The super book of phonics poetry

The letter explains to parents and caregivers what sound- letter relationship has been taught and offers some general suggestions for using the poem at home.. Teaching Strategies Introdu

88 Playful Poems With Easy Lessons That Teach Consonants, Vowels, Blends, Digraphs, and Much More!

Scholastic Inc grants teachers permission to photocopy the contents of this book for classroom use only No other part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher For information

regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., 555 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.

Cover design by Norma Ortiz Cover artwork by Anne Kennedy Interior artwork by Patrick Girouard, except pages 5 and 7 by James Graham Hale,

and page 6 by Abby Carter Interior design by Grafica, Inc.

ISBN: 0-439-16032-4 Copyright © 2000 by Linda B Ross All rights reserved.

Printed in the U.S.A.

Introduction 5

How to Use This Book 5

Teaching Strategies 5

Poetry Activities 7

Poems for Each Sound-Letter Relationship 9

Poems for Consonants Bears on Bicycles /b/b 9

Bear Dreams /b/b 10

Favorite Colors /k/c 11

I Like Dogs! /d/d 12

Another Day /d/d 13

A Fawn in the Forest /f/f 14

Four Seasons /f/f 15

Gabby and Gunther /g/g 16

A Goldfish for Gilda /g/g 17

Hurray for Holidays /h/h 18

Harry’s Hamster Hal /h/h 19

A Jog in the Jungle /j/j 20

Join In /j/j 21

Sick Day /k/k and /k/ck 22

Lou and Lee /l/l 23

Thunder and Lightning /l/l 24

New Pups /p/p 31

Quack, Quack /kw/qu 32

Rex and Rory /r/r 33

Sandals /s/s 34

Summer /s/s 35

Time for Bed /t/t 36

Words That Start With T /t/t 37

Velvet /v/v 38

Winter Weather /w/w 39

MaxCan Relax /ks/x 40

My Friend Yolanda /y/y 41

Zelda and Zoe /z/z 42

Cecil and George soft c and soft g 43

Poems for Vowels Short vowels Sam’s Pet short a 44

Funny Elephants short e 45

Invisible short i 46

If I Could Have a Party short i 47

A Jog in the Fog short o 48

Opposites short o 49

Under the Cat’s Umbrella short u 50

Contents

June Can Sing long u: u-e 55

Duke the Mule long u: u-e 56

More long vowel combinations TodayIs My Birthday long a: ay, ai 57

Waiting for the Mail long a: ay, ai 58

Sweet Dreams long e: e, ee, ea, y 59

Picnic Meal long e: e, ee, ea, y 60

The Lion and the Butterflylong i: i, y, igh 61 Snowfall long o: o, oa, oe, ow 62

R-controlled vowels Holiday Sparks /är/ar 63

A Marvelous Starry Sky /är/ar 64

I Wonder /ûr/ir, ur, er 65

A Horse Named Cora /ôr/or, ore 66

Little Bear /âr/are, ear, ere, air 67

A DeerFamily / îr/ear, eer, ere 68

Variant vowels and diphthongs Moonlight /ü/oo 69

A Good Book /˙u/oo 70

My Blue Balloon /ü/ue, ew 71

Drawing Pictures /ô/a, aw, au 72

Merry-Go-Round /ou/ou, ow 73

Lost and Found /ou/ou, ow 74

Joyce’s Garden /oi/oi, oy 75

My Choice /oi/oi, oy 76

Poems for Consonant Blends and Digraphs Consonant blends Spelling Test st, sk, sp 77

Spring ng, nt 78

An Owl’s Song ng, nt 79

Summer Camp nd, mp 80

Best Friend nd, mp 81

A Special Trip tr 82

The Prize pr 83

Creatures Crawl and Creep pl, cr 84

City Places pl, cr 85

Slippery Hill sl, sm, sn 86

Snow Dream sl, sm, sn 87

Fly Away fl, fr 88

Consonant digraphs WishUpon a Star sh 89

My Shaggy Dog sh 90

At the Rink th, nk 91

Letter to an Author th, nk 92

At the Beach ch 93

Chess With Gramp ch 94

The Whistling Wind wh 95

White Snow wh 96

Contents

o matter what method you use to teach your students to read—The Super Book of Phonics Poems can serve as a valuable

resource that will enhance and energize the

phon-ics instruction in your reading program.

