Zap That Hat

Phonics and Phonological Awareness Fluency

short-a CVC words

Max, had, hat, Jax, sad, mad, at, bad, pal, zap, lab, tap, dab

it, is, look, a

that, flat, glad, new

• Whole group
• Small group
• Technology time

• From the Storyworks 1 archive: “Sam the Yam" (September 2022); "Mud Bath" (October/November 2022)
• Suggested books: The Three Little Aliens and the Big Bad Robot by Margaret McNamara; National Geographic Readers: Robots by Melissa Stewart; Unplugged by Steve Antony

• Word sounds slideshow (3 minutes) Warm up reading muscles by practicing short-a CVC words.

Phonics and comprehension (20 minutes)

• Review short vowel sounds with students. Isolate and practice the short-a sound. Discuss the mouth shape when making the short-a sound.
• Practice the CVC short-a pattern by creating a word ladder. Using a dry-erase easel, write the following words in sequential order by erasing the changing letter:
  • sad → mad → had → hat
• Review high-frequency words from the story. Students can practice reading words with a partner, as a class, and individually.
• As children read, check comprehension: What did Max have? Why was Max mad? How was Jax going to fix the hat? What does it mean to be a pal? Where does Jax zap the hat? Is the hat at the end of the story the same as at the beginning? How do Max and Jax feel at the end of the story?
• Have students review the story and highlight words with the short-a CVC pattern. They can practice by reading words aloud.

• Skills: Phonics

Nosey Digs Phonics game (10 minutes) 

• This interactive game provides fun practice with reading short-a CVC words.