Syllables Activities

1. Drum Beat
   Use a drum to beat out the syllables of the children’s names. Have the children echo the beat by tapping on their desktops as they say the names with you.


2. Whose Name
   Pound a drum, or some other percussion instrument, two times to represent a two-syllable name. Ask the children to raise their hands if they have a name that matches that beat. Continue by varying the number of beats.


3. What Word?
   Take a familiar rhyme and ask the children to find words that have one, two, and three syllables. Ask them to name a word in the rhyme whose syllables match the beat.


4. Syllable Rhymes
   Have the children clap to each word in a rhyme or rhyming story. Then, have them clap to each syllable.


5. Chin Chopper
   Have the children say a variety of words of different syllabic length while holding their chins. You can use the following rhyme prior to saying each word and feeling for the syllables in the chin movement:
   

   	Place your hand beneath your chin.
   	Close your mouth and then begin.

   
   
6. Head and Shoudlers
   Starting at the top of your body, touch a different part for each syllable as you move down to your toes (head-shoulders-knees-toes). A four-syllable word, such as Alexander, will get you from head to toe. A two-syllable word, such as Jose, will go only to the shoulder. Try using the following rhyme prior to saying each word:

   	Head and shoulders,
   	Knees and toes.
   	Just how low
   	Can your word go?

   Start with names. What would you do with a five-syllable name? Try using other words.


7. Syllable Sort
   Have the children sort picture cards and word cards according to the number of syllables they hear. Use a pocket chart or floor mats with numbers on them to categorize the cards.


8. Syllable Puzzles
   Have the children illustrate pictures of objects and animals. Then, cut up the pictures according to the number of syllables they hear. Have the children write their own name or the name of several favorite animals and then cut them apart according to the syllable breaks.


9. Syllable Song
   Sing the traditional song, Three Jolly Fishermen. Place the words on sentence strips and point to the words as you sing the song together. Once the children are familiar with the song, point out how the author played with the syllables in the words.


10. Daily News
    Have the children find one-, two-, and three-syllable words in the daily news.

"I've seen tremendous growth in the teachers since we began our Breakthrough training. Their communication with each other has risen to a more professional level."

Rose Marie Velazquez
Principal
McKinley Elementary School
East Chicago, Indiana