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The Brown Bag Teacher

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Making Phonics Fun: Phonics Name Tags

Phonics is a *huge* part of setting a foundation for reading and in 1st grade, we spent a significant chuck of our day working on identifying sounds and word parts. (Don’t panic – it’s in healthily balance to other word-solving strategies and lots of practicing reading real books!). My group of learners is significantly lower than my group last year, and word study is going to be HUGE this year. We need lots of exposure to many different words throughout the WHOLE day, not just in reading. So, after finding some brand-new Sparco name tags in my classroom, it was time to rename my 1st graders with Short A words (our phonics focus of the week).

When typing Short A words, I chose 3 levels of words (simple CVC words, blends_CVC words, and short a words with digraphs). As I passed out names to my 1st graders, I did pick specific names for specific students. I wanted all my friends to feel successful but I also wanted to have a word that was challenging for them (i.e. they could use their word-solving clues to figure it out). Since we are only a few weeks into school, I did take the time to underline connected sounds on the Level 2 and Level 3 words.

I printed my words on white paper because I intended for students to illustrate their word but we ran short on time, but you could definitely print these on colored card stock and laminate them for future uses (write the rooms, memory, abc order at work work, word sorts, etc.)

After receiving our name tags, we had a Short A fashion show with each friend parading in front of the class, and I introduced their new name is a goofy voice. We all cheered for our ‘new’ friend. Once all our Short A friends where introduced, we starting working with the words. We played several rounds of Stand Up, Hand Up, Pair Up (a Kagan Structure) so students had the opportunity to introduce themselves to their classes (i.e. practice reading all different types of short a words). Then, we played inside circle/outside circle (read Primary Presses post for a great explanation of this structure) introducing ourselves and practicing using our partner’s word in context.
Finally, we partnered up and I gave each team a sentence strip. Students works together to create 1 sentence with their two Short A words. Friends, this was TOUGH. As I visited my pairs, several friends were writing sentences that made zero sense, so we had to regroup. After handing out new, sentence strips we were ready to go!
We met back on the carpet and partners shared their work. We then did a call/response of the sentence emphasizing the Short A words we heard. A few eager beavers even slipped in a few extra Short A words into their sentences (had, at, etc.). It’s always a blast to see my friends love learning!

Throughout the entire day, I called students by their new Short A names. Then, after lunch, we traded names with a friend. It was such a simple activity but one my fiends absolutely LOVED. Their giggles and smiles told me I’ll make Phonics Nametags a regular routine! 
Plus, how could I not love this Plus at our end of our day reflection? “My name got switched to glass.” Oh how first grade is the best! ๐Ÿ™‚
You can grab these simple, no-frills name cards for free here. If these cards aren’t ‘just-right’ for your friends, no worries! All I did was type words into a simple table in Microsoft Word. It takes also no time or technical ability. So, it’s simple to change-out the words to meet the needs of your classroom and students!

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  4. Gina says

    Hello! Love, love this activity! Thanks for sharing! Just wondering if you do this daily and about how long it takes you?
    Thanks, Gina

    Reply

    • Catherine says

      Hey Gina! Typically I do this one every two weeks (sometimes everyweek). It typically takes 2 10 minute blocks, but I can always adjust it for fewer or more minutes!

      Reply

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