Multisensory Monday- Sammy Loves Fuzzy Zebras
Posted by Brainspring on 10th Aug 2014
Hi everyone,
It’s Multisensory Monday! Before I introduce today’s activity though I want to invite and encourage you to comment with questions you run into as you prepare for the upcoming year. Please also let me know what other things you would like a refresher on. I can’t wait to make another video for you all! Think of me as your personal Phonics First trainer.
Today’s multisensory is an idea I give in the Phonics First Foundations course, but I wanted to show you how the activity can actually look. This is a mnemonic for Foundations Layer 2 Lesson 2: Double f, l, s, and z.
To help your students remember that f,l,s and z are doubled at the end of a one syllable word with a short vowel, teach them this mnemonic : Sammy Loves Fuzzy Zebras.
Sammy Loves Fuzzy Zebras
For this activity you’ll need crayons, cotton balls, glue sticks and paper. I use a print out for the activity (see link below) with images of a boy, heart and zebra with Sammy Loves Fuzzy Zebras printed at the bottom. Feel free to use this template, make your own or have the students do their own illustrations. Also feel free to let students use glitter, stickers or any other decorations in addition to the markers.
First let the students decorate their paper however they want. Color the zebra’s stripes but try to keep his body clean because the glue and cotton will stick better.
Next, pull apart a few cotton balls to make enough fuzz to cover the zebra. Put glue on the zebra’s body and press on the cotton fluff. When it dries, students can pet the “fuzzy” zebra!
Finally make the F, L, S and Z in Sammy Loves Fuzzy Zebras stand out. You can try coloring in the letters, adding glitter, gluing pieces of pipe-cleaner or whatever the students think of.
Remember the Rule
As you do this activity, make sure the students understand how Sammy Loves fuzzy Zebras relates to the double f, l, s and z rule. The first letters of the mnemonic are the letters that need to be doubled. Also stress when these letters are doubled- at the end of a one syllable word with a short vowel.
In case your students ask, here are the reasons for what seem like 2 common exceptions to the rule. “Bus” and “gas” were not originally one syllable words. Both are words that have been shortened. “Bus” was originally “omnibus” and “gas” is short for “gasoline.”
Try Shaving Cream as a Tactile Multisensory
This week Dite at Ladder Learning Services (http://atlantareads.org/) shares how to mix up your multisensory experiences by using shaving cream. Young children especially love getting to practice their letters and sounds in shaving cream. And when you clean up the shaving cream, it leaves sparking clean desks as an added bonus!
