Valentine’s Day, and what we like about it. Then, I tried to get the children to give me a “Big Idea Sentence” that would tell us what our story about Valentine’s Day would be mostly about. They gave me several ideas, including sentences like, “I like Valentine’s Day,” “Valentine’s Day is Fun,” and “Valentine’s Day is Cool” or “Valentine’s Day is Awesome!” I told them that any of these sentences would work just fine!

We did have to discuss some of the suggestions that were a bit off, such as the more specific sentences, such as “We give cards on Valentine’s Day.” I kept telling them that I need a “bigger idea,” and tried to point them to a sentence that would tell MORE about the holiday, rather than just one thing about the holiday. I asked them, “Does that tell me one thing about it, or more than that?” We settled on one sentence, and I wrote it down. Then, according to our Step Up To Writing program, we give that sentence a green dot. That is supposed to help the kids organize it in their minds. The green dot sentence is the “Big Idea Sentence.” After that, the supporting sentences get a yellow dot. As you can see, some of the children have started adding their own colored dots to their own writing, too!

This is what I demonstrated to my class whole group. Note the colored dots.

Then after that, it was easy! All we had to do was think about our list of things that we liked about Valentine’s Day and make up sentences about them. I just had to remind them that, no matter what- the sentences HAD to be about Valentine’s Day!!!! NO MATTER WHAT! Because if we start out talking about Valentine’s Day, then we must keep talking about it, and we can’t start talking about sharks or iguanas, etc.

My class hasn’t gotten to the point where we finish up our paragraphs with a conclusion sentence, but I know that one easy way to do it is to have them just rewrite their first sentence at the end of their paragraph. In any case, I think my students did very well with it! I am posting some writing samples from the children in my top two groups. Naturally, some of the children in the bottom two groups needed quite a bit more support to complete this task. (And yes, I do group by ability.) And when the children in my lowest group got to my writing table, I guided them through it, step by step. I keep a
dry erase board next to my table and I wrote on it as they wrote on their papers. Together we sounded out each word and talked about how we might spell and write it, and then they copied my sentence down onto their papers. I let them know that if they dawdle and get behind, they are on their own, and I am not going to help them catch up later. So they had better sit up and follow along and just DO IT! They are a good group this year, and I generally don’t have any trouble getting them to follow along with lessons like this, thankfully! This is how I differentiate my writing lessons for my lowest group.

With the group that is one step higher than they are, I get them started with the first sentence, and then release them to finish the second sentence on their own. The top two groups do the whole thing on their own, though I do answer questions and help sound out words as needed. The Sounds Fun Poster, cards, and songs are really a big help when trying to get kids to sound out words and write them down! I am constantly amazed by how much it helps to have a visual aid right there in view all the time in the form of that Sounds Fun Poster, mounted on a tri-fold presentation foam board. I can move it wherever I need it to be at any time, and that makes a big difference. Whenever the kids need to write a sound that they do not know, they just refer to the poster or the cards on the wall, and copy the sound that goes along with the character. So if they need a /ch/ sound, they look for the choo choo train, and copy the “ch.” If they need a /th/ sound, they look for the boy that is blowing raspberries and copy the “th.” If they need the /oo/ sound, then they look for the monkey that says, “oo-oo,” and copy the “oo.” It makes sense to them, and it’s fairly easy. (For a more detailed overview of how it works, click on the link for the CD below and scroll down. There are videos of the songs, too!) Many of them have memorized the letters that go with each character, too, because of the songs on the CD.?

This is the Sounds Fun Poster stapled to a Tri-Fold Presentation Board. I can move it around wherever it is needed.

