Sounds, Stories, Writing

Overview

This 60-minute phonics and literacy lesson for Junior Infants (age 4-5) integrates phonics sounds (oi and ue), reading, writing, grammar, and oral language based on Jack and the Beanstalk and personal news topics. It aligns with the Curriculum Framework for Junior Infants (Ireland), particularly the Language and Literacy domain, fostering emergent literacy with a strong play- and story-based approach.

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Learning Objectives

Phonics:

• Identify and produce the oi /oi/ sound and the ue /juː/ sound in words (Curriculum Strand: Oral Language Development 2.2 - Phonological Awareness).
• Recognise and blend oi and ue sounds in simple words (Curriculum Strand: Reading 3.1 - Alphabetic Knowledge).

Reading:

• Develop interest and comprehension through shared reading of Jack and the Beanstalk (Curriculum Strand: Reading 3.2 - Story and Picture Comprehension).

Writing:

• Compose simple sentences about their "Holidays" and "My Week" using full stops appropriately (Curriculum Strand: Writing 4.2 - Writing Process).
• Participate in emergent writing based on story content (Jack and the Beanstalk).

Grammar:

• Understand and use a full stop to mark the end of a sentence (Curriculum Strand: Writing 4.1 - Grammar and Punctuation).

Oral Language:

• Use vocabulary from Jack and the Beanstalk (e.g., beans, beanstalk, giant) in oral sentences (Curriculum Strand: Oral Language 2.1 - Vocabulary Development).

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Resources

• Big Book: Simplified Jack and the Beanstalk story with clear print and colourful pictures.
• Flashcards with oi and ue words (e.g., coin, soil, blue, glue).
• Writing materials (pencils, whiteboards, paper).
• Picture cards from the story (beans, beanstalk, giant, castle).
• Stickers or stamps for positive reinforcement.

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Lesson Structure

1. Warm-up and Oral Language (10 minutes)

• Greetings and Circle Time: Begin with a fun welcome chant focusing on the sound oi and ue (e.g., “Oink like pigs… blue like the sky”).
• Picture Talk: Show flashcards from Jack and the Beanstalk story: beans, beanstalk, giant. Encourage pupils to say each word aloud. Model using the words in simple sentences: “The beans are big.”, “I can see the giant.”
• Objective: Activate vocabulary and oral confidence.

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2. Phonics Focus: oi and ue Sounds (15 minutes)

• Sound Introduction: Use playful gestures:
    - For oi: cup hands around mouth to say “oi! oi! oy!” sound.
    - For ue: pretend to “glue” paper and say “ue!” sound emphasising /juː/.
• Word Recognition: Show flashcards, pupils repeat words aloud with emphasis on the target sounds.
• Sound Hunt: Pupils find objects or pictures from classroom or flashcards with oi and ue sounds (e.g., coin, soil, glue, blue).
• Blending Game: Segment and blend phonemes for simple words with oi or ue (e.g., c-oi-n, gl-ue).
• Objective: Internalise oi and ue sounds in spoken and listening vocabulary.

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3. Shared Reading of Jack and the Beanstalk (10 minutes)

• Big Book Experience: Read through the story once, using engaging voices and pointing to pictures. Ask simple predictive questions: “What do you think will happen next?” “Where is the beanstalk?”
• Sound Spotting: Pause to ask pupils to spot words with oi and ue sounds. E.g., “Can you find the word ‘beans’ or ‘blue’ on this page?”
• Objective: Develop listening comprehension and phonics awareness within context.

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4. Writing Activity: Holidays & My Week News and Full Stops (15 minutes)

• Mini-lesson on Full Stops: Show example sentence on board: “I went to the beach.” Highlight the full stop and explain its role as ‘a full stop at the end of a sentence tells us to pause and stop.’
• Writing Task:
    - Pupils dictate one or two sentences about their holidays or their week (e.g., “I went to the park.”).
    - Teacher writes sentences on whiteboard with spaces for full stops; underline the full stop and prompt pupils to copy correctly.
• Story Extension Writing: Write a simple sentence about Jack and the Beanstalk using words from story and practising full stops (e.g., “Jack climbs the beanstalk.”).
• Encourage use of phonics sounds oi and ue where possible.
• Objective: Begin structured sentence writing and punctuation.

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5. Oral Language Wrap-up and Assessment (10 minutes)

• Show and Tell: Each pupil shares one sentence orally about their news or Jack and the Beanstalk vocabulary. Peer and teacher listen for correct use of target sounds and vocabulary.
• Phonics Quick Quiz: Use flashcards to ask simple questions: “Does ‘coin’ have oi or ue sound?” Pupils respond orally.
• Teacher Notes: Observe individual pupil pronunciation, sentence structure, and punctuation recognition for ongoing assessment.
• Objective: Reinforce oral language, vocabulary, and sound recognition.

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Extension and Differentiation

• Support: Extra modelling and one-on-one phonics blending for pupils struggling with oi or ue sounds.
• Extension: Encourage pupils who are confident to invent their own short story sentences using Jack and the Beanstalk characters and sounds.

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Reflection

• Did pupils correctly identify and use the oi and ue sounds?
• Were they able to orally compose simple sentences using story vocabulary?
• How well did they recognise and use full stops in their writing?

Adjust future lessons to revisit phonics or focus more on sentence punctuation based on observed needs.

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This lesson firmly grounds children's literacy development in the vibrant context of storytelling and personal experience, closely following the IE Curriculum Framework emphasis on holistic language development for Junior Infants.