Materials Needed:

• Age-appropriate books about horses (fiction and non-fiction, simple text)
• Paper (plain and lined)
• Crayons or markers
• Optional: Toy horse figure
• Optional: Letter 'H' flashcard or magnetic letter

Lesson Activities:

1. Introduction: Horse Talk (5 minutes)

Begin by making horse sounds ('Neigh!') or showing the toy horse figure. Ask the student: "What sound does a horse make? What do you know about horses?" Talk briefly about where horses live or what they look like to activate prior knowledge and build excitement.

2. Shared Reading: Horse Story Time (10-15 minutes)

Choose a simple horse-themed book. Say, "Let's read a story about horses!" Read the title and author. While reading, point to the words as you say them. Pause to look at pictures and ask simple questions like, "What color is the horse?" or "What is the horse doing here?" Encourage the student to point to things in the pictures.

3. Letter Focus: H is for Horse! (10 minutes)

Introduce the letter 'H'. "The word 'horse' starts with the letter H! This is uppercase H, and this is lowercase h." (Show flashcard or write them). Make the /h/ sound. "Can you make the /h/ sound?" Practice tracing the letters H and h on paper or in the air. Look back through the horse book together and find examples of the letter 'H'.

4. Sight Word Gallop: 'See' (5-7 minutes)

Introduce the sight word 'see'. Write it clearly on a piece of paper. "This word is 'see'. We use it a lot when we read. Like, 'I see the horse.'" Have the student repeat the word. Look back at a page in the horse book and see if you can find the word 'see' together. Point it out each time it appears. You can even make it a game: "Gallop your finger to the word 'see'!"

5. Creative Corner: Draw a Horse (10 minutes)

Provide paper and crayons. Ask the student, "Can you draw a horse? Or maybe draw your favorite part from our story?" As they draw, you can talk about their picture. Encourage them to write the letter 'H' somewhere on their drawing.

6. Conclusion: Reading Roundup (3-5 minutes)

Review what you learned. "We read a fun story about horses! What letter did we learn today? (H) What sound does it make? (/h/) And what special word did we find? (see)" Praise the student's effort and participation. Display their horse drawing proudly!

Differentiation:

• Support: Use books with very simple, repetitive text. Focus only on uppercase 'H'. Provide dotted lines for tracing letters.
• Challenge: Introduce another sight word from the book (e.g., 'the', 'a', 'run'). Ask more complex comprehension questions ("Why do you think the horse ran away?"). Encourage the student to try writing the word 'horse'.