Rationale: This lesson will help children identify /m/, the phoneme represented by M. Students will learn to recognize /m/ in spoken words by learning a sound analogy (we say mm-m-m when something is really good). Students will also practice finding /m/ in words and using phoneme awareness with /m/ in phonetic cue reading by distinguishing rhyming words from beginning letters.
Materials:
-
Primary paper
-
Pencil
-
Me on the Map by Joan Sweeney
-
Word cards with MAP, MAKE, MOP, MILK, MAD, and MAN
-
Crayons
-
Mirror
-
Worksheet with pictures to help identify words with /m/ (link at bottom of page)
-
Chart with tongue tickler: “Max the monster makes muffins.”
Procedures:
1. Say: Today we are going to help Max make muffins. [Distribute small mirrors to the students.] First
we are going to practice watching our mouth move in the mirror when we say /m/. We can spell /m/
with the letter M. M sounds like saying mm-m-m when a muffin tastes really good.​
​
2. Now we are going to pretend like we are tasting Max’s muffins. If they are really good we say mm-m
m. Just like the sound the letter M makes. /m/ /m/ /m/. I want you to watch my lips when I say /m/.
When I say /m/ my lips touch each other. Let’s all look in the mirror and practice saying mm-m-m so
make the sound of the letter M.
​
3. Now I’m going to show you how to find /m/ in Moon. I’m going to stretch the word out super slow
so that you can hear the sound the letter M makes which is /m/. Mm-oo-n. I’m going to say it again
even slower. Pay attention to the /m/ sound that we can make when something is really good.
Slower: mmmm-oo-n. Did you see how my lips touched each other in mmmmm-oo-n? The /m/
sounds like something you say when the muffins are super good.
​
4. Now let’s try a tongue tickler (on chart). Max loves to make dessert. He likes to make macaroons,
chocolate mud pie, and marshmallow mousse. One day Max the monster wants to make something
different. Max the monster makes muffins. Max the monster makes muffins is our tongue tickler.
We are going to say it again and this time I want everyone to repeat after me. Let’s say it two more
times. Now I’m going to say it slow so that you can hear the /m/ sound. Mm-ax the mm-onster mm
akes mm-uffins. Did you see how I stretched out the /m/ at the beginning of the words? Now I want
you to try saying it sounding out the /m/. Awesome! Now let’s say it one more time and this time try
to break the /m/ off the words. For example, /M/ ax. Now let’s say the entire sentence together:
“/M/ax the /m/onster /m/akes /m/uffins.”
5. Good job practicing our tongue ticker! Now I want you to practice writing the letter M that is used
to make the sound /m/, so let’s get out our primary paper and a pencil. I will show you how to write
it first. To write a capital M, we are going to go straight down, down the slide, up the slide, and
straight down again. We are also going to learn how to write the lowercase m. I will show you first.
To write a lowercase m, you go straight down, hump around, hump around, and go straight back
down. Now I want you to practice on your own. I will come around and look at your capital M and
lowercase m and help you if you need it. Once I say your first practice letters look good, I want you
to practice writing capital M and lowercase m ten times each. When you are done, raise your hand
and if it looks good, then you will get a sticker on your paper.
6. Now that everyone is done practicing writing capital M and lowercase m, we are now going to work
on hearing /m/. I am going to give you two words and I want you to tell me what word you hear /m/
in. Do you hear /m/ in map or rat?….moon or soon?….man or kid? Awesome! Let’s try a few more. If
you hear /m/ in the words, I want you to say mm-m-m. Try to watch and see if my lips touch to
make the /m/. Ok? Let’s try…do you hear /m/ in mother or father?.....mad or happy?....mop or
sweep?
7. Now let’s look at a book to see if we can find words that have the letter sound /m/ in it. This book,
Me on the Map by Joan Sweeney, is about all the different places you can see on a map. A little girl
will show us a map of her room, her house, and her street. To find out what else she will show us on
the map, we will have to read Me on the Map. [Read the book and point out a few words that have
/m/. Then ask the students if they heard any other words with /m/ in the book or if could they think
of any of their own. Discuss some of their examples and model /m/ again if necessary.]
8. [In order to assess the students, give them the worksheet. In the worksheet, the students have to
color the pictures that have /m/. Do one or two of the pictures as examples so that the students
know what to do then have then do the remaining of the worksheet.]
9. Once students finish the worksheet, review it by having the students raise their hands to tell the
class which pictures they colored.
References:
-
Beck, Mary Margret. Emergent Literacy Design: “Getting Ready to Eat with M.” "Getting Ready to Eat with M" By Mary Margret Beck
-
Sweeney, J., & Leng, Q. (2018). Me on the map. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
-
Assessment worksheet: Pictures with the letter M.
-
Other lesson designs/materials for reading: Reading Genie
​
​