Blending and manipulating sounds to create new words in Phonemic Awareness for Primary 1

Class: Primary 1
Term: Third Term
Week: 6
Age: 6 years
Duration: 45 minutes
Subject: English Studies
Curriculum Theme: Pre-Reading Skills
Focal competence: Pronouncing letter sounds appropriately while reading and speaking
Key competencies/values: Communication; ICT and Digital Competencies; Collaboration
Skills:

• Identifying sounds
• Blending sounds
• Segmenting sounds in words

Previous Lesson: Writing sign labels and a safety message
Topic: Phonemic Awareness (Identifying Sounds)
Subject Matter: Blending, manipulating sounds to create new words

Specific Objectives

By the end of the lesson, pupils/students should be able to:

Cognitive Domain

• Identify the beginning sounds in familiar words.
• Identify the middle sounds in familiar words.
• Identify the ending sounds in familiar words.
• Blend given sounds to form new words.
• Manipulate sounds in words to create different words.

Affective Domain

• Listen attentively to the sounds modelled by the teacher.
• Participate actively in sound identification and blending activities.
• Collaborate with classmates during group sound games.

Psychomotor Domain

• Pronounce various letter sounds accurately.
• Demonstrate blending of sounds using letter cards.
• Show how to change sounds to make new words.

Social Domain

• Work cooperatively with peers during sound manipulation tasks.
• Share their identified sounds and new words with the class.

Reference Materials

The following resources were used in planning this lesson:

• 2025 Revised 9 Years Basic Education Curriculum
• Relevant State Unified Scheme of Work
• Macmillan Primary English for Primary 1
• The HeadTeacher Scheme of work

Instructional Materials

The teacher will teach this lesson with the aid of:

• Approved publisher-neutral text
• Letter cards (e.g., c, a, t, b, u, n, p)
• Word cards (e.g., cat, bat, mat, sun, run)
• Picture cards (e.g., pictures of a cat, bat, sun)
• Exercise books and pencils
• Real objects or charts showing familiar items

Rationale for the Lesson

This lesson is foundational for developing strong reading skills. By learning to identify, blend, and manipulate sounds, pupils build phonemic awareness, which is essential for decoding words and becoming fluent readers. It helps them understand how spoken words are made up of individual sounds, a key step towards literacy.

Prerequisite/Previous Knowledge

Pupils should be able to recognise some letters of the alphabet and know their basic sounds.

Lesson Content/Board Summary

Phonemic Awareness: Identifying, Blending, and Manipulating Sounds

Understanding Sounds in Words

Every word we say is made up of small sounds. Learning to hear these sounds helps us to read and write.

Identifying Beginning Sounds

The beginning sound is the first sound you hear in a word.

1. In “cat”, the beginning sound is /c/.
2. In “ball”, the beginning sound is /b/.
3. In “dog”, the beginning sound is /d/.

Identifying Middle Sounds

The middle sound is the sound you hear in the middle of a word.

1. In “cat”, the middle sound is /a/.
2. In “bed”, the middle sound is /e/.
3. In “sun”, the middle sound is /u/.

Identifying Ending Sounds

The ending sound is the last sound you hear in a word.

1. In “cat”, the ending sound is /t/.
2. In “dog”, the ending sound is /g/.
3. In “pen”, the ending sound is /n/.

Blending Sounds to Create New Words

Blending sounds means putting individual sounds together to make a whole word.

1. /c/ + /a/ + /t/ makes the word “cat”.
2. /b/ + /a/ + /t/ makes the word “bat”.
3. /s/ + /u/ + /n/ makes the word “sun”.

Manipulating Sounds to Create New Words

Manipulating sounds means changing one sound in a word to make a completely new word.

1. Change the /c/ in “cat” to /b/ to get “bat”.
2. Change the /a/ in “cat” to /u/ to get “cut”.
3. Change the /t/ in “bat” to /g/ to get “bag”.

Teaching Methods/Instructional Techniques

Discussion, Demonstration, Guided Practice, Question and Answer, Explanation, Observation, Individual Practice, Pair Work, Group Work.

Instructional Procedures

Step 1: Introduction

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Activating prior knowledge

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher greets the pupils and asks them to make some letter sounds they already know, e.g., /a/, /m/, /s/. The teacher then explains that today they will learn to hear sounds in words and put them together to make new words.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond to greetings and make various letter sounds. They listen to the teacher’s explanation.

Learning Point: Recalling letter sounds

Step 2: Identifying Beginning Sounds

Time: 7 minutes

Teaching Skill: Modelling/Demonstration

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher shows a picture card of a “cat” and says the word slowly, emphasizing the beginning sound /c/. The teacher asks pupils what sound they hear first. The teacher repeats with other words like “ball” and “dog”, guiding pupils to identify the beginning sounds.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen, repeat the words, and identify the beginning sounds as guided by the teacher.

