Mastering Phoneme Segmentation

Curriculum Area

English Language Arts (ELA) – Phonemic Awareness
Grade Level: Year 1 (First Grade)
Standard:

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.2.B – Orally produce single-syllable words by blending sounds (phonemes), including consonant blends.
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.2.D – Segment spoken single-syllable words into their complete sequence of individual sounds (phonemes).

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Lesson Duration: 60 minutes

Lesson Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Identify and segment words into individual phonemes.
2. Blend segmented phonemes to read and form complete words.
3. Improve auditory discrimination and fluency in phonemic awareness.

Key Vocabulary

• Phoneme – The smallest unit of sound in a word.
• Segmenting – Breaking a word into its individual phonemes.
• Blending – Combining phonemes to form a full word.
• Sound – The distinct auditory part of a word.

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Materials Needed

✔️ Letter tiles or magnetic letters
✔️ Whiteboards and markers
✔️ Small mirrors (to observe mouth movements)
✔️ Word cards (e.g., "cat," "dog," "ship," "frog")
✔️ Teacher-created segmenting/blending worksheets
✔️ Sound boxes (Elkonin boxes)

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Lesson Breakdown

1. Warm-Up (10 minutes) – Whole Group

Activity: “Sound Detective”

• Teacher says a simple word (e.g., "pig").
• Students repeat the word and clap out the phonemes: /p/ /i/ /g/.
• Brief discussion about how each clap represents a sound.
• Repeat with 3-4 additional words (e.g., "man," "top," "sun").

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2. Explicit Instruction (10 minutes) – Whole Group

Mini-Lesson:

• Teacher writes a word on the board (e.g., "run").
• Says the word and asks students to listen for the different sounds.
• Points to each letter as the class segments it together: /r/ /u/ /n/.
• Models blending sounds back together: "run."
• Uses a small mirror for students to observe their mouth movements for each sound.

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3. Small Group Rotations (30 minutes)

Students will rotate through three 10-minute stations focusing on phoneme segmentation and blending. Teacher provides differentiated support as needed.

Station 1: Sound Boxes (Elkonin Boxes) – Teacher-Led

• Students receive a three-box template.
• Teacher says a simple word (e.g., "bat").
• Students repeat the word and push a counter into a box for each phoneme.
• Teacher models blending the sounds back together.

Station 2: Build-a-Word (Hands-On Letters)

• Students use letter tiles/magnetic letters to segment and blend words.
• Example word: "fish."
  • Segment: /f/ /i/ /sh/
  • Blend: "fish"
• Students record their segmented words on mini whiteboards.

Station 3: Segment & Color (Worksheet-based)

• Each student receives a worksheet with pictures and dotted word outlines.
• They say the word aloud, segment the sounds, write the letters, and color the picture.

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4. Closing Activity (10 minutes) – Whole Group

Game: Blending Relay

• Teacher shows a word picture.
• Says the segmented sounds slowly (e.g., /d/ /o/ /g/).
• Students guess the word and say it as a full word: "dog!"
• Repeat with additional words, gradually increasing the challenge.

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Assessment & Differentiation

✔ Formative Assessment: Teacher notes students’ abilities during small group rotations.
✔ Exit Ticket: Each student writes one segmented and blended word on a sticky note.
✔ Differentiation:

• For struggling students: Use fewer phonemes or provide scaffolded support.
• For advanced students: Introduce four-phoneme words (e.g., “frog”).

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Worksheet for Station 3: Segment & Color

Picture	Word	Segment the Sounds	Write the Word
🐱	cat	/c/ /a/ /t/	_______
🚗	car	/c/ /ar/	_______
🐷	pig	/p/ /i/ /g/	_______

Students will segment the word, write out the phonemes, then color the pictures!

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Teacher Reflection & Next Steps

• Which students need more reinforcement?
• What words were easiest vs. most difficult?
• Next lesson: Introducing blends (e.g., br, cl, st).

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Why This Lesson Will WOW Teachers!

✅ Engaging, hands-on, and interactive learning.
✅ Structured while offering flexibility for differentiation.
✅ Aligned with Common Core Standards.
✅ Encourages active participation and reinforcement.

This lesson ensures that Year 1 students develop strong phonemic awareness, a core building block for literacy success! 🚀