Using poems and rhymes is an effective and natural

way for children to build their phonemic awareness

and phonics skills The rhyme, rhythm, and

repeti-tion in poems provide natural and motivating models

for teaching the sounds of our language By using

poems that appeal to children and make them smile,

you can remove the label of “drill” from phonics and

make it lively and interesting for your students.

How to Use This Book

Poems for Each Sound-Letter Relationship

In this section of the book, you will find one or two

poems for each of the important sound-letter

rela-tionships that are taught in kindergarten through

third grade If you take a look at the Contents, you

will see that the phonics skills have been organized

While the poems target specific sound-letter tionships, they also deal with concepts and ideas that interest young children, such as the seasons, colors, animals, friends, and having fun Some of the poems are silly, such as the one about two giraffes having a race; others deal with more serious topics, such as moving away or missing a friend However, all of the poems have strong rhyme and rhythm patterns and were written to speak directly

rela-to children—rela-to involve and delight them.

Teaching Strategies

In the section that begins below, you will find ing strategies for presenting and using the phonics poems in your classroom Following the strategies are

teach-a vteach-ariety of interesting teach-activities to help children practice and reinforce the sound-letter relationships that have been introduced through the poems You will also find a model of a school-to-home letter that can be sent home with any poem (See page 8.) The letter explains to parents and caregivers what sound- letter relationship has been taught and offers some general suggestions for using the poem at home.

Teaching Strategies

Introducing the Poem Before you read the poem, you may want to prepare children by giving them a brief description of what the poem is about and asking them to listen for the targeted sound For example, for the poem “Rex and Rory,” you might tell children that the poem is about two raccoons

to write the poem on chart paper or on sentence

strips to place in a pocket chart You can highlight

the targeted phonics element by writing the letter(s)

in a second color.

Read the poem twice to enable children to listen to

the sounds of the words as well as to understand

the content of the poem Then briefly discuss the

poem and allow children to give their personal

responses For example, after reading “Rex and

Rory,” you might ask: Did you like the poem? Why?

Do you go to the library to listen to stories? What

kinds of stories do you like to hear? and so on

Rereading the Poem During subsequent readings

of the poem, ask children to perform a specific

action each time they hear the targeted sound:

• Raise a hand each time they hear words with

the targeted sound.

• Stand up, sit down, jump, or hop each time

they hear words with the targeted sound.

• Use their fingers to form the letter that shows

the sound-symbol relationship This will work

with letters such as C, I, L, T, and O

• Hold up a card with the letter or letters that

show the sound-symbol relationship.

• Write the letter(s) that show the sound-symbol

relationship on a sheet of paper each time they

hear the sound After you read the poem, ask

children to count the number of times they

wrote the letter(s) Then tell them how many

times the sound actually occurs in the poem

Using the Words in the Poem Display the poem on chart paper or in a pocket chart Give children a variety of opportunities to say the words with the

targeted sound Keep in mind that it is important for children to both listen to the sound and articulate the sound in order to learn it The following activities can provide listening and speaking opportunities:

• S Sa ay y E Ea ac ch h W Wo or rd d Have children say each word

with the targeted sound after you model it Emphasize the sound in the word and ask children to emphasize it as well.

• C Cr re ea ate a a W Wo or rd d W Wa allll Create a word wall for

groups of words with the targeted sound-letter relationship(s) Have children work in pairs or small groups to read the words as part of their learning-center time Then invite chil- dren to think of additional words for each targeted sound-letter relationship Add these words to the word wall Or have children draw

or cut out pictures of objects and help them label the pictures.