None of the children were allowed to copy from the brainstorming list that I made, nor did I allow them to copy from the sentences that I wrote in front of them as a group. I erased the sentence from my white board easel, and the brainstorming list disappeared from the easel the day before sometime during playtime! So all of that was just plain gone. In any case, even if I were to have written the whole thing on a large chart paper, I still wouldn’t have let them copy any of it, because I consider that to be a hindrance to the goal of them learning to sound out words. If I let them copy something, then they will never attempt to sound out those words, and that is a learning opportunity that is lost, in my opinion. Besides that, our school does not have the budget to buy us anymore large chart paper, I have been told! So I guess it all works out that I don’t want them to copy it anyway! It’s just a shame that the children cannot refer back to our shared writing samples later.

On a lighter note, check out the writing sample above! The little boy that wrote it told me exactly what he wanted to write, and then I helped him sound it out so that he could get it done. He wanted to write, “God gave us Valentine’s Day. He is our Father.” The only thing that I encouraged him to change was to write “He is my Father,” since were running out of time, and I knew that he could already spell “my,” (because of the spelling song from Sing and Spell Vol. 1) and it would be quicker! Later, I read all of the children’s papers back to the class. After I read his paper, one of the children looked over at him and said, “Wow, God is your father? That’s COOL!” (I think the other child was picturing Jesus sitting down at the table nightly, eating dinner with him and helping him with his homework, LOL!) There were exclamations of agreement in the class, as many of the other children congratulated the first boy on having GOD as his father, as I tried to suppress my giggles and smiled in wonder at this beautiful conversation! Then the little boy that wrote the sentence burst out in irritation, “He’s EVERYONE’s Father, not just MINE!” (I think that if he had known the word, “DUH!” he would have added that onto the end of his sentence, too, but thankfully he did not.) After he clarified this point, half of the class all said, “Yes, He is everyone’s Father,” while the other half just sat there, saying, “Huh?”
I wished that I could have clarified what was going on there, but you know how it is in a public school…. We just have to leave it up to children to deliver the lessons that God wants delivered. I hope that enough of them go to Sunday School, Awanas, and Vacation Bible School to make that happen.

Originally Posted on Heidi’s Weekly Blog that can be found here.

The question below came up on my HeidiSongs Facebook page this week shortly after I posted my blog last week. After I answered the question, I decided that it might make a good blog entry for those of us that might have missed it! I also added some more ideas to it at the bottom of the question. I hope this is helpful information for those of you with students that are still struggling with this difficult to master, yet vital skill.

Question:

Well, I assume that you have read my blog last week, right? It is all about sounding out CVC words. There are several activities for that.

I have found, in years past, that a few kids that couldn’t seem to hold the sounds in short term memory long enough to blend them together. By the time they got to the third sound, they couldn’t remember the first one. That’s a learning disability in my humble opinion, but please keep in mind that I am not a school psychologist. However, in these cases, it was confirmed by our school psychologist at the time. Those children had short term memory deficits.

Short Term Memory Issues?
To give yourself a clue as to whether a child may have short term memory issues, try this little “test.” We used to have The Three Step Direction Test that we had to give at my school. Kids that couldn’t concentrate very well had trouble with it (like ADHD), but kids with memory issues NEVER got it, even in a quiet room with no distractions.
Give them three directions in a row, and see if they can do them. You’ll have to make sure that you have their attention when you give the directions, and get them looking you right in the eye. Tell them that you are going to give them three directions in a row, and they will need to do them in the exact order that they are given. You can even make up an example question and do it together first, just to clarify that they understand first.
If I am recalling the test questions correctly, they went something like this:
1. Stand up, turn around, and pick up a red crayon. (You have to have several colors of crayons on a table close at hand.)
2. Jump up and down, clap two times, and touch the floor.
3. Pick up a yellow crayon, touch your nose with it, and put in next to the box.

I used to narrow it down to a two step direction test for some kids to see if they could do two directions in a row if they never got three steps. Some of the kids that later wound receiving special ed services at my school were able to do some of the two step directions if they really concentrated, especially if they involved crayons, but not necessarily the other ones. I think that this was because they were used to being given directions such as, “Sit down and pick up a red crayon.”

Click here to learn more about Memory Train.

