Recognising and Writing Letter Q for Pre-School Level 2

Class: Pre-School Level 2
Term: Second Term
Week: 8
Age: 3 years
Duration: 30 minutes
Subject: Literacy
Curriculum Theme: Not separately stated in the scheme.
Previous Lesson: Recognising and writing previous letters of the alphabet.
Topic: LETTER Q: SOUND RECOGNITION, PICTURE READING AND WRITING
Subject Matter: Listening and Speaking: Talking about news and happenings at home and in the community. Reading: Picture reading, recognising familiar objects and relating the sound of Qq to Queen, Quilt, Quarter. Writing: Tracing, colouring and writing Qq. Songs, Rhymes and Poems: Singing traditional rhymes, songs and poems and acting out characters.

Specific Objectives

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

Cognitive Domain

• Identify uppercase ‘Q’ and lowercase ‘q’.
• Recognise objects starting with the ‘Qq’ sound, such as Queen, Quilt, and Quarter.
• Say the /kw/ sound of the letter ‘Qq’.

Affective Domain

• Participate actively in sharing news and singing the ‘Qq’ rhyme.
• Show interest in learning new letters and sounds.

Psychomotor Domain

• Trace the letter ‘Q’ and ‘q’ with their fingers and crayons.
• Colour pictures of objects that start with the letter ‘Qq’.

Social Domain

• Share simple news about happenings at home or in their community.
• Take turns when speaking during classroom discussions.

Reference Materials

• NAPPS National Unified Teaching Scheme for Pre-School Level 2
• Early Childhood Care and Education resources
• Suitable early-years literacy workbooks

Instructional Materials

• Letter Qq flashcards (uppercase and lowercase)
• Picture cards of a Queen, Quilt, Quarter
• Tracing sheets for Qq
• Crayons, pencils, paper
• Chalk and chalkboard
• Storybook or picture book with Qq words (if available)
• Jigsaw puzzles related to letters (optional)

Rationale for the Lesson

This lesson is important for 3-year-olds as it introduces them to a new letter, ‘Qq’, and its unique sound. Learning letter sounds and associating them with pictures builds foundational literacy skills, helping children understand that letters represent sounds and words, which is crucial for future reading and writing development.

Prerequisite/Previous Knowledge

Pupils can already recognise some other letters of the alphabet, make simple sounds, listen to stories, and participate in group activities. They are familiar with sharing simple news about their daily lives.

Lesson Content/Board Summary

LETTER Q: SOUND RECOGNITION, PICTURE READING AND WRITING

The Letter Qq

Uppercase: Q

Lowercase: q

The Sound of Qq

The letter ‘Qq’ makes the /kw/ sound, like in “quack” or “quick”.

Words that start with Qq

• Queen (picture of a queen)
• Quilt (picture of a quilt)
• Quarter (picture of a quarter coin or a quarter of an apple)

Writing Letter Qq

• Uppercase Q: Start at the top, make a big circle, then a small slanted line from the bottom right of the circle.
• Lowercase q: Start with a small circle, then a straight line down with a small hook at the bottom right.

Sound Rhyme: The Quick Queen

Tune: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”

Lyrics:

Quick, quick, goes the little Queen,
Making quilts, a lovely scene.
‘Q’, ‘Q’, /kw/, /kw/, is her sound,
Many ‘Q’ words all around.
Quick, quick, goes the little Queen,
Making quilts, a lovely scene.

Actions: Pretend to be a queen, make sewing motions with hands, make the /kw/ sound clearly.

Watch and Practise

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1WfL0i5y2g

Key Words

• Queen – a female ruler.
• Quilt – a warm bed covering made of layers of fabric sewn together.
• Quarter – one of four equal parts of something.

Teaching Methods/Instructional Techniques

Play-based Learning, Demonstration, Guided Practice, Songs and Rhymes, Picture Talk, Question and Answer, Repetition, Practical Activity.

Instructional Procedures

Step 1: Introduction

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Engagement/News Sharing

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher greets the pupils warmly. The teacher asks pupils to share one exciting thing that happened at home or in their community yesterday. The teacher then introduces the letter of the day, ‘Qq’, by showing a flashcard.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils greet the teacher, share their news (e.g., “I ate rice,” “I went to the market”), and listen attentively to the teacher’s introduction of the letter ‘Qq’.

