Pre-K Literacy: Rhyming
Books
An excellent book for teaching rhyming words is The Hungry Thing. I don’t know why Scholastic hasn’t republished this book. It is very hard to find for a decent price; even a used copy is expensive on Amazon. I was lucky enough to get a copy at Goodwill. Check your public and school libraries, and other resources, such as parents or coworkers to borrow a copy.
Activities
Nursery Rhyme
We recite traditional nursery rhymes while doing movements that correspond with them. The movements we use come from Jack Hartmann’s CDs Rhymin’ to the Beat volumes 1 and 2. We learn to recite the rhyme with the movements before doing the song.
Rhyming Basket
Objects are placed in a basket (one object for each child present), and the basket is passed around the circle. As each child gets the basket, I say a word (such as “fizzers”) and they pull out the object that rhymes (“scissors”). You can use any objects, because it doesn’t matter if the rhyming words are real words or nonsense words.
Erase the Rhyme
Draw a picture on a dry erase board, such as grass, sky, tree, flower, and sun. Say a word, such as tower, and have a child come up to erase what rhymes (flower); erase what rhymes with bee (tree); erase what rhymes with fun (sun). Continue until the whole picture is erased. Draw on a dry erase lap board before the children arrive, so that they don’t have to wait while you draw. Usually, after I’ve drawn a few, some of the children will volunteer to draw one for the next day.
Rhyming Match Games
Children match rhyming cards to the pictures on the mat. Print out the mats below.
Rhyming Dice
I made these cards that will fit into the Carson Dellosa Roll & Learn Pocket Cubes (Item #CD-140002). You can also use this printable to make your own dice by recycling a small Priority Mail box or other small cardboard box. Cover the box with wrapping paper or bulletin board paper. Print out the dice printables, cut them out, and glue them onto the sides of the box.
To play: Children take turns rolling the die. When the die stops rolling, the child will look at the picture on top, and say a word that rhymes.
Rhyme Time Pocket Chart
This is just another way to use and display rhyming cards. We use this pocket chart for matching games at circle time, and the children use it during center time.
Rhyming Puzzles
Children match the puzzle pieces that rhyme. (This set came from Lakeshore.)
Rhyming Bingo
You can make your own bingo cards using the printable rhyming cards below, or you can buy a set already made. I have one made by Trend.
Rhyming Cards
You can find packets of rhyming picture card sets at places like Walmart. I also have 3 sets of rhyming picture card printables:
These cards can be used as they are, or they can be glued onto die cut shapes as in the photo below:
Games to Play with Rhyming Cards:
Game 1:
Teacher places 3 rhyming cards on table: 2 rhyme, 1 doesn’t. Children guess which two words rhyme.
Game 2:
Children match pairs of cards that rhyme.
Game 3:
Teacher “deals” out cards to each child. Call on first child to say/show the first card in their stack. Other children look through their cards to find the match. We place matches in the middle of the table.
Rhyming Rings
Hook words that rhyme together on a metal ring. Include a picture with the word. Children flip through the picture cards and say them into a PVC phone. Example: dog, hog, log, fog, jog.
