Consonants Introduction

Grade Level:  Kindergarten

Consonants produce sounds that are more consistent and easier to identify than vowels.  Therefore, they make a good starting point for learning to read.

Initially, work should be done on identifying beginning consonant sounds (ex:  t-t-t tulip).

After that, activities can focus on identifying final consonant sounds (ex:  cat ends with the t-t-t sound)

When children learn to recognize the sounds of consonants at the beginning and end positions of words, they gain the ability to look at a word and make a reasonable guess as to what it might be.  Viewing the word in the context of a picture will help reinforce this skill.

(for example, a picture of a dog with the word DOG underneath.  The ability to sound out the D and G letters will help the child identify that the word is DOG, not puppy or dalmation)