Learning Point: Pupils feel comfortable to share and are introduced to the new letter.

Step 2: Letter Qq Recognition and Sound

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Visual Recognition/Auditory Discrimination

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher displays the uppercase ‘Q’ and lowercase ‘q’ flashcards. The teacher clearly pronounces the /kw/ sound of ‘Qq’ several times, asking pupils to repeat after them. The teacher asks pupils to identify ‘Q’ and ‘q’ among other letter flashcards.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils look at the flashcards, repeat the /kw/ sound, and point to ‘Q’ and ‘q’ when asked.

Learning Point: Pupils recognise the visual form of ‘Q’ and ‘q’ and associate it with its sound.

Step 3: Picture Association and Word Reading

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Association/Vocabulary Building

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher shows picture cards of a Queen, a Quilt, and a Quarter. For each picture, the teacher says the word clearly, emphasizing the initial /kw/ sound, and asks pupils to repeat. The teacher asks simple questions like “What is this?” or “What sound do you hear at the beginning?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils look at the pictures, repeat the words (Queen, Quilt, Quarter), and try to identify the /kw/ sound.

Learning Point: Pupils relate the /kw/ sound to familiar objects and expand their vocabulary.

Step 4: Rhyme and Movement

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Rhyme/Motor Skills

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher introduces “The Quick Queen” rhyme. The teacher sings the rhyme with actions, encouraging pupils to join in. The teacher repeats the rhyme a few times.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils listen to the rhyme, sing along, and perform the actions (pretend to be a queen, make sewing motions, make /kw/ sound).

Learning Point: Pupils reinforce the ‘Qq’ sound and words through a fun, interactive rhyme.

Step 5: Tracing and Writing Qq

Time: 6 minutes

Teaching Skill: Fine Motor Skills/Pre-writing

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher demonstrates tracing uppercase ‘Q’ and lowercase ‘q’ on the chalkboard. The teacher guides pupils to trace the letters in the air with their fingers, then on tracing sheets with crayons or pencils, providing individual support as needed.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils trace ‘Q’ and ‘q’ in the air, then on their tracing sheets using crayons or pencils.

Learning Point: Pupils develop fine motor skills and learn the correct formation of ‘Q’ and ‘q’.

Step 6: Activity/Colouring

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Creativity/Reinforcement

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher distributes sheets with large outline letters of ‘Q’ and ‘q’ or pictures of Queen, Quilt, Quarter. The teacher instructs pupils to colour them.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils colour the letter ‘Q’ and ‘q’ or the pictures, reinforcing their recognition of the letter and associated words.

Learning Point: Pupils reinforce letter recognition and fine motor skills through a creative activity.

Step 7: Evaluation/Review

Time: 4–5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Questioning/Assessment

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher checks pupils’ understanding through short questions and practical tasks.

1. “What letter did we learn today?” (Show Qq flashcard)
2. “What sound does this letter make?”
3. “Point to the Queen/Quilt/Quarter picture.”
4. “Show me how you trace uppercase ‘Q’ in the air.”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond orally and demonstrate the required skill where appropriate.

Learning Point: Pupils demonstrate understanding of the lesson.

Step 8: Conclusion

Time: 1 minute

Teaching Skill: Closure

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher praises the pupils for their participation and effort. The teacher reminds them to keep practising the letter ‘Qq’ and its sound. The teacher leads a goodbye song.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond to praise, sing the goodbye song, and pack up their materials.

Learning Point: Pupils leave with a positive feeling and a reinforcement of the lesson.

Lesson Keywords

• Q – the letter ‘Q’.
• q – the letter ‘q’.
• Sound – the noise a letter makes, like /kw/.
• Queen – a royal lady.
• Quilt – a warm blanket.

Differentiation

• Support: For pupils who find it difficult, provide larger tracing templates for ‘Q’ and ‘q’. Offer hand-over-hand guidance during tracing. Repeat the sound and words more frequently. Use only two picture cards initially (e.g., Queen, Quilt) to reduce cognitive load.
• Extension: For pupils who grasp the concept quickly, encourage them to think of other words that might start with the ‘Qq’ sound (e.g., “quick,” “quiet,” “quack”). Ask them to find the letter ‘Q’ in a simple storybook or picture chart.