Not a Stick
Blend a beginning consonant or consonant blend with -ick to make words such as stick, pick, and quick.
- Different types of sticks
- Stick graphic
- Letter cards
- Letter cards for word blending
- It is Not a Stick target text
- What Can We Do With a Stick? target text
- Not a Stick by Antoinette Portis (Harper Collins, 2011) (optional)
The children will pretend that a stick is a fishing pole or a wizard's wand while they add sounds to the -ick ending to make words such as stick, sick, pick, lick, and tick.
Pretend that a stick is not a stick
- Read the book Not a Stick by Antoinette Portis with the children (optional).
- Have the children hold a small stick and pretend that it is not a stick (e.g., "It is a fishing pole").
- Show the children different types of sticks (e.g., walking stick, stick of chalk, chop stick, drum stick, glue stick, popsicle stick, pretzel stick, bread stick, stick of candy, tooth pick, chapstick, lipstick, etc.).
- Let the children hold one of the sticks and pretend that it is a different type of stick.
- Have them tell the group about the stick (e.g., "This is not just a stick. It is a chop stick.").
- Read the What Can We Do With a Stick? target text and have the children act out things they can do with a stick.
Change the word stick into a different -ick word
- Show the children the stick graphic and have them read the word stick.
- Have the children place a letter card in front of the -ick ending (covering the letters st) in the word stick.
- Have the children blend the sound(s) on the letter card with the -ick ending to read the new word.
- Repeat with the other letter cards and make a list of the -ick words: lick, pick, kick, wick, quick, brick, flick, click.
Read target words in a text
- Read the It is Not a Stick target text together with the class.
- Have the children underline the words that end in -ick.
- Read the text again, fading support.
- Repeat with the What Can We Do With a Stick? target text.
Blend, segment, and spell
- Have the children make new words by using the word cards for word blending by changing the vowel or the first consonant(s):
- Change the beginning sound: pick → kick; tick → lick; stick → trick
- Change the middle sound: stick → stack; trick → truck; click → clack; lick → lock
Write target words
- Give each child a whiteboard and have them write words from dictation, changing one or two letters each time to make a new word
- tick → lick → lock → sock → sick → pick → pack → quack → quick → stick → kick → wick.
SEEL Target Texts
What Can We Do With a Stick?
We can stick things on a stick.
We can do a trick with a stick.
We can flick a stick.
We can kick a stick.
We can lick a stick.
We can do many things with a stick.
It is Not a Stick
stick of chalk
stick of candy
I guess my stick is not just a stick.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.3.D: Distinguish between similarly spelled words by identifying the sounds of the letters that differ.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.2.C: Blend and segment onsets and rimes of single-syllable spoken words.
Not a Stick