Resource 3: Letter, sound and word games

‘Letters and Sounds’

Oral activity: Say the sound of a letter (for example, ‘rrrr’). Students must say words that start with that letter (for example, ‘rain’ or ‘rabbit’). Let them give responses in English or in Hindi.

Reading and listening activity: Write a letter on the board, for example, the letter ‘f’. Then say the sound of a different letter, for example the sound of ‘g’ (‘gh’) or a word that starts with the letter such as ‘goat’. The students must raise their hands if they think the letter or word you say matches the letter on the board. You can monitor which students are following the lesson. Try this with different letters, sounds and words.

‘Guess What I See?’

This game can be used with any level. Choose a word for something that you can see in the classroom (e.g. ‘pen’, ‘door’, ‘chair’). Don’t say which word it is. It should be a word at least most of the class will know. Then say, ‘Guess what I see? I see something beginning with … and then say the sound of the first letter, for example ‘p’, ‘d’ or ‘ch’. Students must guess the words. Practise the pronunciation of each word as it is guessed.

When students are familiar with the game, they can play it in groups or pairs, or students can take turns to lead the class.

‘Word Ladder’

Students can refer to their textbooks for this activity. This game starts by listing one word, such as ‘pen’. The next player or team has to say a word that starts with the final sound of the previous word; for example, ‘nest’. The game proceeds further, with the next player or team saying a word that begins with the sound ‘t’, and so on.

‘Is it the Same?’

Divide the class into two or more teams. Write a selection of around 12 words from recent lessons on the board. Point to one word (for example, ‘page’) and say a word. The word you say can be the word you are pointing at or another word with some similarities (such as ‘play’ or ‘plane’). Choose a student, who must then say ‘It is the same’ or ‘It is not the same’, depending on whether the word you’ve pointed to is the same as the word you’ve said. A correct answer wins one point for the team. Now ask a student on the other team.

Continue in this way. After a while, wipe the first group of words off the board, and write up another group of words and repeat. Repeat again as required, keeping the scores on the board.

‘Paint the Word’

For young students, this game can be used with single letters of the alphabet. For more advanced students, the activity can be used with words.

Mime painting a letter or word from recent lessons and/or the current lesson, using big, bold strokes, as if holding a paint brush as high above your head as you can. Remember to face away from the students, as if you are writing on the blackboard, or your writing will be back to front from the students’ point of view! Ask who can guess the letter or word. The first student to guess correctly wins a round of applause from the rest of the class. Continue with further letters or words, and then ask the students to take turns to mime painting the letters and words themselves.

‘Guess the Word’

Start writing a word from recent lessons or the current lesson on the board. When you have written the first two letters, invite guesses about the word. If nobody is correct, add a third letter, and so on, until somebody guesses the word correctly. If you wish, the first student to guess the word can come to the board, and take over the role of writing (you may need to help with this, however).

‘Sit Down!’

This activity can be used with any level and using any letter or pair of letters. The example below uses ‘sh’.

Write the letters ‘sh’ on the board. Everybody must stand. Say a word from the current and previous lessons. If it contains ‘sh’, the students must sit down; if not, they remain standing. If standing up or sitting down will be difficult in your classroom, students can raise and lower their hands instead. Responding physically in a lesson can be a fun and memorable way to learn.

‘Alphabet Board Game’

This is a game for groups and it is appropriate for more advanced learners, from Class II onwards, who have been introduced to the names of letters, as well as their sounds. You will need to prepare the resources.

On a large piece of cardboard, write out the letters of the alphabet in sequence, preparing one board game per group. Give the students a die per group. They roll a number and move to the appropriate letter. When they land on a letter, they must say the name of the letter, its sound, and also a word that starts with that letter.