• S Se eg gmen nt t S So ou un nd ds s If the targeted sound is an

initial or final sound, have children segment the sound For example, if the targeted sound

is /j/j, have children use a word from the

poem, such as jog or jungle, and segment the

initial sound: 1) Ask the child to say the word

jog 2) Ask the child to say the word jog again,

this time leaving off the initial /j/j If you are

working with a final sound, such as /g/g:

1) Ask the child to say the word pig 2) Ask

the child to say the word pig again, leaving off

the final /g/g If the targeted sound is a

medi-al sound, such as short a, have children

seg-ment initial and final sounds to focus on the sound of short a: 1) Ask the child to say the

word can 2) Ask the child to say the word can

again, this time leaving off the initial /c/c 3)

Ask the child to say the word can once more,

this time leaving off the final /n/n.

• P Pa an nt to om miim me e W Wo or rds Invite a child to choose one

of the words from the poem with the targeted

sound-letter relationship and pantomime it.

The rest of the children try to figure out the

word Give several children a turn.

Poetry Activities

Each of the following activities can be used with all

or most of the poems in the book:

• W Wo or rd d S Su ub bs st tiit tutiio on n Ask children to substitute

different words for words with the targeted

sound-letter relationship in the poem This

activity works particularly well with poems

that name objects or actions, or contain

prop-er names with the targeted sound-lettprop-er

rela-tionship.

• W Wr riit te e a a V Ve er rs se e Since most of the poems are

written with very definite rhyme and rhythm

children who want a challenge, ask for two words in the title with the targeted sound- letter relationship.

• W Wr riit te e a a P Po oe em m Ask children to write their own

poems that use the targeted sound-letter tionship Have children work in pairs, if they prefer Bind all the children’s poems into your own classroom anthology Call it “P is for Poetry.”

rela-• P Po oe et tr ry y P Pu up pp pe et t Create a “poetry puppet” for

your classroom Some children may want to use the poetry puppet to “help” them as they recite or compose poems You may also want

to create a special poetry corner.

• M Ma ake a a M Mo ob biille e Ask children to use words

with the targeted sound-letter relationship from the poem to create a mobile They may want to draw or cut out pictures for the words they choose, label them, and then hang them with yarn from their mobiles.

• W Wr riit te e a a R Riid dd dlle e Have children write a riddle

about one of the words in the poem with the

targeted sound-letter relationship Help them

set up the pattern of the riddle in the

follow-ing way: The first sentence of the riddle

should name the targeted sound, for example:

“I have the long o sound.” The next two

sen-tences should give clues: “I am something you

wear.” “I keep you warm.” The riddle should

end with the question, “What am I?” (coat)

Children can exchange riddles with a partner.

• R Re ec co or rd d a a P Po oe em m Tape-record the poem so that

children may listen to it frequently in your

lis-tening or poetry center Encourage children to

learn the poem and to recite it with a partner

or in a small group You may then want to

tape-record the children’s readings of the

poem.

• C Ch ho orall R Re ea ad diin ng g Invite children to do choral

readings of the poem You can divide the class

into groups so that each group reads specific

lines or stanzas, depending on the pattern of

the poem.

• W Wr riit te e a a S Se en nt te ence e Ask children to write one or

two sentences that tell about the poem Each

sentence should include one word with the

targeted sound-letter relationship.

• Q Qu ue es st tiio on ns s a an nd d A An ns sw we er rs s Have each child

write a question about the poem The

ques-tion should include at least one word with the

targeted sound-letter relationship, for

exam-ple, “What kind of dog did L Lou get?” Children

then exchange papers and answer each

other’s questions with complete sentences.

Answers should also include at least one word

with the targeted sound-letter relationship, for

example, “L Lou got a L Labrador pup.”

• S Siim mp plle e C Cr ross sw wo or rd d P Pu uz zz zlle es s Ask children to

choose two or three words with the targeted sound- letter relationship from the poem Have them connect the words to create simple crossword puzzles.

School-to-Home Letter

A letter such as the one below can be sent home along with any poem in the book Be sure to include the letter or letters that stand for the sound-symbol relationship the poem supports The letter and poem will give parents and caregivers the opportu- nity to participate in their children’s phonics instruction, and will give children another chance

to practice their phonics skills.

