20-minute lesson
Year 1 English: Letter sounds and first sounds
Lesson objective
- Hear and say the first sound in a spoken word.
- Match a set of common sounds to the letters that represent them.
- Sort words by their first sound.
Success criteria:
- I can say the first sound I hear in a word.
- I can point to the letter that makes that sound.
- I can find two words that start with the same sound.
Materials
- Paper and a thick pencil or crayon
- Small household objects (a cup, a spoon, a sock, a toy car, a pen)
- A shoebox or basket for sorting
Introduction
2 minIntroduce today's words:
- sound: What we hear when we say part of a word, such as the /m/ at the start of 'mum'.
- letter: A written symbol, such as m, a or t. Letters show the sounds in words.
- first sound: The sound we hear at the very beginning of a word.
- alphabet: The set of 26 letters we use to write English.
Ask your child what they already know about letter sounds and first sounds.
Explanation
4 minBefore children can read, they need to hear that spoken words are made of smaller sounds. The easiest sound to notice is the first sound in a word. In 'sun' the first sound is /s/. In 'map' the first sound is /m/.
When we write a sound between slashes, like /s/, we mean the sound, not the letter name. Say the short sound 'sss', not the letter name 'ess'. Keep sounds short and clean: /m/ is 'mmm', not 'muh'.
Letters are how we write sounds down. A good set of sounds to start with is s, a, t, p, i and n, because you can build many little words from them (sat, pin, tap, nap, sit).
- Say a word slowly and stretch the beginning: 'sssssun'.
- Ask, 'What sound do you hear first?'
- Show the letter that makes that sound and trace it together.
Practise little and often. Five minutes of sound games during the day helps more than one long session. Make it playful with 'I spy with my little eye, something beginning with /p/'.
Worked examples
3 minFinding the first sound
What is the first sound in the word 'tap'?
Step 1: Say the word slowly: 't-ap'.
Step 2: Stretch or bounce the first part: /t/ /t/ tap.
Step 3: Ask: what sound did my mouth make first? It was /t/.
Step 4: Point to the letter t.
Answer: The first sound in 'tap' is /t/, written with the letter t.
Sorting objects by first sound
Sort a sock, a spoon and a cup into 'starts with /s/' and 'does not start with /s/'.
Step 1: Say each object's name slowly: 'sssock', 'ssspoon', 'cup'.
Step 2: Listen for /s/ at the start of each word.
Step 3: Sock and spoon start with /s/. Cup starts with /c/.
Step 4: Put sock and spoon in the /s/ basket.
Answer: Sock and spoon start with /s/; cup does not.
Guided practice (do together)
4 min1. Which word starts with the same sound as 'dog'?
(a) cat (b) duck (c) sun
2. What is the first sound in 'moon'?
(a) /m/ (b) /n/ (c) /o/
3. Which word starts with /p/?
(a) bat (b) nest (c) pig
4. Which two words start with the same sound?
(a) sun and sock (b) sun and hat (c) hat and sock
Independent practice
5 min5. A kangaroo starts with which sound?
(a) /g/ (b) /k/ (c) /r/
6. Which letter makes the first sound in 'sat'? Type the letter.
7. Which letter makes the first sound in 'net'? Type the letter.
8. Which letter makes the first sound in 'tin'? Type the letter.
Questions to check understanding
- Can you say the first sound I hear in a word?
- Can you point to the letter that makes that sound?
- Can you find two words that start with the same sound?
- What was the trickiest part today?
Answer guide
1. duck — 'Duck' and 'dog' both start with the /d/ sound.
2. /m/ — Say 'mmmoon'. The first sound is /m/.
3. pig — 'Pig' starts with /p/. 'Bat' starts with /b/ and 'nest' starts with /n/.
4. sun and sock — 'Sun' and 'sock' both begin with /s/.
5. /k/ — Say 'k-angaroo'. The first sound is /k/.
6. s — 'Sat' begins with /s/, which is written with the letter s.
7. n — 'Net' begins with /n/, written with the letter n.
8. t — 'Tin' begins with /t/, written with the letter t.
Review
2 minRecap the success criteria together. Watch for these common misconceptions:
- Using letter names instead of sounds (saying 'em' for /m/). Model the pure sound and use the letter name only when talking about the alphabet.
- Adding an 'uh' to sounds (/m/ said as 'muh'). Clipped sounds make blending much easier later on.
- Listening to the meaning instead of the sound, for example saying 'cat' starts the same as 'dog' because both are animals. Bring attention back to the mouth: 'What did your lips do first?'
Extension activities
- Go on a 'sound hunt' around the house and collect three objects that start with the same sound.
- Make a sound collage by drawing or cutting pictures from old catalogues for one sound.
- Write the letter in sand, flour or shaving foam while saying its sound.
Suggested follow-up
- Revisit letter sounds and first sounds tomorrow with two or three quick questions from memory.
- Try the online practice check for this topic and look at any questions that need another go.
Tips for parents
- Play 'I spy' with sounds during car trips or walks.
- Let your child watch your mouth as you say a sound; many sounds are easier to hear when you can see them.
- Stop while it is still fun. Short, cheerful sessions build confidence.