Being able to recognize and make up rhyming
words is essential to child literacy and child language development.
Slim and Miss Prim, selected by the Western Writers of America
as a 1999 Spur Award winner (find out more about the Spur
Awards), is a witty example of a child poem, very useful in helping
your child with rhyming words.
Building Familiarity and Text Structure:
Read the story through slowly, taking time to explain unfamiliar words and phrases. Study the pictures carefully and point out details to him, especially facial expressions on the people and animals in the story. Point out the rhythm of the story, and call attention to some of the rhyming words and phrases.
Discussing:
Talk about the story as you read it. Ask, "Why do you think Slim said that Marigold's talking wasn't bad? Why do you think he sang love songs as he rode? Do you think Slim's singing voice was very good? Why (or why not)?"
Rhyming:
After reading the story together a few times, she will be able to fill in a rhyming word when you leave it out, as in "With prairie dogs barking and hawks high above, Slim played his guitar and sang songs of ____(love)." Say, "Which of these words on this page do not rhyme with the others -- day, stay, May, or free?" Think of other words that rhyme with Slim and Prim - such as Jim, trim, and swim. Say, "Let's have a snack that rhymes with please. Can you tell me what it is? (cheese)."
Following
Up:
Make up rhyming puzzles for your meal. "For dinner we will have the
rhymes of leaf, slice, sees, and parrots.
What are we having? (Beef, rice, peas, and carrots)."
Your child will begin to incorporate the elements of the story into
his play, and encourage him to do so.
Take
me back to the Child
Literature Activity Series.
Take
me back to the PreKorner™ focus section for more resources related
to Early
Childhood Literacy and Reading Readiness.
Read these
brief research overviews on proven instructional components in an effective
early literacy program.
Research Précis
Edition
01-1 deals with basic information related to phonemes and phonemic
awareness. Edition
01-2 describes the general components of the Pre-K Guidelines,
still in a state of change in 2005.
The importance of children's work with sounds and other
oral aspects of language in reading continues well past the preschool
years. Take a look ahead to our K-12 LearningLeads™ article Improving
Reading Comprehension: Making the Oral Reading Connection in the Early
Grades for a preview of some of the instructional strategies and
expectations that should await your children in the K-2 years.
If
this is your first time to visit the PreKorner™,
or if it has been awhile, be sure to take a look at the PreKorner™
homepage and the Early
Childhood Literacy overview page while you are here. If you teach
or are interested in K-12 teaching and learning,
go to LearningLeads™
to browse similar resources.
