A Fun Way to Learn Phonics
First grade students recently set sail on a special Pirate Day as they began learning the /ar/ sound. Since /ar/ is known as a pirate’s favorite sound, the class turned the lesson into a day full of themed learning activities. Students started by singing the “AR Song,” then wrote as many /ar/ words as they could remember from the song on long strips of paper, which they used to create pirate hats.
Hands-On Learning Adventures
Throughout the day, students practiced their new sound pattern through a variety of engaging activities. They searched the downstairs area for treasure coins featuring /ar/ words, logged the words they found, and used them to create sentences. Students also played sorting games with “pirate words” containing /ar/ and “shipwrecked words” without it. Additional tasks included rhyming, counting sounds and letters, identifying /ar/ words, and completing a class-wide word hunt using books from their book boxes.
Students had a blast learning this new spelling pattern, which will also be featured in their upcoming spelling list.