Scarecrow Beginning Sounds Game for Preschoolers
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Since the Fall season is not over, this FREE Scarecrow Beginning Sounds Game is a perfect hands-on addition to your literacy lesson plans and will bring something new for your preschoolers to enjoy while learning.
This game includes a spinner with the letters A, P, F, B, S, T, and C, as well as a recording sheet. You can get it at the end of this post.
Scarecrow Beginning Sounds Game
There’s nothing like using games to motivate your preschoolers to participate in an activity, because games excite them and encourage them to learn more, retain more, and promote a positive attitude toward learning.
This particular game will help your preschoolers:
- Improve their phonemic awareness.
- Work on their sound discrimination.
- Understand that letters are made up of sounds.
- Learn the sounds that these letters make.
- Improve their social skills.
It will also strengthen the children’s language, visual discrimination, concentration and focus, one-to-one correspondence, and fine motor skills.
It can be used in different areas and ways, such as:
- Small group activity.
- Literacy area option.
- Take-home game and Quiet area option.
Getting Your Scarecrow Beginning Sounds Game Ready
This is a low-prep game that will only require:
- Free Scarecrow Beginning Sounds Game (find at the end of this post).
- Printer.
- White cardstock.
- Scissors.
- Laminator
- Small basket or Ziploc bag.
To prepare for the game, you have to print the pages on white cardstock, then laminate the scarecrow spinner and recording sheet, and use a tag to attach the arrow to the spinner. Then have children use a dry-erase marker or a small manipulative like mini erasers, mini fall leaves, mini scarecrows, or bingo chips.
How to Play the Scarecrow Beginning Sounds Game
The rules for this game are straightforward. Children have to use the spinner, look at the letter where the spinner stops, say the sound the letter makes, and mark the picture on the recording mat whose name starts with that sound. The first child to place five consecutive markers in any direction wins the game.
One or two children could play this game. Each child spins the spinner, and when it stops, the child needs to observe the letter, say its sounds, identify which picture’s name on the recording sheet begins with that sound, and place a marker on top. The child who places five consecutive markers in any direction wins the game.
Extension Activities:
To extend the activity, you can:
- Have the children count how many pictures of each type they see, and make a graph with the numbers.
- Write down their own names each time they win.
- You can have the children match the letters with magnetic, wooden, or foam letters as an alternative option for them.
- They can write the letters on separate paper using pencils, markers, or crayons.
- They can find other words that start with the same sounds each letter makes.
Fall-related Storybooks
You know that I believe there is no such thing as too much reading. The more you read to your children, the better. It is essential to keep them interested in books by periodically changing your library to match the theme and season.
These are some good suggestions for Fall. You can find all of these books at your local library, at a used books store, and at Amazon. You can use the links in each title to get them through my Amazon links and grow your library for years to come.
- The Leaf Thief by Alice Hemming uses vibrant art and captivating characters to capture the magic of autumn on each page as readers tag along with Squirrel’s forest adventure.
- Crunchy Leaves, Cozy Sweaters by Essie Bell is an enjoyable book written in rhyme. It shows various activities that everyone can delight in every day throughout the fall.
- What is Fall? by Random House introduces children to the wonders of fall with illustrations, holes to peek through, an autumnal color palette, and simple, rhyming text.
- There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves by Lucille Colandro tells the story of an old lady who swallows some leaves, then clothes, a pumpkin, and a rope to welcome the Fall season, with funny illustrations and a spin on a classic rhyme!
- Pete the Cat Falling for Autumn by James Dean explores how Pete realizes there’s so much to enjoy and be thankful for about autumn when he discovers corn mazes, hayrides, and apple picking.
- A Very Big Fall by Emmy Kastner is the funny and heartwarming story of three adorable autumn leaves, surprised by their turning colors and the promise of the fall to come, perfect for any child who struggles with change.
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar’s First Fall by Eric Carle will teach children about seasonal sensory experiences, such as looking at leaves as they change color, listening to the whooshing wind, feeling the warmth of a cozy sweater, and more.
- We’re Going on a Leaf Hunt by Steve Metzger uses accessible rhyming text and fun sound effects to tell the story of three friends who have a big adventure hiking over a mountain and through a forest to collect leaves of all kinds and colors.
- Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson will encourage children to share feelings of wonder and empathy as they listen to the story of Fletcher the fox, who is concerned about nature and wants to understand the changing seasons.
I hope your kids enjoy this game as much as mine did! And don’t forget to grab your FREE game. Just click on the link below for an immediate download.
Be happy, safe, and creative. I wish you well.
Love,
P.D. Please let me know if this game worked for you or if I need to add or replace something. My goal is to help you in any way I can.