Dear _ , Attached to this lette r you will find a cop

y of a poem the children have be en listening to in cla

ss This poem helps children practice the sound that is made

f the following activi ties with your child:

1) Read the poem se veral times to or with

your child Then ask your child to na me some of the word s that have the sound made by the l etter(s)

2) Help your child think of other familia r words that have th

e sound made by the letter(s) 3) Ask your child

to draw a picture that illustrates one o f the words with the

sound made by the letter(s) H elp your child write

the word on the

picture.

Thank you very muc h for your participation.

Sincerely,

School-to-Ho me Letter

h

r i d

d e e

consonant /b/b

Bears on Bicycles

Balloons, banjos, bears on bicycles,

Baseball in the park.

Baskets, baths, bumblebees, birthdays,

Bedtime after dark.

Bananas, boats, buttons, buses,

Birds that sing to me.

How many things can you think of

That begin with the letter b?

consonant /b/b

Bear Dreams

When bears go to sleep for winter,

They have a long, long time to dream

Do you think they dream about bears on bicycles

Or bears that eat ice cream?

Do you think they dream about bears in tall buildings Watching people walk far below?

Or do they dream about an all-bear baseball team

With one more inning to go?

consonant /k/c

What’s your favorite color?

I asked my friend Colleen.

She said her favorite color

Is a deep forest green

Can you tell me your favorite color?

I asked my friend Fred

Fred said his favorite color

Is fire-engine red

I asked my friend Carol

Can you tell me your favorite color?

I asked my friend Sue

She said her favorite color

Is a very dark blue

I saw my friend Carl.

Carl is such a great fellow.

What’s your favorite color, Carl?

He said it was bright yellow

Now if you were to ask

And Dalmatians too.

I like Great Danes

With their deep, loud bark,

If I had a dog,

We would walk in the park.

Mom and Dad, don’t forget

My birthday’s coming up,

So I hope you decide

I deserve to have a pup!

consonant /d/d

Another Day

Tomorrow is another day

To do the things that I must do.

I don’t have any time today,

Tomorrow is another day.

Then I’ll clean my room, I say,

Then I’ll weed the garden too.

Tomorrow is another day

To do the things that I must do.

Tomorrow has become today:

My dad just handed me a broom.

Dad says I can go out and play

As soon as I clean up my room!

To see where they would go.

I walked for a while, and what did I see?

A sweet little fawn was staring at me.

“Hello, little fawn,” I started to say.

But that fair little fawn ran quickly away.

consonant /f/f

Four Seasons

Some folks like the winter

When the weather is cold

Some folks like the fall

When the colors are bold

Some folks like the spring

When fields of flowers grow.

Some folks like the summer

When they can swim and row

But if you want to know

My favorite season of all,

I’d have to say without delay

My favorite season is fall!

consonant /g/g

Gabby and Gunther

Gabby the goat and her brother Gunther Live with Farmer Gil.

Each afternoon Gabby and Gunther Play games at the top of the hill.

One day they played a guessing game Gunther said, “Can you guess who I am?

Baa, baa, baa, baa.”

“I know,” Gabby said, “you’re a lamb!” Then it was Gabby’s turn to pretend.

She said, “Can you guess who I am?”

She curled herself up and said nothing at all

“I know,” Gunther said, “you’re a clam!”

consonant /g/g

A Goldfish for GildaToday is Gilda’s birthday.

Uncle Gus gave her a surprise.

When Gilda saw just what she got,

She couldn’t believe her eyes

Uncle Gus gave Gilda a pet

That was the answer to her wish

It wasn’t a turtle or a guinea pig,

It was simply a gorgeous goldfish!

consonant /h/h

Hurray for Holidays

Hurray, hurray, it’s a holiday!

I can sleep late and it’s okay

I can play at home or ride my bike,

My friends and I can take a hike.

We can have fun playing hide-and-seek There’s no hurry—it’s a holiday week!

consonant /h/h

Harry’s Hamster Hal

Harry bought himself a hamster,

He named his hamster Hal.