There is one iPad app that I know of that works on stretching the short term visual memory, though not auditory memory. It is called Memory Train, and my kids really love it. If anyone knows of an iPad app that works on stretching auditory memory, please let me know!

Addressing Letter Sound Fluency
The other thing that might be happening to your kids is that having to identify the letter sounds themselves is stressing them out and making the whole process harder. This really could be it, since you say that if you segment the word for them, they can blend it, right? So how quickly can these children say the letter sounds when shown a letter? Does it take a while for the child to retrieve that sound, or is it quick and automatic? If the sound doesn’t pop out of the child’s mouth very quickly and fluently, that’s probably your breakdown right there, and you’ll need to work on that. So get those letter cards back out and start drilling them on those letter sounds again, and try to get them to say all 26 of the letter sounds in 30 seconds or less. The goal should be 1 second per letter. If they cannot do that, then reading will be too slow, and fluency in sounding out the words will not come, in my experience. If anyone knows of an iPad app that develops letter sound fluency, please let me know! I know of lots of apps that work on letter sounds, but none that encourage the children to say them quickly.
If a child can’t say anything fast-even things he or she knows very well, such as the names of common objects or colors, etc.- then I think that this is a matter of visual processing. It is also sometimes referred to as “Rapid Naming Deficits.” Children should be able to tell you the names of things that they use daily very quickly, like in about one second. So if you have flashcards or real objects that you know the child knows that names of, like toys, clothing, furniture, etc., then ask the child to name them for you and see how quickly the child can name them. The child should be able to say them all fairly quickly. If there is a lot of hesitation you may want to seek professional advice. Children that cannot do this, often wind up having trouble naming the letters, sounds, and sight words quickly as well, no matter how well they know them. That makes sense, doesn’t it? This impedes their ability to read fluently, so the child my need some extra help getting past that issue.

These CVC cards and pictures are from my CVC book.

Here are some other things to try!

1. Daily Whole Group Practice, Using Movements
I have been having my entire class practice sounding out words from a pocket chart, using Zoo-Phonics motions for the letter sounds, or the RISE motions that I made up for the blog lesson that I posted on in November. (There is a video on my Facebook page of the movements; click here to see it.) Nobody gets away with not doing the motions, because I start by saying, “Everybody, hands UP!” If I notice anyone ignoring that command, I make an issue of it. Now I know that some of the children can easily sound out the words without using their hands, but lots of them cannot. So I insist that ALL of them do the motions. This forces all of the ones that might prefer to “opt out” of this activity and just sort of daydream while we do it to focus and think. No hands in the pockets, no hands in the laps. No picking at the fingers, clothing, shoes, or jewelry. Eyes up, hands up, here we go. Got it?

In addition to the daily practice, which has obvious benefits, my thought is that the children that know how to do it are modeling this process for the ones that don’t understand. And often times, a child modeling a skill for another child is better than an adult modeling a skill for a child. I have heard this lots of times from teachers in the past. If a teacher cannot explain a skill to a child, then sometimes another child might be able to do it and get the point across.

* I have decided that when we do this that some of my higher kids are giving away too many answers too fast. In fact, the other children are basically letting them do practically all of the work, and the children that need more processing time to come up with the answers really aren’t getting enough time to even think. So I have sent them to go read books while we do this for five minutes. I explained to them, and to the rest of the class, that they already know it, and I want the rest of the class to have a chance to think. Guess what? Suddenly the rest of the kids are all enthusiastically shouting out the answers! I think that some of the other kids want to be included in that “elite” group. Hmmm…..

Daily whole group practice can make a difference. Add movements to insure all children stay focused.

* My class is getting really, REALLY good at sounding out words when we do them in word families, going DOWN the chart, like this: pot, dot, hot, got. Then pot, pop, fox, dot, hop, box, etc. So we are reading down the chart first, and then going across the chart, to mix up the word families. It is SO much harder when you mix up with word endings (and vowels)!

