Awareness material or experiences

• Vocabulary review: houseguest, linen, crystal

A Story for Compound Words

Ladybird was getting ready for breakfast. She was expecting a houseguest any minute. Just as she began heating up the frying pan for pancakes, the doorbell rang. She took the frying pan off the stove and went to answer the door. As she opened the door, sunshine spilled in through the doorway. The sunshine actually made the carpet look a different color. "Welcome", she said to her houseguest. "I’m glad you could come by for breakfast." Ladybird opened the door wide. "Come in and have a seat." she said. Ladybird went to the linen closet and pulled out her finest tablecloth. She spread the tablecloth on the table and set out her crystal teapot beside the vase of sunflowers. Ladybird and her houseguest sat down and had a delicious breakfast together.

Instructional material

• The class generates as many compound words as they can. The teacher writes the list on the board and helps to add more. After the list is written, she asks the students to tell her the two words that make up the compound word. The teacher can use colored chalk to circle the two words after they are identified.

Practice material:

• After reading the compound word story, the students are given one picture each. They are instructed to find the person that has a picture that goes with theirs to make a compound word. After the students have matched up, the can "read" their compound words.Deletion task. Place two pictures that go together to make a compound word. Go through the dialogue:
• Teacher: "Say teapot."
  Student: "teapot"
  Teacher: "Say it again, but don’t say "pot".
  Student: "tea"
  (Use pictures as cues if needed.)
• Ask students questions, "What is left if I take the stick from broomstick?" Use the following compound words, rain(bow), grass(hopper), star(fish), foot(ball), pig(tail), bird(bath), door(step), moon(light), lip(stick), sun(shine)
• More activities are available in The Big Book of Phonics Fun, K-3

Whole Language Application:

• Help each student make a book to take home and read to his or her family. Make a book using the one sheet book.  Give the students a sheet of pictures with compound words. The student is directed to cut and glue the pictures into the book using the pattern:
• I can say two words together and get ___________.
  I can write two words together and get ___________.
  I can read two words together and get ___________.
  I can hear two words together and get ___________.
  I can see two words together and get __________.