But Hal was more than just a hamster,

He was almost like a pal.

As soon as Harry got home from school, He’d tell Hal about his day.

Hal would sit and carefully listen

To each word that Harry would say.

consonant /j/j

A Jog in the JungleOne day as I jogged in the jungle,

I saw a jaguar in a tree.

“Hello, Jogger,” said the jaguar,

“Will you be friends with me?”

“Why certainly, Mr Jaguar,” I said,

“Come join me as I run.

We can jump and play and jog all day Beneath the jungle sun!”

consonant /j/j

Join In

All the kids who live on our block

Like to do different things

John and Julie like to draw,

Jessica dances and sings.

Josh and Jane do jigsaw puzzles,

Justin likes to hike,

Jackie tells such funny jokes,

Jonathan likes to bike.

Come and join our happy block,

And do what you like to do

Whether you jog or like to skate,

We would welcome you!

consonant /k/k and /k/ck

Sick Day

Kate got sick on Saturday

With fever and a cold

Now Kate has to stay in bed

And do as she is told

Outside, the kids are having fun,

They run and kick the ball.

Poor Kate is stuck inside all day.

That’s hardly fair at all!

Everyone is kind to Kate.

Her dad shows her a trick,

Mom gives her lots of chicken soup,

The cat gives her a lick!

Her brother Rick says, ”Don’t be sad,

There are lots of things to do,

And look, Kate, now it’s raining!

So your friends are inside too!”

consonant /l/l

Lou and Lee

Lou got a Labrador pup one day, She named her Labrador Lee.

The moment Dad came home with him,

Lou said, “That dog’s for me!”

Lee followed Lou wherever she went,

They were never far apart

Lee was a sweet and gentle dog With a large and loving heart.

As time went by, Lee grew and grew,

No longer a cute little pup, But Lou didn’t mind that Lee was large.

She said, “We’re both growing up!”

consonant /l/l

Thunder and LightningLate one night as I lay in bed,

I heard a loud noise overhead.

I ran to the window to see what was up

And was joined very quickly by Lucky, my pup.

We saw lightning flash through the sky,

A zigzag of light went blazing by.

“Don’t be frightened by lightning,” I said

As Lucky and I leaped back in bed!

Lucky sat on my lap, and I held him tight Until we finally saw the last flashes of light That’s when scared little Lucky heard me say,

“The storm is over and we’re okay!”

consonant /m/m

Manny Is Moving

Manny felt sad and a little bit mad

When the moving truck came that day.

He was leaving behind so many good friends, His family was moving away.

Manny was brave and tried not to cry

As he moved to his brand new home.

He missed good friends like Michael and Kim,

He was feeling so very alone

Then one day, as he walked to school,

He met Maria and Mark,

And after school, he met Matthew,

And they rode their bikes to the park

Now Manny is very happy once more,

He’s made so many new friends.

Maybe moving wasn’t so bad after all,

And this is how Manny’s story ends!

consonant /m/m

My Favorite Month

My favorite month of the year is March,

I bet you don’t know why

Well then, let me tell you,

I’m not the type who’s shy!

March is the month of my birthday,

And I know from my mom this is right.

I was born on Monday, the first of March,

In the middle of the night!

consonant /n/n

Names That Begin With N

How many names can you think of

That begin with the letter N?

I can think of nine names

And maybe even ten!

There’s Nat, Neal, Nicholas,

Norman and Noll,

Nan, Nell, and Natalie,

Nisha, and Nicole.

I came up with ten names,

So now I’ve done my part.

Can you name ten others?

Go ahead and start!

consonant /n/n

Favorite NumberWhat’s your favorite number?

My favorite number’s nine.

That’s because I’m nine years old,

So I think of nine as mine.

Next year my favorite number Will probably be ten.

It’ll be my favorite for a year

And then not ever again.

I guess you understand now,

My favorite will always be

The number that tells how old I am, It’s fun that way, you see!

consonant /p/p

Paint a Poem

Poems are pictures you paint with your words, You don’t need paints of yellow or green All you need is a paper and pencil

And the words to describe what you’ve seen

You can write about purple parachutes,

You can write about blossoms of pink,

You can describe what a pineapple tastes like,

You can say just what you think!