2. Dumb Things That (Sometimes) Work
My kids love to pop bubble wrap bubbles, so when I get something in the mail that is wrapped in bubble wrap, I save it. Then, in small groups, each time one of them sounds out a word, I let them pop one of the bubbles. The added bonus is that it develops fine motor skills by working those finger muscles as well.

3. Tell Them Your Fingers SING!
Try running your fingers under the words while they sound out the words. This is the routine that we were given from the SIPPS program, and it is a good one: the teacher says, “Sound,” and starts running the finger under each letter. The child says each letter sound as you run your finger under it. Then you do it again, but a little faster. Hopefully, the child will start to blend them together. If not, I tell them, “My fingers make the letters sing. Help me make the letters sing.” Then do it again, and see if the children start singing the letter sounds. This often makes them blend the letter sounds together as they are singing the sounds.

This is the free download paper that we used from last week’s blog entry.

The other thing that helps is that when we practice the alphabet sounds, we do the same thing: Just say, “Sound,” and run your finger under the letter from left to right while the kids say it. The only difference is that there is only one letter on the card. If you want them to give the letter name instead, say, “Letter.”

I keep all of my CVC flashcards in a binder like this.

4. Once a Child Sounds Out a Word, Have Them Do It AGAIN IMMEDIATELY
I started doing this last year with a child who was really struggling, poor thing! He finally got one word sounded out, and I thought to myself, “Maybe I’ll give him success by having him do the same word in a row.” Much to my surprise, he could not do it a second time in a row! I was stunned. He said, “No, I can’t,” and groaned and moaned, even though he had JUST told me the answer! So now, with the ones that are struggling so terribly, I will sometimes have them go back to the very same word that I just gave them, and do it again. (And again, and again, and again!) I tell them, “Show me how you do that one more time,” just to solidify it in their minds. “Or, let’s practice doing that again. Show me how you sound that word out.”
Another way to approach it is to put that very word into the “Sound It Out” song on Little Songs for Language Arts CD. Just change the words so that you have the child singing the word that you want him to sound out, rather than the words that are on my CD. That should really help a lot; even my students that are struggling the most can sound out the words that we sound out on that song!

CVC flash cards are stored by word family in baseball card sleeves!

5. Try a Different Movement
Have your kids touch their shoulder for the first sound, then their middle arm (or elbow) for the second sound, and their hand for the last sound. Then blend the sounds together by sliding their hand all the way from their shoulder to their hand. This variation of movements helps some kids get it.

We practice sounding some sight words out daily, with movements whole group.

6. Try a New Game
Sometimes adding in some novelty helps a child practice something that they have already practiced a hundred times before. My kids love velcro! I think that they love it because of that funny sound it makes when you pull it apart. We now have CVC Spelling Puzzles, and my kids really LOVE them! Yes, they are very similar to the the CVC Pockets, but in this case, there is the visual clue of the puzzle piece that helps the child know where to put the piece down, and that always helps. They are just a tad easier than the CVC Pockets. Click here to try a few!

These are our CVC Puzzles. They attach with velcro.

Our new CVC Pockets are a hit with my kids!

7. Read My Lips
This activity is done to practice blending the sounds together without necessarily looking at the written letters.
Have kids watch your lips make all three sounds in succession while you say the sounds. Make sure you get their attention focused right on your mouth before you begin. I usually tap my mouth with my finger or the end of my pencil, and say, “Watch my mouth.” Then I look them straight in the eye and make the sounds. Then I tell the child, “Now say that back to me.” After they do, then ask them to speed it up and say it faster.
The idea here is that you have got the child to use a little bit of lip reading as a visual clue to help them identify the sounds that they are hearing. Once the child has identified the sounds that he has heard, (and you’ll know this because he or she has repeated them back to you,) then he can start to blend them together for you. Hopefully, then, you won’t get children telling you things like /sssssss/ /iiiiii/ /t/ is the word “pig.” When children are taught to focus on the speaker’s lips when that person is talking, then it teaches them a new way to pay attention and listen. And if a child has auditory processing problems, this can be a real life saver.

