Lesson Plan: CVC Word Wizards

Materials Needed

• Letter tiles, magnetic letters, or flashcards (for consonants and vowels)
• Picture cards of simple CVC (Consonant-Vowel-Consonant) words (e.g., cat, dog, sun, pig, map, ten)
• A favorite simple storybook
• Whiteboard and marker, or large paper and crayon
• Optional: A small tray with sand, salt, or shaving cream for sensory writing
• Optional (for extension): Blank paper and pencil/crayons

Learning Objectives

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

• Say the sound for several different letters.
• Listen to three sounds and blend them together to make a word (like c-a-t makes "cat").
• Build a simple three-letter word using letter tiles when you see a picture of it.

Lesson Structure

Part 1: Introduction (The Hook) - 5 Minutes

Becoming a Word Wizard

Educator says: "Guess what? Today, we are going to become Word Wizards! Wizards know a special magic secret: every letter makes its own sound. When we learn the sounds, we can put them together to make words. It’s like a magic spell! Our first job is to warm up our wizard voices. Let’s practice some letter sounds I know you already know."

• Hold up a few letter cards (like m, s, a, t) one by one.
• Ask: "What sound does this letter make?"
• Make the sounds together in a fun, exaggerated way. (/m/ is for yummy food, /s/ is a sneaky snake).

Part 2: The Body (I Do, We Do, You Do) - 15-20 Minutes

Section A: I Do - Modeling the Magic (5 minutes)

Educator says: "Okay, Word Wizard, watch my magic! I have a picture of a... cat. To spell 'cat', I need to listen for all the sounds. Listen closely: /c/ /a/ /t/."

1. Say the first sound clearly: "/c/". Find the letter 'c' tile and place it down. "The first sound is /c/, so I need the letter c."
2. Say the middle sound: "/a/". Find the letter 'a' tile and place it next to the 'c'. "The middle sound is /a/, so I need the letter a."
3. Say the last sound: "/t/". Find the letter 't' tile and place it at the end. "The last sound is /t/, so I need the letter t."
4. Slide your finger under the letters and blend them together slowly, then faster. "Now for the magic spell! /c/-/a/-/t/... cat! We built the word 'cat'!"

Section B: We Do - Practicing Spells Together (5-7 minutes)

Educator says: "Now, let’s do some magic together! Here is a picture of a... pig. What's the very first sound you hear in 'pig'?"

• Guide the learner to say "/p/". Ask them to find the letter 'p' tile.
• "Great! Now, what's the middle sound in p-i-g?" Guide them to say "/i/" and find the 'i' tile.
• "Perfect! What's the last sound you hear in p-i-g?" Guide them to say "/g/" and find the 'g' tile.
• Place the letters together and say, "Let’s do the magic spell together! Put your finger under the letters and help me say the sounds." Blend the word together: /p/-/i/-/g/... pig!
• Repeat with one or two more words, like 'sun' or 'map'. For a multi-sensory option, have the child trace the letters in the sensory tray as you find them.

Section C: You Do - Your Turn to be the Wizard! (5-8 minutes)

Educator says: "You are an amazing Word Wizard! Now I have a secret mission for you. I'm going to give you a picture, and your job is to use your magic to build the word all by yourself."

• Give the learner a picture card (e.g., 'dog') and a small selection of letter tiles (include the correct letters d, o, g, plus a few others like c, a, t, m).
• Watch as they try to sound out the word and find the letters. Offer gentle prompts if needed, like "What sound do you hear at the beginning of 'dog'?"
• Celebrate their success enthusiastically! "Wow! You found /d/, /o/, and /g/ to spell dog! That's amazing wizardry!"
• Let the child choose another picture and build the word.

Part 3: Conclusion (Recap & Real-World Hunt) - 5 Minutes

Finding Magic Words Everywhere

Educator says: "You did it! You are officially a Word Wizard. What was the magic secret we learned today?" (Guide them to say that letters make sounds and we can put them together to make words).

"Let's quickly remember the words we built today: cat, pig, dog. Great job!"

Real-World Connection: "The best part about being a Word Wizard is that you can find magic words everywhere! Let's look in this book."

• Open a favorite simple storybook and hunt for one or two of the CVC words you practiced (or another simple one like 'the' or 'and').
• Point to the word and say, "Look! There's a magic word! Let's see if we can sound it out together."

Assessment & Success Criteria

• Formative (During the lesson): Observe during the "We Do" and "You Do" sections. Is the child able to identify the beginning, middle, and end sounds with help? Can they match a sound to the correct letter tile? Use your observations to know if you should offer more support or move to a harder word.
• Summative (End of lesson): During the "You Do" activity, the learner successfully builds at least one 3-letter CVC word independently by looking at a picture card.
• Success looks like: The learner can say the sounds for p, i, g, and then push the letter tiles together while saying "pig."

Differentiation & Adaptability

• For Learners Needing More Support (Scaffolding):
  • Focus on just the first sound. "This is a map. Can you find the letter that makes the /m/ sound?"
  • Provide only the three letters needed for the word instead of a larger selection.
  • Work on just one word family, like -at (cat, bat, hat), so only the first sound changes.
• For Learners Ready for a Challenge (Extension):
  • After building a word, ask the learner to try writing it on paper or a whiteboard.
  • Challenge them to change one letter to make a new word (e.g., "Can you change 'cat' to 'bat'? Which letter do you need to swap?").
  • Ask them to use the word in a silly sentence. "The pig... is on my head!"
• For a Classroom or Group Setting:
  • I Do: Model on a large whiteboard with magnetic letters for all to see.
  • We Do: Have students shout out the sounds or write the letters in the air with their "magic finger wands."
  • You Do: Have students work in pairs or at individual learning centers with their own set of pictures and letters.