Educate with Ella

I LOVE this time of year in Kindergarten because students are finally ready for so many different types of Literacy Group activities 👏

We’re not just focusing on phonics anymore… we’re also bringing in phonological awareness skills like syllables, while continuing to build blending and decoding.

Here’s how I’m running this week’s groups 👇

👉 Syllable Bingo

Students take turns picking up a picture card and counting the syllables.

For example:
🍓 strawberry → 3 syllables

I often encourage students to:
• clap
• tap
• or use chin bumps to help count the syllables.

Students then cover the matching number on their game board.

First row or column completed wins bingo.

👉 Syllable Puzzle Sort

Because syllables can be tricky for little learners, I always like to include multiple activities that consolidate the same concept.

Students sort the puzzle pieces by matching the picture to the correct number of syllables.

For example:
• banana → 3
• tap → 1
• hammer → 2

Students can work independently or collaboratively to complete the puzzle.

👉 CVC Real and Nonsense Words

This is where we really start amping up our blending skills.

Students work through the vowel flowers and decide:
• is it a real word?
• or a nonsense word?

For example:
• g*t → nonsense
• get → real

I always include nonsense words because it’s so important for students to practise true blending, rather than just memorising words.

👉 Ch & Sh Memory and Sound Sort

If you’re following the NSW scope and sequence like I am, this is when we start introducing our first digraphs ✨

Students flip over two matching cards, identify the word and then sort it under:
• ch
or
• sh

For example:
• chin → ch

I use Literacy Groups as a chance to consolidate concepts after explicit teaching, while still making learning fun and hands-on.

Can you tell I’m just a little excited for Literacy Groups at this point? 🤭

📥 Comment WEEK 6 if you’d like these activities
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Wait… weren’t we just teaching SATPIN?! 😳

Now we’re already diving into our first digraphs… ch & sh. How did that happen so fast?

One minute it’s single sounds, next minute it’s digraphs and blends coming at us from every direction. Can you tell I’m just a little bit excited 😜?

But here’s the big question… how do you know when it’s time to introduce digraphs?

For me, I’m following the ES1 NSW grapheme and phoneme scope and sequence.

This term it’s focusing on:
• ch
• sh
• th
• ng
• y (as in “my”)

…to name a few.

Do you need to be up to this yet? Absolutely not 🙅🏻‍♀️

Every class is different.

In fact, I ran a poll the other week and single sounds came out as the clear winner.

So if you’re still on CVC or single sounds, please don’t stress.

You’re exactly where your students need you to be 💛

Slow and steady wins the race 🐢

And when you are ready for ch & sh, save this post so you can come back to it when the time is right 💡

Let’s jump in!

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Week 6 Term 2 Literacy ideas:

1️⃣ Syllable bingo
2️⃣ Syllable puzzle
3️⃣ CVC real & nonsense words
4️⃣ Ch Sh memory and sound sort

Like what you see 👀 ?

📥 Comment ‘WEEK 6’ to use these activities with your little learners
❤️ Like this post if it inspired you
💡 Save it so you can easily come back to it later
📲 Tag a teacher friend who would love it too

Okay… this is the week I’ve been waiting for 🤩

We are officially diving into CVC words and there are SO many fun ways to practise blending, segmenting, reading and spelling.

Here’s how I’m running this week’s Literacy Groups 👇

👉 CVC Unscramble the Word

This activity can be played multiple ways, which is why I love it so much.

Students can:
• unscramble the CVC word
• peg the beginning sound
• peg the middle sound
• or peg the ending sound

For example:
ten → peg t

This makes it really easy to differentiate depending on what your students need to focus on.

👉 CVC Write the Room

This has to be one of the most requested activities in my classroom 🤭

Students walk around the room searching for the hidden CVC cards.

When they find one, they head back to their recording sheet and write the matching word.

For example:
• find the card → cat
• return to the sheet → write cat next to the corresponding number

It’s independent, engaging and such a fun way to practise reading and spelling CVC words.

👉 CVC Memory

Another class favourite.

Students flip:
• one picture card
• and one word card

They then read the word and decide whether it matches the picture.

You can:
• keep score
• collect counters
• keep matched pairs
• or adapt the rules however suits your learners

This is such a great consolidation activity for CVC reading.

👉 Sky Grass Dirt Handwriting

I’m also increasing our handwriting focus.

These handwriting mats are:
✔️ differentiated
✔️ editable
✔️ available for single sounds, alphabet and numbers

You can easily adjust the text to match your classroom focus.

Hands-on learning + movement + phonics + writing = my kind of Literacy Groups 💛

📥 Comment WEEK 5 if you’d like these activities
📲 Follow for more weekly Kindergarten Literacy Group ideas

Kindy teachers, this one’s for you!

If you’re teaching CVC words, you won’t want to miss what I’ve got coming your way 👀 .

It’s that time of year when I dive into all things CVC, CCVC and CVCC and over the next few weeks I’ll be spotlighting some of my favourite hands-on, play-based activities from my CVC Mega Bundle 🧠🎉

This bundle is packed with everything you need to build strong CVC reading and writing skills 📚

It’s perfect for learners who are ready to tackle blending and a must-have for your Literacy block.

Stay tuned for ideas, inspo and print-and-go resources to make planning a breeze! 🌟✨

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Week 5 Term 2 Literacy ideas:

1️⃣ CVC unscramble the word & peg the sound
2️⃣ CVC write the room
3️⃣ CVC word & picture cards (SATPIN CKEHRMD sounds)
4️⃣ Sky grass dirt handwriting practice (editable text)

Like what you see 👀 ?

📥 Comment ‘WEEK 5’ to use these activities with your little learners
❤️ Like this post if it inspired you
💡 Save it so you can easily come back to it later
📲 Tag a teacher friend who would love it too