8. Try a New Teaching Routine
Here is another routine that I was taught to use as part of our SIPPS program. It is sometimes helpful to the low kids, especially- although the high kids do get impatient with it, I have found!
1. When teaching, first model the new skill twice.
Example: “My turn. /fffff/ /iiiii/ /sssshhhhh/.”
“My turn again. /fffff/ /iiiii/ /sssshhhhh/.”
2. Then have the kids do it with you twice.
Example: “Together: /fffff/ /iiiii/ /sssshhhhh/.”
“Together again: /fffff/ /iiiii/ /sssshhhhh/.”
3. Then have the kids try it alone- twice, of course!
Example: “Your turn. /fffff/ /iiiii/ /sssshhhhh/.”
“Your turn again. /fffff/ /iiiii/ /sssshhhhh/.”

If they don’t get it, you are supposed to start over with this routine. I don’t know if I buy into that whole “Start over and try it again from the beginning, no matter what, forever and ever” theory, though. For me, if something doesn’t work with a child fifteen times in a row, trying it a sixteenth time seems like the definition of insanity to me. But I’ll let you draw your own conclusions on that one.

Originally Posted on Heidi’s Weekly Blog that can be found here.

A Draw and Tell Story: The Curious Little Mouse
I have been wanting to write a “Draw and Tell” story for quite a while and share it on my blog, but the thing that has been holding me back is the need to break the artwork for the story down into tiny steps and save each one as a separate step. That takes a while! I also wanted this story to be seasonally appropriate, but not holiday oriented so that everyone might be able to use it. I keep hearing from teachers that are unable to use any lesson plans that have a connection to a holiday, etc. My school doesn’t have any such restrictions (at least not so far!) Nobody really seems to care or object if the children make a Santa project or a candy cane. BUT, I do feel bad for those of you that teach in places where that is a no-no. So, with that in mind, I created a story about a mouse and a snowman. Hopefully, nobody has found a reason to object to a mouse or a snowman, other than the fact that they may be a little too cute or a little too much fun. If your administration objects to things that appear to be even a little remotely cute or fun, then when you get to the face on your snowman, draw a straight line instead of a smile, and maybe that will appease the powers that be, ha ha! Then ask a lot of higher level thinking questions at the end of the story. That’s always a good idea anyway, right? If you would like to download this story, click here.

To tell this Draw and Tell story, this is what you need:

1. A large piece of white paper, or a white board easel.
2. A marker.
3. The downloadable story.
4. Some kids to listen. That’s it!

I always start by telling them that my story is going to create a picture, and if they guess what my picture is before the end of the story, they will need to keep it a secret and don’t tell their friends, because they might spoil the surprise for somebody else. We don’t tell everyone what is inside a Christmas present, right? It’s better when it’s a big surprise! Then, each time you tell part of the story, you draw a part of the picture. All you have to do with my story is copy the part of the picture that is printed in red. My story forms a snowman in the end, which is supposed to be a big surprise.
Of course, two minutes into it, one little boy interrupted my story and yelled out, it looks like a snowman! I don’t know how he could have gotten that from two little squares on a white board, but he did! (It’s possible he saw my paper on the clipboard.) Luckily, I?just shushed him, the class ignored him, and the children of course enjoyed the story anyway, despite the spoiler.

It’s best to practice telling the story once on your own without the kids, just to make sure you know what to do. You’ll also tell it more fluently and draw the pictures a little bit better if you have done it before. But the children won’t care if it looks rather childish. They will LOVE?it! I find that children are usually MESMERIZED when I tell a Draw and Tell story!

I have told lots of them in the past; just never one that I?have written myself. In fact, there are whole books full of them. One of my favorites is a Book by Richard Thompson, called Draw-And-Tell: Reading – Writing – Listening – Speaking – Viewing – Shaping. You can find used copies on Amazon. You just have to figure out ahead of time how each picture and story goes, because they are a bit more complicated than mine. Happy teaching!