Learning Point: Beginning sound identification

Step 3: Identifying Middle Sounds

Time: 7 minutes

Teaching Skill: Guided practice

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher shows a picture card of a “bed” and says the word slowly, emphasizing the middle sound /e/. The teacher asks pupils what sound they hear in the middle. The teacher repeats with words like “sun” and “pin”, helping pupils to isolate the middle sounds.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen, repeat the words, and identify the middle sounds with teacher’s help.

Learning Point: Middle sound identification

Step 4: Identifying Ending Sounds

Time: 7 minutes

Teaching Skill: Reinforcement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher shows a picture card of a “cup” and says the word slowly, emphasizing the ending sound /p/. The teacher asks pupils what sound they hear at the end. The teacher repeats with words like “mat” and “pig”, guiding pupils to identify the ending sounds.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen, repeat the words, and identify the ending sounds.

Learning Point: Ending sound identification

Step 5: Blending Sounds to Create Words

Time: 6 minutes

Teaching Skill: Direct instruction

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher displays letter cards /c/, /a/, /t/ separately and then pushes them together while saying their sounds and then the whole word “cat”. The teacher models blending several sounds, then asks pupils to blend sounds for words like “bat” and “sun” using their own letter cards or by saying the sounds.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils observe the teacher, then practice blending sounds to form words, either orally or with cards.

Learning Point: Blending sounds into words

Step 6: Manipulating Sounds to Create New Words

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Problem-solving

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher writes “cat” on the board or uses word cards. The teacher asks pupils, “If I change the /c/ in ‘cat’ to /b/, what new word do I get?” (bat). The teacher repeats with other examples like changing /a/ in “bat” to /e/ to get “bet”, or /t/ in “sun” to /n/ to get “run”.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils think and respond with the new words formed by manipulating sounds.

Learning Point: Manipulating sounds for new words

Step 7: Evaluation/Review

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Questioning/Assessment

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher evaluates the learning by asking the following questions:

1. What is the beginning sound in “fan”?
2. What is the middle sound in “bed”?
3. What is the ending sound in “cup”?
4. Blend these sounds: /m/ + /a/ + /p/. What word do you get?
5. If you change the /p/ in “pan” to /t/, what new word do you get?

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils answer orally and in writing.

Learning Point: Sound identification and manipulation

Step 8: Note-Taking

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Guided Writing

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher guides pupils to copy the essential Board Summary notes on identifying, blending, and manipulating sounds into their notebooks.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils copy the notes carefully into their notebooks.

Learning Point: Recording lesson notes

Step 9: Conclusion

Time: 2 minutes

Teaching Skill: Consolidation

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher reminds pupils that hearing and playing with sounds in words helps them become good readers and writers. The teacher praises their participation and encourages them to keep practising.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen and acknowledge the importance of sound awareness.

Learning Point: Importance of phonemic awareness

Continuous Assessment/Further Study

Type: Homework

Instruction: In your exercise book, complete the following:

1. Write two words that start with the /s/ sound.
2. Write two words that have the /i/ sound in the middle.
3. Write two words that end with the /n/ sound.
4. Blend these sounds to make a word: /r/ + /u/ + /g/.
5. Change the /m/ in “man” to /f/. What is the new word?

Lesson Keywords

• Sound – A noise we hear; the smallest unit of spoken language.
• Beginning sound – The first sound in a word.
• Middle sound – The sound in the middle of a word.
• Ending sound – The last sound in a word.
• Blend – To put sounds together to make a word.
• Manipulate – To change or move sounds in a word.
• Word – A single unit of language that has meaning.

Differentiation

For weaker learners, provide more one-on-one guidance, focusing on identifying just beginning sounds with very clear, distinct examples. Use larger letter and picture cards. For faster learners, challenge them to manipulate sounds in longer CVC words or to create a list of words by changing only the beginning sound (e.g., cat, bat, mat, sat).

Suggested Lesson Videos

For further understanding, pupils can watch videos on phonemic awareness and blending sounds:

• YouTube search: Primary 1 phonemic awareness blending sounds

Teacher Guide for Using This Lesson Plan

Before the lesson, ensure you have a variety of clear letter, word, and picture cards ready. Practice pronouncing the sounds distinctly and slowly to model them effectively for the pupils. During the lesson, encourage active participation by having pupils repeat sounds and words aloud. Pay close attention to pupils who struggle to isolate sounds and provide extra support. When pupils are copying notes, ensure they focus on the key examples and definitions provided in the Board Summary. The evaluation questions should be used to check if pupils can apply the concepts of identifying, blending, and manipulating sounds. Encourage them to use their fingers to “tap out” sounds if it helps them segment words.