Following the Directions: Idea #351

A fun way to see how well your student is reading or comprehending is to give them a Following the Directions worksheet. When students do a Following the Directions worksheet, they either listen or read directions and then do them. In this case, your student would read the directions.

Find or make a worksheet where the directions are written right on the page for your student. Look over the words in the directions to make sure they are not too difficult for your student to read. If your student enjoys more hands-on activities, you might try a Following the Directions cut and paste worksheet. Here are a couple that I found:

1. http://www.teachervision.fen.com/tv/printables/TCR/1576901106_34.pdf - This one is really simple. Your student reads the words and then colors the items on the page.

2. http://millertooth.blogspot.com/2010/09/following-directions.html - This one students actually cut out items and then paste them on a new page after reading the directions.

3. If you want to make your own worksheet to better fit your student's needs, try using a sight word list or other familiar words to write the directions. For example: 
       1. At the top of the page write your name.
       2. Put a sun up in the sky.
       3. Draw a girl and boy playing.
       4. The girl has a red flower.
       5. The boy has an orange ball.
If there are any tricky words in the directions, make sure you go over them with your student first in order to reduce frustration. Have fun!

Vowels Worksheet: Idea #323

It's time for some more great worksheets that can be found online. When practicing vowel sounds with your student, try using this worksheet. I like it because it not only helps your student with fine motor skills, but also with relating the vowel sounds with pictures that go together. For example for the short and long a sound you will see an ape that wants to eat an apple. For the short and long e sound you will see an eagle wanting to be by its eggs. I think your student will enjoy the pictures and be able to remember the vowel sounds by thinking of these simple pictures. Have fun checking it out!

Magic e Wand Worksheet: Idea #319

When you call a silent e, magic e instead, it brings some excitement to the concept. Kids like thinking that a letter is magic. On this website there is a magic e worksheet available. In one column there are pictures of cvc words, the other column is blank. There is a magic wand just above the blank  column with several empty squares. Your student is to add a magic e to the end of the of cvc words, making a new word. Then there is room for your student to draw a picture of the new word. It is amazing how one letter can change an entire word. This worksheet allows your student to do some reading practice and even draw and color. How fun!

Silent e Sound Sort: Idea #318

There are so many ways to make practicing silent e words fun. Go to this website to check out a Silent e Sound Sort. After printing the two pages off, have your student put a silent e at the end of each word where there is a blank provided. Then have your student cut the words out on the dotted lines. Once the words are cut out, your student is to use page 2 to sort the words. Each word is either a real word or a nonsense word, your student has to figure it out and then glue them in the correct column. Have fun reading and watching your student learn those tricky silent e words!

Silent e Word Activity: Idea #313

Don't you just love awesome worksheets that you can download for free? Go here to check out the Silent E Word Activity. All you do is cut out the word cards and the magic e's provided. Make sure to glue or tape a magic e on a popsicle stick for each student. Your student then uses to the word cards to place their magic e stick at the end, making a new word. The student reads the new word they made and then writes it down on their worksheet. 

Students love having their very own magic e stick. It also helps so much with reading those tricky silent e words. Have fun!

Maze Madness: Idea #311

Are you trying to find a fun way to practice silent e words? You should check out this worksheet called Maze Madness. It is a simple maze worksheet where your student must help a boy named Mike get to the playground. If he comes to a word with a silent e, he must turn right in the maze. If he runs into a word with a short vowel sound, he must turn left. You can check out this maze worksheet here. Have an a-MAZE-ing time!

CVC Worksheets: Idea #304

I just came across some great CVC worksheets on www.funfonix.com. The worksheets focus on sound recognition, building words, and matching words. You can find these worksheets here. I particularly like the Building Words worksheet. The students looks at a picture and says the word. Then they connect the letters that spell the word and write it on the line. What a fun way to practice CVC words!

CVC Word Mats: Idea #297

Want to help your student master more CVC words? Try out the following activity:

1. Go to the following website: http://kindergartencrayons.blogspot.com/2011/03/cvc-wordssound-them-out-but-dont-spit.html

2. Click where it says Click here for center activities.

3. Print the document.

4. Here are a few things you can do with the worksheets:
       -Copy one of the pages (enough for the number of students you have) and then have a race to see who can finish their worksheet the fastest.
       -Use one of the worksheets as a quick review each day.
       -Cut each box out and give each student a different picture. Have each student fill in the blanks under the one they received.
       -Cut each box out from all of the worksheets. Have your student put the pictures together that have the same middle sound.

Your student will love the beautiful pictures on these simple worksheets. Have fun watching your student gain reading confidence!

What's It Worth: Idea #287

It is always fun to put some Math into Reading lessons. Check out this activity called What's It Worth. This is what you do:

1. Go here and print off the worksheets. 

2. Choose one word family page you would like your student to do and give it to him.

3. Have your student cut out the letters in boxes on the page.

4. Have student look at each picture on the page and then glue the correct letters to make the word. For example, if your student saw a picture of a sail, they would glue the letters s-a-i-l. 

5. After your student has done this for each picture, have them count up their points (by adding up the numbers found in the bottom corner of each letter square).

Hope your student enjoys this fun activity!

Word Family Cut and Paste: Idea #286

To continue practicing word families with your student, check out this website. You will see a PDF document. Each page on the document has a different word family with 6-8 words listed. Next to each word is an empty box. At the bottom of each page are pictures that your student needs to cut out. Once the pictures are cut out, your student is to read the words and glue the picture next to the correct word. It is a simple, but effective way to get your student reading. Have fun!