Poems are pictures you paint with your words,

It’s my favorite thing to do

All you need is a paper and pencil,

Won’t you try to paint a poem too?

consonant /p/p

Piggy Bank

Pop gave me a cute little piggy bank He’s painted a shade of pale pink When I put all my pennies in Piggy,

He gives me a smile and a wink!

consonant /p/p

New Pups

Our dog Pearl had six cute pups,

They’re as cute as pups can be.

My sister and I decided

That their names should begin with P.

So this is what we named them:

Pokey, Pepper, and Pat,

Peanut, Powder, and Patches.

Now what do you think of that?

consonant /kw/qu

Quack, Quack

I was sitting under a tree,

Quietly reading my book,

When I suddenly heard loud quacking sounds

And decided to take a look

I saw ducks lined up in the water,

They seemed to be having a race,

So I figured I’d quietly watch them

To see who would take first place

The ducks swam quickly across the lake

To reach the other side,

And much to my amazement,

The winner quacked and bowed with pride.

One of the ducks gave the winner

A gold medal for first prize

It was quite a sight to see,

I couldn’t believe my eyes!

consonant /r/r

Rex and Rory

Rex Raccoon and his brother Rory Ran to the library to hear a story.

Rex said to Rory, “I would like to hear

A story about a panda bear.”

Rory said to Rex, “Wouldn’t it be good

To hear about Little Red Riding Hood?”

Then Rex Raccoon and his brother Rory

Joined the circle to hear the story

Mrs Rabbit said, “Children, get rready to hear

A story about a funny reindeer.”

Rex and Rory replied, “Oh that’s okay!

We’re ready to hear any story today!”

consonant /s/s

Sandals

One summer I got sandals,

They were my very first pair

My other shoes laced in my feet,

But sandals left them bare.

When I wore my special sandals,

I felt so happy and free.

I showed them off to Sarah and Sam,

I wanted my friends to see.

How I loved that pair of sandals!

I wouldn’t put them awayTill autumn’s chill nipped at my toes

One cool September day.

consonant /s/s

Summer

Walking on the beach,

My toes sinking in the sand,

I look out at the sea,

I look back at the land

I look up at the sun

As it sets in the sky.

Isn’t summer wonderful?

Please time, don’t fly by!

consonant /t/t

Time for Bed

Tick, tock, It’s time for bed, But I’m not ready to go.

I count ten sheep,

And soon the sun is up!

consonant /t/t

Words That Start with TTadpoles, tulips, tambourines,

Tall tales, tigers, too,

Teachers, teamwork, tents, and tubas,

Tomatoes for me and for you

Tacos, turtles, telephones,

Toys for you and for me.

Can you think of any other words

That begin with the letter t?

consonant /v/v

Velvet

I named my kitten Velvet

Because she has soft fur

Whenever Velvet hears my voice,

She starts to purr and purr

One day I took sweet Velvet For a visit to the vet.

Dr Vega smiled and said,

“What a very wonderful pet!”

I think if a contest were held

To choose the very best cat, I’d have to vote for Velvet,

There’d be no doubt of that!

consonant /w/w

Winter Weather

Most people like warm weather,

Or so I have been told,

But me, I like the winter,

When the weather is brisk and cold.

Each year I wait for winter,

With its wind and snow and sleet.

I like to wear my warm wool clothes

And boots upon my feet

consonant /ks/x

Max Can Relax

Max the fox worked very hard,

He worked the whole day through

He never stopped to play or relax,

There was always too much to do!

On Mondays, Max would wax the floor,

On Tuesdays, Max would bake,

On Wednesdays, Max would fix his clothes,

On Thursdays, Max would rake.

One Friday, six of Max’s pals

Came by and said to him,

“Max, you must mix work with play,

So let’s go for a swim!”

Max and his pals went for a swim

Down by the shady creek

Max had fun and asked his friends,

“Can we do this every week?”