Rationale: This lesson teaches children about the correspondence ou = /ow/. In order to be expert readers, children need to recognize the spellings of words that map out the phonemes of the spoken words. In this lesson children will learn to recognize, spell, and read words containing the spelling ou. They will learn a picture representation (child hurting after shot), they will read a tongue tickler, they will spell and read words containing this spelling in a Letterbox lesson, and read a decodable book that focuses on the correspondence ou = /u/, and an assessment worksheet.
Materials:
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Graphic image: child hurting after receiving a shot
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Overhead
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Tongue Tickler: Scout is a round and sour sprout
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Letter boxes for teacher modeling and for and for students
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Letter tiles for teacher modeling and for students (s,o,u,r,l,d,f,n,t,m,a)
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List of spelling words on a poster (sour, loud, found, float, mount)
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Decodable text: Slim’s Outing
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Assessment worksheet
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Procedures:
1. Say: In order to be a successful reader, you need to learn the spelling code that tells how to pronounce words. We are going to learn about how ou makes the /ow/ sound. When you get hurt or something hurts you like a shot, you normally say /ow/ (show graphic image). Everyone pretend you just got a shot in you arm; hold it and say /ow/.
2. Say: Let’s listen to some words with the /ow/ sound. When you make the /ow/ sound your mouth goes from big to small. Now I am going to see if it is in look. I did not hear ow. When I say a word, if you hear /ow /say “ow my arm hurts,” if you do not hear it say “I do not hear it.” Ask if they hear it in route, lock, chair, king, lot, shout?
3. Say: Now let’s look at the spelling of /ow/ in words. One way to spell /ow/ is with the letters ou (write ou on the board). The ou together makes the /ow/ sound. Let’s look at the word scout. “The scout went to gather information.” Scout means to make a search for someone or something in various places. Let’s spell scout in the letter boxes. First I need to figure out how many phonemes are in the word. I am going to stretch it out and count: /s/ /c/ /ow/ /t/. I need 4 boxes. I heard the /ow/ sound before the /s/ and the /c/ so I will put the ou in the third box. The word starts with /s/ so I am going to put s in the first box. In /s/ /c/ /ow/ /t/ I hear the /c/ after /s/ so the c goes in the second box. I hear a /t/ at the end or the word so the t goes in the last box. (Point to letters in boxes when stretching out the word /s//c//ow//t/.)
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4. Say: Now you are going to spell words in words in your letterboxes. Listen to all the words and see if you hear /ow/ in it. Let’s start with the 3 box word sour. Something sour has an acid taste, “The lemon tasted sour.” What should go in the first box? (respond to the student’s response). What goes in the second box? Remember what letters together make the /ow/ sound. What goes in the last box? For the next word, you will need 3 boxes. The word is loud, “When everyone started talking the room got loud.” Let the children spell the words. Let’s check your work. (spell out aloud in my letter boxes). Now try the word found, “I found the shirt I want to wear in my closet.” Have children spell out word on their own, then have a student model how to do it in front of the class. Provide corrections if needed. (Repeat with the next words). The next word is float. I like to float in the ocean. Do you hear /ow/ in float? Why not? We do not hear ow when we say float. Let’s spell one more word: mount is a 5 letter box word. I went to mount to the small hill. Stretch out the word to find the sounds.
5. Say: Now you are going to read the words you have spelled. I am going to show you how to read a word. (show the poster with mount as the first word and model how to read it). I see an ou right next to each other and I know that together they make the sound /ow/. (Use the cover up critter to uncover the letters before the ou. Blend vowel and first letters together: (/m/; /m/+ /aw/= /maw/.) At the end I see an n which makes the /n/ sound and a t which makes the /t/ sound. (/n/ + /t/= /nt/) Now let’s add all of the sounds together (/mownt/). mount. Now we are all going to do it together. (Have class read other words as a whole and have students try to do it on their own.)
6. Say: Good job spelling and reading these words. Now we are going to read a book that gives us more practice with ou = /ow/. Tim’s pig Slim slips out of his pen while everyone in the house is gone. Tim wants to bring a new pet mouse home, but when he gets home he realizes Slim is gone from is cage. Tim’s mom and dad are upset. Is Tim going to find Slim? Is he going to get in trouble with his mom and dad? Read the book to find out. (The class pairs up and partners take turn reading a page aloud. Then the class comes together to read the book aloud. TBYT: Ask questions about the story).
7. Say: Good job reading that story! Wasn’t that fun? I can’t believe Slim had turned the whole house into a mess. To wrap up this lesson, we are going to do a practice worksheet that will help us remember ou = /ow/. For this worksheet, fill in the blank with a word from the word bank. Pick the word with the ou sound that best fits the sentence. Read the words in the box before you start, then read the entire sentence when you finish the worksheet. (collect the worksheets to evaluate childs progress).
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References:
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Assessment Worksheet: Missing Word Sentences (1st sheet): https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/-ow-making-the-ou-sound-worksheets-6333441?theme=4
Ellen Ormond, “Ow! Says the Brown Cow”
http://ekormond.wixsite.com/art-director-portfol/beginning-reading
Murray, G. (2004) Slim’s Outing. Reading Genie: http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/bookindex.html
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