Free Sight Word Worksheets: Idea #265

Are you looking for a good sight word worksheet? Try out this website. The worksheets are free and simple, but great for practice. Each worksheet has a spot to trace the sight word and then write it 5-6 times. Lines are provided for your student to write a sentence using the sight word. At the bottom of the page is a box for your student to draw a picture of what they wrote about in their sentence. Have fun checking it out!

Same or Different: Idea #254

Looking for a sight word activity that doesn't involve very much preparation? Well try playing Same or Different. Just go to this website and print off the worksheet. Use your sight word flashcards to show your student the two words listed in each row on the worksheet. Then ask your student if the words are the same or different. After your student gives a response, have him/her read the two words to you. 

On each row in the worksheet, you will see two slices of cheese. Your student is to color the cheese under the 'yes' column or the 'no' column. This means that yes, the two words are the same or no, the two words are different. Kids will love coloring in what they have found. Have fun introducing these similar words to your student!

Sight Word Scramble: Idea #238

Kids love scramble worksheets. Try to motivate your student to learn sight words with a Sight Word Scramble worksheet. You can either make your own or check out www.HaveFunTeaching.com to find some similar to the one found below. Your students will love making a scrambled word into a sight word that they recognize and can read. 

Found on the following website: www.HaveFunTeaching.com

I would suggest doing a word scramble with simple three letter sight words and then moving up to longer words. Word scrambles can be harder than you think!

Color the Boxes: Idea #188

Some kids really like to do worksheets. If your student enjoys them, you should check out Sight Words: Color the Boxes. It's a worksheet that includes both reading and coloring. You can find the worksheet here: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Sight-Words-Color-the-Boxes. 

FIRST your student reads the sight word found at the beginning of the row.

THEN your student colors in the boxes to match the sight word.

I hope your student has fun coloring!

Sight Word Poetry: Idea #187

Poetry is fun to read and listen to. Try teaching your student sight word poetry to master those tough words. You can either make the sight word poems up yourself, or buy a sight word poetry book. You can buy one for ten dollars at Barnes & Noble. Once you have chosen the poem you want to teach your student, do the following:

1. Copy it off and three hole punch it. 

2. Read the poem to your student, then read it together, and then have your student read it to you. 

3. When your student is able to read every word of the poem, put the poem in a three prong folder for your student. 

4. The next day introduce a new sight word poem found in your book and repeat the process. You can have your student highlight words or draw pictures to make it more engaging.

By putting the poems in a folder, your student can refer back to previous poems learned. This can also help your student gain more confidence in their reading abilities. Your student will love learning sight word poetry!

Picture Clues: Idea #152

When your student is working on identifying sight words, you might try a Sight Word Picture Clues worksheet. You can make your own or find some on the following website: http://www.sightwordsgame.com/sight-word-worksheets/sight-word-games-picture-clues/. This is what it looks like:

The worksheet can help your student practice how to write certain sight words and how to spell short words like fin and top. As you can see below, picture clues give a picture and then subtract a letter from it to make a sight word. 

I hope your student enjoys this very simple and fun worksheet. Maybe now your student can get those sight words down!

Crossword Puzzles: Idea #149

 http://www.supercrosswordcreator.com/Free-Trial.html

Everyone loves a good crossword puzzle. Try making a sight word crossword puzzle for your student. Not only can it help with spelling, but it can also help your student identify the words more quickly. You can make your own by hand or try one of the two options below:

1. Sight Word Crossword Puzzle Printables (already made for you), just check it out on this website: http://printables.atozteacherstuff.com/1111/sight-words-crossword-puzzle/

2. You could also use a Crossword Puzzle Creator online. The free trial run allows you to use five words, if you buy the program you can use up to 100. Check it out here: http://www.supercrosswordcreator.com/Free-Trial.html

Make sure that your crossword puzzle is simple and that you choose words that your student is familiar with, but needs to practice. They will read those sight words in no time!

Color-by-Vowel: Idea #146

Learning vowel sounds is an important part in learning how to read. Have fun learning vowel sounds with your student by doing these fun Color-by-Vowel worksheets. The worksheets are done the same way you would do a Color-by-Number worksheet. 

I found this Color-By-Vowel worksheet on the following website: http://www.brighthubeducation.com/preschool-crafts-activities/61210-short-u-sound-activities/

I found this worksheet on the following website: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Winter-Color-by-Vowels-Short-4-Total-Short-Vowel-Reading-Activity

Have fun!

Hidden Sight Words: Idea #140

Get your student to read by giving them a Hidden Sight Word Worksheet. You can find some on this website. It is really simple. Just have your student color the sight word given in yellow. The rest of the spaces can be any color. When they finish coloring they will be able to see the sight word. Have them read it to you. You can buy more Hidden Sight Word Worksheets here. Have fun coloring!

Listen, Follow, and Read: Idea #138

In order to practice sight words with your student, try a simple listen, follow directions, and read activity. Here is what you do:

1. Draw about eight or ten hearts on a piece of paper or find one online. I printed this worksheet from the following website: http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.com

2. Write a sight your student needs to practice on each heart. 

3. Give student the worksheet and a box of crayons. Then proceed to tell them what to color each heart. For example, "Color the word said orange."

4. Continue telling them to color the hearts certain colors. "Color the word have yellow", etc. Student must listen to you, follow your directions and read the sight words. It is a fabulous way to practice and it makes a colorful picture in the end. 

You can write the sight words in any shape: squares, triangles, shamrocks, Santas, turkeys, pumpkins, etc. I used hearts due to yesterday being Valentine's day. Have fun!